The majority of charter schools are built on a foundation of educational theory such as Waldorf, Montessori, or Piaget. Feinberg and Levin, short on time, instead followed the principles of Butch Cassidy: they stole. They located their district's best teachers and nabbed lesson plans, teaching techniques, management ideas, schedules, rules—everything. Feinberg and Levin would later be called “innovative,” but at the time they were about as innovative as a shoplifter during a blackout. “We took every good idea that wasn't nailed down,” Feinberg said. “We took everything but the kitchen sink,
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