If you’re not already a regular reader of Whitney Tilson’s School Reform Blog, there’s no time like the present.

Tilson’s blog provides cogent analysis and updates on education reform efforts. You can also sign up to receive regular emails. In a recent email, Tilson called CSF a “wonderful charity” and spotlighted a presentation about Mount Carmel-Holy Rosary School in East Harlem, where almost half the student body attend with CSF scholarships. You can download the PowerPoint presentation here.

He also stressed the value of diversity in education options for low-income families:

A lot of what I write about relates to charter schools, but by no means do I think charters are THE solution – they’re one of the 100 1% solutions that are necessary. In many cities and states, there are few/no charters schools and the public schools are terrible, so what alternatives are available? In many cases, the answer is Catholic schools. I think it’s nothing short of insane to, for example, spend nearly $20,000/student for a NYC public school that’s failing miserably, while a Catholic school right down the block shuts down due to lack of funds despite achieving real success with the same students spending only $5,000/student. Thus, I am a big supporter of carefully targeted voucher/tax-credit scholarship programs…

Tilson, a hedge fund manager and author, co-founded Democrats for Education Reform and also serves on the board of KIPP Academy in the Bronx.