Grand Rapids Public Schools (GRPS) considers its one charter, Grand Rapids Child Discovery Center, as “part of the district’s portfolio of school choices,” Mary Jo Kuhlman, assistant superintendent of organizational learning at GRPS, said. “GRPS is working with Grand Rapids Child Discovery Center to explore more ways to connect the school and district to leverage central office support services such as professional development, evaluations, information technology services and more.” Like Honey Creek,
Grand Rapids Child Discovery Center is the only school authorized by the charter authorizer.
And while the school has struggled in the past, it has made some major strides in recent years. For example, between 2010 and 2013, low-income student proficiency rates on the math state assessment has nearly doubled. To put this in perspective, low-income students far out-pace low-income students in Kent Intermediate School District and the state overall. Undoubtedly, the strong relationship between the charter school and their authorizer helped facilitate such significant improvement.
