IDEA Public Schools Founder/CEO and Co-Founder/Superintendent to be Inducted to the National Charter School Hall of Fame

Austin, TX (June 19, 2018) Last month, The National Alliance for Public Charter Schools announced that Tom Torkelson, IDEA’s CEO and Founder, and JoAnn Gama, IDEA’s Co-Founder, President, and Superintendent, would be inducted into the 2018 National Charter School Hall of Fame. They will be officially inducted into the Hall of Fame at the 2018 National Charter School Conference (NCSC18) on June 19 in Austin, Texas.

Over the next four years, IDEA will expand to serve 100,000 students at 173 schools in 10 regions across the country. In August, IDEA will expand to El Paso, Texas, in addition to opening schools outside of the state of Texas for the first time in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. This expansion is due to the success of IDEA’s current schools. IDEA will grow to 14 schools in 2019, serving 4,500 students in Pflugerville, Austin and Kyle.

“Our leaders, teachers and staff are all proving what is possible when you have individuals who are committed to providing a great education for all students,” said Tom Torkelson, CEO and Founder of IDEA Public Schools. “Since IDEA opened its first school 18 years ago, our teachers and staff have continued to improve, innovate, and provide the highest quality education possible for our students who we know can and will succeed in college and in life.”

WHAT

The National Alliance for Public Charter Schools to induct Tom Torkelson, IDEA’s CEO and Founder, and JoAnn Gama, IDEA’s Co-Founder, President, and Superintendent, into the 2018 National Charter School Hall of Fame.

WHO

IDEA Public Schools

Tom Torkelson, IDEA CEO and Founder

JoAnn Gama, IDEA Co-Founder, President and Superintendent

The National Charter School Alliance

WHEN

Tuesday, June 19, 2018

4:15 p.m.

WHERE

Austin Convention Center – Grand Ballroom (Level 4)

500 E. Cesar Chavez St.

WHY

The National Charter Schools Hall of Fame was established to recognize individuals and organizations who have had a profound and lasting impact on the charter school movement. The 2018 honorees will join 35 esteemed inductees since the Hall of Fame’s inception in 2007.

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