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 (New Orleans, June 22-25)
The National Alliance for Public Charter Schools will host the 2008 National Charter Schools Conference from June 22-25 in New Orleans, LA. "Still We Rise: Achieving Academic Excellence at Scale" is the conference theme, reflecting the growth of quality public charter schools across America. The theme has special resonance in New Orleans, which boasts the nation's largest percentage of public charter school enrollment. Register for the conference or apply to sponsor/exhibit at http://www.nationalcharterconference.org. The conference is the largest gathering of charter school operators and proponents in the nation. Geoffrey Canada, President and Chief Executive Officer for the Harlem Children's Zone, will offer the keynote speech. Attendees will learn and share best practices, discuss national and state policy issues, have the opportunity to volunteer at local charter schools, and enjoy special events featuring New Orleans traditions, food and music! Questions? Call 206-463-3344 or e-mail nationalconference@publiccharters.org.
Source: National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, (03/01/2008)
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Charter Groups and Los Angeles District Settle Facilities Lawsuit
Last week, the Los Angeles Board of Education approved a settlement requring the district to inventory all its properties and work directly with charter schools to find space. The proposed settlement would end two lawsuits brought by the California Charter Schools Association and two charter-management organizations, Green Dot Public Schools and Partnerships to Uplift Communities. In their lawsuits, filed last May, the groups argued that LAUSD failed to meet is responsibilities under Proposition 39, which mandates that districts share public school facilities fairly among all public school students, including those attending charter schools. They said the 708,000-student district had either denied or made unreasonable offers to 57 of the 59 requests for facilities made by charter schools over a two-year period.
Source: LA Times (free registration required), (02/18/2008)
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Charleston Leads South Carolina with the Most Charter Schools
Charleston County has the largest number of charter schools in South Carolina with its seven existing charter schools, and at least seven more groups want to form charter schools within the next few years. Growth is based on several factors, including resources. The school district has a staff member who is partially dedicated to working with charter schools, a position that few other districts have. County Schools Superintendent Nancy McGinley said the increasingly popularity means the district has work to do. The school district needs resolution on the state law applicable to Charleston that requires the district not to deny charter schools "anything that is otherwise available to a public school," she said. The law raises questions about what the school district must give to charter schools.
Source: Charleston Post and Courier (registration required), (02/17/2008)
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McCain Light on Specifics in Education Policy, but Known for Supporting Charter Schools
While Presidential candidate John McCain has not said much about his education platform, Education Week reports that his congressional record and statements in his current campaign do give a glimpse of what he might try to accomplish in education as president. For much of the past decade, he has sponsored bills to support private school choice, including the 2004 passage of a voucher program for students in the District of Columbia. "Choice and competition is the key to success in education in America," he said at a Dec. 9 debate among seven Republican presidential candidates. "That means charter schools. That means home schooling. It means vouchers." He has supported efforts to boost federal funding for special education programs. In 2001, he voted for the No Child Left Behind Act and has voiced his support for it during his presidential campaign.
Source: Education Week (subscription required), (02/16/2008)
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More Charter Schools Recommended for Massachusetts
Acting Massachusetts Education Commissioner Jeffrey Nellhaus has announced he will recommend that the state Board of Education approve four new charter schools at its next meeting on February 26. Two of the schools could open this fall if approved, with two more opening next year. The board has never turned down a charter school that carried the commissioner’s stamp of approval, according to education department spokesman JC Considine. District leaders were quick to complain. "The state is working against public school districts when it makes decisions like this," said Gordon Luciano, chairman of the Bridgewater-Raynham Regional School Committee. "They're hurting the students that remain in the district." Sixty one charter schools have been approved in the state.
Source: Boston Globe, (02/15/2008)
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Obama Shares Views on Education Reform
Presidential candidate Senator Barack Obama has been sharing his views on education reform with a variety of media outlets recently. In an interview with the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel editorial board, he said he believes that teachers need to be paid more, be better trained, given more support, and that teaching colleges should be accredited. But, he also believes that just throwing more money at the problem is not the answer, and that improving public education requires a variety of reform efforts, including charter schools.
Source: National Public Radio, (02/15/2008)
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Utah Celebrates 10 Years of Charter Schools
Ten years ago, the charter school movement in Utah was launched by former legislator Brian Allen. "I wake up every day knowing there are 27,000 kids in this state going to a school that they wanted to go to, that they are thriving at and doing well and that's an important thing," said Allen, who has been called the "father" of the state's charter school movement. Now about five percent of the public school population attends charter schools. Representatives from the National Alliance of Public Charter Schools visited Utah last week to help commemorate the anniversary and congratulated lawmakers and charter leaders. Nelson Smith, president of the Alliance, said Utah stands out in front of the charter movement in a number of areas due to its acceptance of charters. While in many other states, schools can only be chartered by a school district, Utah has a State Charter Board that is also charged with granting charters. Utah has also created a charter school revolving loan fund that helps charters secure a facility, along with the newly created state charter school finance authority charged with providing a cost-effective method of financing charter school facilities. Also, Utah is one of only a few states that recognize the need for parity in funding between charter and district schools, with the state providing support to ensure charter school student funding is closer to that of district schools. "There are issues to be worked out between the state and the districts, but it is done in the spirit of trying to provide full funding to charter schools, and that is really important," said Smith.
Source: Deseret Morning News, (02/14/2008)
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PBS Nightly Business Report Examines Charter School Growth
Last week, PBS Nightly Business Report looked at the growth of charter schools. Liz Howard of the Center for Nonprofit Management at Northwestern University's Kellogg school of management is interviewed and says charter schools are the product of the school reform movement of the 1980s. "They are a different method of educating children in the sense that the vast majority of charter schools are very small schools. They may focus on a particular curricular or age group which enables them to have a more laser-like focus," she said. The PBS piece examines the role of for-profit and not-for-profit management companies. Fernando Zuelueta, the president of Academica, is interviewed about his company's responsibilities and says his company does everything from designing schools to hiring teachers to maintaining records. "You don't want your principal spending his or her time doing this kind of work. You want them focusing on ensuring that the students are getting the best education possible," he said.
Source: PBS News Hour, (02/13/2008)
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