On average, the funding gap between charter schools and traditional schools is 22 percent, or $1,800 per pupil. The average charter school ends up with a total funding shortfall of nearly half a million dollars.
Source: Charter School Funding: Inequity’s Next Frontier
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National Charter Schools Conference Program Now Online During National Charter Schools Conference
The 124 sessions to be presented at the 2007 National Charter Schools Conference are available for viewing online at the conference website. Conference strands include: Charter School Design; Instruction and Leadership; Charter School Funding, Facilities and Finance; Performance and Accountability; Advocacy and Messaging; Policy Environment; Governance and Operations; and State of the Movement. Keynote speakers include US Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings, Newsweek Magazine Editor Jon Meacham, and Kevin Johnson Founder of St. HOPE Public Schools. Register today to join 3,000 colleagues in Albuquerque, New Mexico April 24th–27th to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the charter school movement. For questions, call 206-463-3344 or e-mail nationalconference@publiccharters.org.
Source: National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, (03/01/2007)
Also See
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Bloomberg Plans Aggressive Push to Lift Charter Cap in New York
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is planning a significant push to lift the state cap on the number of charter schools now that Governor Eliot Spitzer, who has voiced support for charters, has taken office. The mayor's lobbying office is in the final stages of defining the mayor's new agenda and officials say the top two priorities have been determined: securing the maximum amount of education funding support from Gov. Spitzer and gaining approval for more charter schools. "Charter schools are something that need to be addressed soon," said Farrell Sklerov, a spokesman for the mayor's office of legislative affairs. "We're obviously hopeful that we'll be able to lift the cap in time to have charter schools opened for the next school year." Peter Murphy of the New York Charter Schools Association said the new political atmosphere in Albany "bodes well for any kind of agenda the mayor wants."
Source: New York Sun, (01/03/2007)
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Florida School Boards File Suit Against New Charter School Authorizer
Broward, Palm Beach and seven other county school boards in Florida have sued the state Department of Education, arguing that the power granted to the new Florida Schools of Excellence Commission is unconstitutional. Last year, the legislature created the commission to allow charter developers to bypass school districts and apply directly to the independent, seven-member panel. The lawsuit claims the commission strips local school boards of their constitutional rights. Charter school advocates support the new authorizing body, saying it is more objective. "The lawsuit is premature considering that the commission hasn't done anything yet," said Lynn Norman-Teck of the Florida Consortium of Charter Schools. "Give it a chance to work." School districts can appeal to the commission to retain exclusive control over charters, which two counties did in November. The state board is expected to determine in April who may maintain exclusive authority.
Source: Sun Sentinel, (01/02/2007)
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California Catholic Educators Feel Impact of Charter School Popularity
Charter school enrollment is expanding all over California, while Catholic school enrollment has taken a nosedive. The change is felt most significantly in Oakland as its Catholic elementary school population has dropped by more than a third in just five years. Between 2000 and 2005, the city lost its Catholic students at twice the rate of other large urban areas in the United States. Reasons given include low birth rates and high Bay Area housing prices, as well as the increasing popularity of charter schools. Charter schools are opening all over Oakland, drawing children who might have otherwise attended Catholic schools. At least three charters have opened at former Catholic school sites. Catholic educators are regarding charter schools as both a rival and a partner. They know they need to distinguish their educational system to stay open, but they also value the new opportunities charters bring to children in inner-city neighborhoods.
Source: Inside Bay Area, (01/02/2007)
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Some California Districts Warming Up to Chartering
The flexibility of charter schools is attracting more California districts to chartering. Of the 620 charter schools operated in California, at least one-third have been proposed and run by school districts, said Keith Edmonds, a state Department of Education consultant. In 2006, awareness campaigns and new startup funding put charter schools in the spotlight. About 70 to 75 charters are approved per year, according to the California Charter School Association. Edmonds said some district officials believe charter schools threaten the concept of local control. In a district with declining enrollment, a charter school is viewed as draining financial resources since the money follows the student, he said. Still, he said, districts might look to charter schools for high quality, accountability, and a choice for families.
Source: The Press-Enterprise, (12/31/2006)
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Growing Waitlists in Michigan Increase Pressure to Raise Cap
Over five percent of Michigan's school children attend charter schools and thousands of students are on waitlists. The growing waitlists have advocates pushing the state to lift the 150-school cap. "We have roughly 50 groups that are interested in starting charter schools, but most of them are waiting on the sidelines because when there are no charters available, you really have to look yourself in the face and wonder why go through the effort," said Jim Goenner of Central Michigan University's Center for Charter Schools. The prospect of lifting the cap soon does not look hopeful as the new House speaker Andy Dillon wants to reduce funding for elementary and middle charters and limit the main source of new charters in the state, Bay Mills Community College, which is governed by federal, not state law, and is not under the cap. "We need a fair and level playing field between charters and public schools," said Dan Farough, a Dillon spokesman.
Source: Detroit News, (12/31/2006)
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Mississippi Community Seeks to Bring KIPP to State
Excited by a visit to an Arkansas KIPP school, a community group in Clarksdale, Mississippi is seeking to open a KIPP at home. "It was an amazing experience to see the discipline and the willingness to learn at the KIPP school," said community leader Bill Luckett of his group's trip to the Helena school. "The results are already showing after just a few years." State Rep. John Mayo said he is reluctant to support the push. "What you all are asking for is changes in legislation, and I don't mind telling you I've opposed it for the last three years because … you do not have the African-American community involved," he said. "If you want my support, I want unanimous consent to those resolutions from the city and county boards. And then I want you to get black leaders in this community to get involved." Supporter Lynn Espy said that African Americans would become more involved with the movement if the word is spread about the KIPP program.
Source: Clarksdale Press Register, (12/29/2006)
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