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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Federal Appeals Court Favors Kansas City School District in Charter Funding Issue
A federal appeals court panel last week upheld a 2006 opinion by U.S. District Judge Dean Whipple that cleared the way for the district to keep withholding some funds directed to charter schools while the district pays off bonds from the federal desegregation lawsuit. The Missouri Board of Fund Commissioners in 2005 declared the Kansas City school district should no longer withhold from charter schools $800 per pupil to help pay off the payments under the desegregation case. The district had contested that decision.
Source: Kansas City Star, (03/03/2008)
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Tennessee Legislators to Decide Whether to Renew Charter School Legislation
Later this month, legislators in Tennessee will determine whether to renew the state's 2002 charter school legislation. Twelve charters operate in the state, nine of them in Memphis and three in Nashville. Currently they can only enroll children from schools that failed to meet federal No Child Left Behind standards Senate Education Committee Chairwoman Jamie Woodson is sponsoring a bill that would eliminate the sunset provision and would open enrollment to all students who qualify for free and reduced-price lunches. Nashville Mayor Karl Dean said he supports renewing the law and an increase in quality charter schools in the city. "Charter schools are not the panacea for improving our school system, but they do offer the type of learning environment needed for some students," he said. Operating under the looming threat of having their charters revoked has made it almost impossible for charter schools to secure bank loans for building improvements or to attract teachers, said Matt Throckmorton, executive director of the Tennessee Charter Schools Association. The authorization expires June 30. It's unclear what would happen to current charters if it isn't renewed, he said.
Source: Tennessean, (03/03/2008)
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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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District Facilities Proposal Threatens to Pit San Diego Charter Schools Against Each Other
Parents and teachers at Gompers Charter Middle School are opposed to a San Diego district proposal that would put another charter school, King/Chavez Middle School, at its campus this fall. The arrangement would require the two schools to share the cafeteria, library and other resources at Gompers. "We run a very unique educational program that requires more classroom space. And our school culture is also unique," said Allison Kenda, chief of staff at Gompers. “We see what it's done for our kids, and we want to protect that,” Kenda said. District officials will meet with charter representatives to discuss the recommendations before a final proposal goes before the school board. "Initially, it does take a lot of work on the part of the charters to make a sharing arrangement work. We are ready to be arbitrators, if need be," said facilities chief Roy MacPhail.
Source: San Diego Union-Tribune, (03/01/2008)
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Pittsburgh Promise Scholarships Extended to Charter School Students
Pittsburgh charter schools are applauding a move by the Pittsburgh Foundation to include charter school students in the Pittsburgh Promise. The scholarship program currently provides graduates up to $20,000, to be spent over four academic years at any of about 100 colleges, universities and trade schools. "I don't think anybody balked at it," said Richard Reed, executive vice president of the Pittsburgh Foundation, which is administering the program. Rather, he said, an evaluation of program goals showed that including the charter schools was the "sensible and logical" approach. Foundation spokesman John Ellis said the decision to include charter schools was made in consultation with the city, school district and University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, which donated $10 million outright this school year and has offered another $90 million through a 10-year challenge grant. To qualify, 2008 graduates must have a grade-point average of at least 2.0, live in the city and meet other requirements. A student enrolled in city schools since kindergarten is eligible for up to 100 percent of the maximum scholarship; lesser amounts are available to those enrolled for shorter periods.
Source: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, (03/01/2008)
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Some Minnesota Charters Using Lease Aid to Purchase or Build Buildings
More than 20 out of 180 of Minnesota's charter schools have used a loophole in a state lease aid provision to buy or build their own buildings using public funds. The lease aid was approved in 1997 to help charters rent space, in order to compensate for the fact that they are unable to levy taxes or use bond measures to buy property. The charters have been using the provision to buy or build their own facilities by establishing nonprofit groups to make the purchase. Deborah Parker Junod, project manager of a 2003 audit that reviewed lease aid, said the practice is "clearly circumventing the law." Some charter leaders said they welcome public discussion of the practice. Most say it would be easier to be able to directly own their own buildings; tying funding to an enrollment-based figure such as lease aid, they argue, eliminates the possibility of expansions that will not necessarily bring in more students. State Education Commissioner Alice Seagren, who helped craft the lease aid program as a legislator, said the current law has forced charters' hands. "Right now, there isn't any other way," she said.
Source: Post Bulletin, (02/28/2008)
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Bipartisan Deal on Virtual Charter Schools in Wisconsin Stalls
A bipartisan agreement in the Wisconsin legislature, backed by the state schools superintendent, that would have allowed virtual charter schools to remain open but under new rules fell apart after Gov. James Doyle hinted he would veto the measure without last-minute changes. The Democratic governor told lawmakers in a letter February 18 that he wanted a study of how well students are being served in online charter schools and a temporary cap on enrollment at the existing level. The Democratic-controlled Senate initially voted 17-16 to reject those changes, but then accepted them after one Democrat flipped his vote. Rep. Brett Davis (R) and Assembly Speaker Mike Huebsch (R) sent a letter to Doyle on February 27 saying they will agree to cap enrollment at 1 percent, with siblings being exempt from the cap. They also agreed to an audit. Rose Fernandez, president of the Wisconsin Coalition of Virtual School Families, said in a written statement that Davis and Hubert's deal is better than the two-year freeze Doyle wants. "You got your cap. You got your audit," she said. "Accept bipartisanship and compromise." The Assembly will consider the issue this month.
Source: Education Week (subscription required), (02/27/2008)
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Charter Funding Bill Fails in Utah
Last week, legislative members in Utah's House of Representative voted 33-41 against HB278, which would have replaced some of the money the state now gives charter schools for students with local district money. The bill's goal was to make sure charter school students were funded at levels similar to traditional public school students. It would have required school districts to provide an allocation of property tax revenues for each resident student attending a charter school — meaning the student's home-district funding would follow the child. Charter schools would revert to receiving their funding from school districts, something they were required to do before 2004. Some charter leaders say the old structure tended to create an adversarial relationship between charters and school districts. "We need to focus on equalization and funding at the state level rather than shifting this back to local," said Rep. John Dougall, who voted against the bill.
Source: Salt Lake Tribune, (02/26/2008)
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Charter School Bill Filed in Kentucky
Currently, 10 states have no charter school law: Alabama, Kentucky, Maine, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont, Washington and West Virginia. A legislative bill filed in the Kentucky House of Representatives seeks to bring charter schools to the state. House Bill 578 would allow local school boards, universities or local governments to sponsor charter schools.
Source: The Bluegrass Institute, (02/21/2008)
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