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HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania's governor is setting up a new charter schools office within the state Department of Education to improve support and oversight.
Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf on Wednesday said the Division of Charter Schools will help set goals for students, boost parental involvement and increase public accountability.
Education Secretary Pedro Rivera says the change is part of a series of efforts related to charter schools, aiming to ensure they're held to the same standards as other public schools.
The four-employee division will review the schools' financial and educational programs, increase visits to the schools and focus on cyber-charter school reauthorizations.
Pennsylvania has about 160 brick-and-mortar charter schools and 14 cyber-charters .
Wolf proposed establishing a charter school office during his 2014 gubernatorial campaign.
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