Elementary School Student Is Beaten By Program Director

Case Overview

This case involves an 8-year-old who was beaten at a tutoring center by the center’s director. The child sustained a black eye and required a neck brace. A former instructor at the center attests that the director had a habit of engaging in inappropriate and aggressive behavior. Purportedly, the center represented to parents that it had affiliations with charter schools in the area. However, the precise classification of the center is as yet unclear. An expert in school safety was sought to review the case and address the appropriate classification for this institution and comment on the standard of care.

Questions to the Education expert and their responses

How might you differentiate between private schools, charter schools, and tutoring centers?

Tutoring centers vary significantly in terms of quality of personnel and degree of certification of personnel. Charter schools also vary in terms of authorization, operation, and capacity to serve low-income children.

About the expert

This expert has over 20 years of experience in education policy and specializes in research on tutoring programs, K-12 education, and program evaluation as it relates to quality and equity. She earned her MA in education from Harvard University and went on to complete an MA in sociology and a PhD in education at Stanford University. As a fellow of the National Education Policy Center and as a member of the US Department of Education Institute of Education Sciences, this expert is active in her field and has published extensively in prestigious peer-reviewed journals including the Journal of Education Policy, Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, and the Peabody Journal of Education. Her work has also been covered by popular media outlets including the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, The Atlantic, and National Public Radio. Currently, she serves as the director of the Center for Education Policy, Equity and Governance at a prominent university in southern California, where she also serves as the chair of the Ph.D. program in education and as an associate professor of education.