Shapiro Consulting, Author at The Center for Education Reform

New Analysis Exposes Problems in State Education Laws

May 1, 2013 By Shapiro Consulting

State Charter School Commissions Limit Quality Options

CER Press Release
Washington, D.C.
May 1, 2013

A new report from The Center for Education Reform (CER) analyzes the numerous shortcomings of state charter commissions at authorizing quality charter schools.

The report, Charter School Authorizers: The Truth About State Commissions, criticizes commissions, calling them “the new education establishment of tomorrow.”

“The evidence is clear that quality charter schools are directly correlated to quality authorizers,” the analysis said. “States with multiple, independent authorizers — independent legally and managerially from existing local and state education agencies — produce more and better opportunities for students.”

“Without these critical steps, the lawmakers today will be creating the new education establishment of tomorrow, with one set of people in power, the interest of parents and educators secondary, and the future of education behind.”

CER experts praised independent authorizers in states such as Michigan and New York, in addition to the District of Columbia.

Alison Consoletti, CER Vice President of Research and the lead author of the report said, “What we’ve seen repeatedly is the inability of state commissions to approve the same amount of quality charter schools than independent authorizers who are free from excessive oversight,” Consoletti said. “More state commissions means less opportunities to expand educational choice for parents and children.”

Since 1996 the Center has studied and evaluated charter school laws based on their construction and implementation.

Filed Under: Press Releases

Daily Headlines for May 1, 2013

May 1, 2013 By Shapiro Consulting

NEWSWIRE IS BACK! Click here for the latest weekly report on education news and commentary you won’t find anywhere else, spiced with a dash of irreverence, from the nation’s leading voice in school reform.

NATIONAL COVERAGE

Learning Goals Spur Backlash
Wall Street Journal, May 1, 2013
As more classrooms across the country roll out universal math and reading standards, a growing group of critics are pressing officials to slow their implementation or dump the learning goals entirely.

Union Chief Recommends Delay in Use of Test Scores
New York Times, NY, May 1, 2013
Warning that a new set of academic standards was on the verge of falling into the “dustbin of history,” the leader of a national teachers’ union called on Tuesday for school systems to postpone using new tests to evaluate teachers and promote students.

High Stakes, No Prep: These Tests Are Designed To Fail
Washington Post, DC, April 30, 2013
It’s no wonder that parents, educators and even students are spearheading a small but growing revolution to opt out of standardized tests. From Seattle to Pennsylvania, more and more students across the country are boycotting tests that many say are increasing stress, narrowing curriculum and, at worst, leading to the kind of cheating exposed in the recent Atlanta Public Schools scandal.

Education Fight Likely To Split Lawmakers
The Hill, DC, May 1, 2013
Democratic senators from rural areas are seeking a rewrite of the No Child Left Behind law to give their constituents a better chance of competing for federal funding, a touchy subject in the majority’s conference.

STATE COVERAGE

ALABAMA

City Eyes New Way To Rate Teachers
Tuscaloosa News, AL, May 1, 2013
Tuscaloosa City School System officials are in the process of developing a new teacher evaluation tool that will focus on how well teachers have met established standards.

ARIZONA

How School Choice Has Reshaped Arizona
Arizona Republic, AZ, April 30, 2013
Arizona students can learn to speak Mandarin, study dance, become young engineers or delve into the medical sciences because of the state’s competitive K-12 marketplace.

CALIFORNIA

School Voucher System Could Come to California
San Josie Inside, CA, April 30, 2013
The school “choice” movement was originally embraced by the right side of the political aisle; today, for the most part, it is bipartisan. Four years ago, I was on the fence relative to the role charter schools can play in achieving results for students. Now, I am a staunch advocate for the high quality charter school movement in Santa Clara County as a proud Democrat.

LAUSD Supt. John Deasy Faces ‘Performance Evaluation’ By Teachers Union
Los Angeles Daily News, CA, April 30, 2013
Barely two weeks after delivering a stinging no-confidence vote on the leadership of Superintendent John Deasy, the teachers union announced it will do a first-ever “performance evaluation” of the Los Angeles Unified chief.

Lawsuit Targets Union Fees Collected From Nonmember Teachers
Los Angeles Times, CA, April 30, 2013
A conservative organization has joined with a group of California teachers in an effort to overturn laws that allow teacher unions to collect fees from those who don’t want to be members.

FLORIDA

Senate Kills Parent Trigger Bill In Dramatic 20-20 Vote
Miami Herald, FL, April 30, 2013
The controversial parent trigger bill died a dramatic legislative death Tuesday the same way it did last year: in a surprise tie vote in the Florida Senate during the final week of session.

Parent Trigger
Tallahassee Democrat, FL, May 1, 2013
Who could argue against parents’ involvement in their children’s education?

Legislature Looks To Speed Release Of School Employee Raises
Miami Herald, FL, April 30, 2013
Florida lawmakers are looking to speed up the release of $480 million in school employee raises one day after the House and Senate negotiated a budget that proposed delaying them until June 2014.

ILLINOIS

Science Charter School Gets Zoning Approval After Heated Debate
Chicago Sun-Times, IL, May 1, 2013
Concept Charter School got the go-ahead Tuesday to open a new charter school in a McKinley Park industrial building but not before a heated debate about the wisdom of opening charters while closing public schools.

INDIANA

Charter School Of The Dunes Expects New Relationship To Boost Student Achievement
NW Times, IN, April 30, 2013
Calumet College of St. Joseph held a public hearing Tuesday as part of the process to become the new sponsor of the Gary charter school in July.

Hoosiers Are Right To Be Wary About Common Core
Indianapolis Star, IN, April 30, 2013
Indiana has just shot into the spotlight of the education world, with the legislature voting over the weekend to hit the pause button on the Common Core national curriculum standards.

MAINE

Public School Rankings Don’t Make The Grade
Portland Press Herald, ME, May 1, 2013
The state Department of Education has given each of Maine’s 600 public schools a letter grade, from A to F, and Wednesday is the day those rankings will be made public.

MARYLAND

Prince George’s School System Forwards E-Mail Opposing Overhaul
Washington Post, DC, April 30, 2013
A government watchdog group says the Prince George’s County school system “crossed a line” when a schools official sent an e-mail late Monday that urged residents to join a petition drive that opposes the county’s new school governance structure.

Laurel Boys and Girls Club Postpones Charter School Plans
Baltimore Sun, MD, April 30, 2013
Laurel Boys and Girls Club officials have not only decided to put off plans to open a charter high school in their Montgomery Street headquarters indefinitely, but they will not renew the lease of its current tenant, Princeton Day Academy, for next year.

MASSACHUSETTS

Lift The Charter School Cap
Boston Globe, MA, April 30, 2013
A child’s destiny should not be determined by her zip code. Massachusetts has been a leader in public education reform for nearly two decades, but persistent poverty- and race-based achievement gaps in low-income communities are reminders that we have not done enough to meet our commitment to offer educational opportunity to every young person in the Commonwealth.

MICHIGAN

Should School Districts Sell Vacant Schools To Charters?
Oakland Press, MI, April 30, 2013
Readers are mixed in reaction to Brandon Board of Education decision to demolish a vacant building rather than sell it to a charter school that would compete for students.

NEW MEXICO

Put Changes In APS Policy On Public Table
Albuquerque Journal, NM, May 1, 2013
Today, we have a two-for-one lesson in how not to set policy for one of the nation’s largest school districts — and efforts to change it.

NEW YORK

Utica’s First Charter School Chooses Inaugural Students
Utica Observer Dispatch, NY, April 30, 2013
Jasmin Sabanovic stared anxiously at the screen hanging in the Holy Trinity Church gymnasium Tuesday afternoon.

NORTH CAROLINA

Vouchers Plan Would Hurt Public Schools
Rocky Mountain Telegram, NC, April 30, 2013
North Carolina legislators seem determined to put private school vouchers on a fast track to approval this session. A recent Civitas poll shows support for the plan cuts across political, racial and economic lines, but we’re disappointed for several reasons.

OHIO

Charter School Officials Accused Of Stealing Nearly $2 Million
Cleveland Plain Dealer, OH, April 30, 2013
Five former officials of the Cleveland Academy of Scholarship Technology & Leadership Enterprise are among 10 people and 13 businesses accused of fleecing the taxpayer-supported charter school out of nearly $2 million.

PENNSYLVANIA

Parents: Besieged Schools In Dire Need
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, May 1, 2013
Even assuming that the city comes up with another $60 million requested by the Philadelphia School District, the projected budget for the next school year will be a disaster for the city and its schoolchildren, a series of parents, teachers, civic groups and students told City Council on Tuesday.

Teachers At Philly Charter Unionize
Philadelphia Inquirer Blog, PA, April 30, 2013
After a significant two-year battle, teachers at the New Media Technology Charter School in West Oak Lane have voted to unionize, the Pennsylvania American Federation of Teachers said Tuesday.

Commentary Urging Charter School Reform Was Flawed
Patriot News, PA, April 30, 2013
An April 11 op-ed entitled “Pennsylvania’s charter school law is long overdue for reform: As I See It” bears significant inaccuracies that convey either the writer’s unfamiliarity with charter school law, or a willful intention to mislead readers.

Public Education Groups Call For Restoring $900 Million In School Funding Cut Two Years Ago
Patriot-News, PA, April 30, 2013
Public education groups are calling on Gov. Tom Corbett and state lawmakers to make a three-year commitment to restore the $900 million cut from public school funding two years ago.

TEXAS

Charter School Bill Means More Options For Parents And Students
KUHF-FM, TX, April 30, 2013
Charter schools will soon expand in Texas. A Texas House education panel approved raising the cap on charter school licenses over the next six years.

Charter Bill Brings New Players to Education Policy
Texas Tribune, TX, April 30, 2013
As lawmakers hammer out the terms of charter school legislation, political operatives better known for their activities in other venues have popped up among the usual cast of characters in education committee meetings.

WISCONSIN

Republicans Introduce Tuition Tax Credit Bill
La Crosse Tribune, WI, May 1, 2013
A Republican-sponsored bill that would give tax credits to parents of students in private schools has been introduced in the Legislature.

Evidence Doesn’t Support Choice Program Expansion
Journal Sentinel, WI, April 1, 2013
Legislators should be skeptical of a proposal by Gov. Scott Walker to sharply expand the school voucher program. There isn’t much evidence that students in voucher schools are better educated; in fact, they seem to perform at about the same level as their peers in mainline public schools.

ONLINE LEARNING

Panel: Level The Playing Field For Traditional Schools, Cyberschools
Observer-Reporter, PA, April 30, 2013
State legislators and school officials from around Southwestern Pennsylvania met Saturday morning to discuss the future of public education and the growing presence of cyberschools.

Muskegon Joining List Of Districts Offering ‘Virtual’ Middle And High Schools With Online Programs
The Muskegon Chronicle, MI, April 30, 2013
An online “virtual school” program will be operated by a private firm for Muskegon schools, one of the most recent districts to offer the education alternative.

School Districts Exploring Blended Learning Classes
Times Herald, MI, April 30, 2013
Moodle is a program that allows students to work online from home. Assignments, quizzes, homework and even video lessons are available.

Online Education Offers Viable Alternative For Students
Idaho Statesman, ID, May 1, 2013
As the school year winds down, many parents have begun to consider whether their children’s educational needs are being met or if they will explore alternatives for the coming school year.

Rocketship Education’s Next Phase: Technology In A Blended Classroom
Ed Source, CA, April 30, 2013
Palo Alto-based Rocketship Education has attracted national attention in the past few years for its innovative use of technology and impressive test scores for its largely low-income, Hispanic students.

Filed Under: Daily Headlines

Charter School Authorizers: The Truth About State Commissions

May 1, 2013 By Shapiro Consulting

Every few years there is a ﬂurry of activity across the country to create or amend state charter school laws. This paper shows how and why lawmakers and policy advocates need to revisit what has become a dangerous trend in charter policy debates.

Download or print your PDF copy of Charter Authorizers: The Truth About State Commissions

Filed Under: Choice & Charter Schools

Newswire: April 30, 2013

April 30, 2013 By Shapiro Consulting

Vol. 15, No. 17

SIN CITY. In 30 years, only two principals in Nevada’s Clark County School District have been fired. Could it be that the schools in Vegas are really so good that only two school leaders have ever been held accountable? Unfortunately, the answer is NO. Nevada ranks 24th on the Parent Power Index, with only 26 percent of its 4th and 8th graders reading at proficiency. And as the Nevada Public Policy Center points out, “During this same time period, CCSD has become one of the country’s worst districts.” Last week the CCSD school board announced a series of town meetings to get input from the public on selecting a new school superintendent. But before the search even started they stopped looking nationally because the education establishment has made it pretty clear they don’t want an “outsider” coming in to shake things up. But even if CCSD was able to attract a bold new reform-minded superintendent willing to take on the status quo, they most likely would not be successful in cleaning house. According to NPRI, “CCSD has a chicken-or-egg problem… The principals — management — have a union. And, therefore, dismissing a principal is a laborious process consisting of multiple hoops to jump through and a time- and paperwork-intensive appeals process.” Positively sinful.

PARENT POWER! Thank goodness we’ve got our PALs over in California working hard to combat similar issues. While a number of positive legislative efforts failed to pass earlier this year, these parents are hopeful one last modest proposal, SB 441, will secure the votes needed to bring slight changes to teacher evaluations in the Golden State. Teachers in California are evaluated every five years. Julie Collier, Executive Director and founder of PALs, points out, “If your child starts Kindergarten it is likely he/she may not have a teacher evaluated until 4th or 5th grade.” Even so, “Last year 98% of the teachers in California (that were evaluated) received the highest evaluation rating: Satisfactory.” TODAY is the deadline to weigh in, so help out our PALs and call members of the CA Senate Education Committee by 4:30pm PST.

RETREATING ON REFORM. Indiana is known as the “reformiest” state for good reason, but a measure awaiting Governor Pence’s signature is a major step back. Masked as a charter school accountability bill and supported by some of our Hoosier friends, HB 1338 threatens independence and accountability measures for Indiana’s charter school authorizers — measures that have earned the state’s charter law an A grade. The proposal, which has passed the Indiana legislature, empowers the Indiana Department of Education to have authority over the state’s authorizers that have been a model for the nation. Even if reformer Tony Bennett was still the ed chief, this is not a good precedent to set. The most reform-minded leaders can’t always control what happens under their watch when bureaucracy comes into play. Frankly, given the anti-charter and choice campaign she waged last fall, there’s no doubt that Glenda Ritz has her sights on dismantling the good reforms started by her predecessor. HB 1338 emboldens her administration to do just that.

KEEPING THE FAITH. With major efforts underway from New York to Louisiana and from North Carolina to Ohio, parents across the country are demanding the right to choose the best school for their children, including faith-based schools. On June 6, The American Center on School Choice is hosting, “Religious Schools in America: A Proud History and Perilous Future,” in Austin, TX. Click here for more information and to register for this important discussion.

THE NEW COOL. As The Center for Education Reform turns 20 and looks back at the history it has had a bird’s eye view of seeing and carrying, we invite you to join us for an intensive conversation about the original stories of reform, their founders, the lessons of the past, the battle lines, the missteps, and the victories. All the while helping us plan the next generation of reform efforts. Be sure to save October 9, 2013 on your calendar and join us to celebrate CER At 20. Click here for a sneak peek of the conference agenda, “Education Reform: Before It Was Cool.”

Filed Under: Newswire Weekly

Daily Headlines for April 30, 2013

April 30, 2013 By Shapiro Consulting

NATIONAL COVERAGE

Common Core School Standards Hit Another Roadblock, This Time In Indiana
Washington Times Blog, DC, April 29, 2013
State resistance to the nationwide K-12 school standards known as Common Core has spread to Indiana. Less than a week after Michigan lawmakers took aim at Common Core, the Indiana legislature over the weekend passed a bill to “halt” its implementation and called for a revised cost analysis and a series of town hall meetings before the standards can be implemented further. They were scheduled to be in place by next year.

Every Major School Reform Issue – From Tenure To Charters – Is Hotly Debated, Bitterly Divisive
Trenton Times, NJ, April 30, 2013
A recent Rasmussen poll tells us that American voters have little confidence in our K-12 schools. A mere 18 percent believe that most high school graduates have the skills they need for college. (Sixty-one percent believe they don’t have the skills and 21 percent aren’t sure.)

Walton Foundation Gives $8 Million To StudentsFirst
Los Angeles Times, CA, April 30, 2013
A foundation associated with the Wal-Mart family fortune has expanded its support for the education advocacy group run by former District of Columbia schools chancellor Michelle Rhee.

Per-Student Pre-K Spending Lowest In Decade
Associated Press, April 29, 2013
State funding for pre-kindergarten programs had its largest drop ever last year and states are now spending less per child than they did a decade ago, according to a report released Monday.

STATE COVERAGE

ARIZONA

Brewer Backs New Admission Rules For Charters
KGUN, AZ, April 29, 2013
Gov. Jan Brewer has signed a bill into law that allows for new charter school admission preferences benefiting some siblings and grandchildren.

CALIFORNIA

Don’t Let Politics Block School Finance Reform
Press-Enterprise, CA, April 30, 2013
California does not need a political brawl that stymies progress on creating a better system of taxpayer financing for public schools. Gov. Jerry Brown and legislators need to work through their differences on reshaping school finances, and not let inertia or political self-interest block badly needed reforms.

FLORIDA

Fla. Senate To Vote On Failing Public School Bill
WFTV Orlando, FL, April 29, 2013
Florida parents could soon have the power to turn a failing public school into a charter school.

‘Grass Roots’ Support Hurts Credibility Of Parent Trigger Backers
Tampa Bay Times, FL, April 29, 2013
The petition was supposed to prove this pro-charter school legislation had grass roots support among parents, but instead it highlighted what critics have been saying all along: This law is about pushing Jeb Bush’s education agenda, and little else.

Pay Raises For Teachers Linked To Teacher Performance
WOKV, FL, April 29, 2013
The president of the Clay County Education Association says teacher pay raises are long overdue but he doesn’t believe they should be tied to teacher performance.

GEORGIA

Life A Tough Teacher
Rome Tribune-News, GA, April 30, 2013
The ongoing three-cornered dustup between the Floyd County School System, some of its teachers and parents, plus the state educational powers, in the wake of the local planned large-scale reduction in force, and whether the procedures violated the district’s charter status is just a particularly noisy example of how dreamy ideas can turn out to be very different from what the sales pitch involved.

IDAHO

Myths And Facts About The Idaho Core Standards
Coeur d’Alene Press, ID, April 30, 2013
The following list of common fallacies regarding the Common Core initiative in Idaho was provided to The Press by the office of Idaho public schools chief, Tom Luna. It was prepared by the Idaho State Department of Education.

INDIANA

Taxpayers Are Losers In Charter-School Building Accommodation
Journal-Gazette, IN, April 30, 2013
The decision by the Indiana legislature to reduce the time school districts must legally hold unused school facilities for potential ownership by charter schools from four to two years appears to be applauded by some. I remain puzzled by this requirement.

IOWA

Clashes Remain On School Reform
Des Moines Register, IA, April 30, 2013
Democrats and Republicans in the Iowa Legislature remain divided over session-defining education reform, but leaders say they’re making incremental progress and steadily shrinking areas of disagreement.

MARYLAND

Schools for Everyone
Baltimore Sun, MD, April 29, 2013
This year’s city school budget prioritizes science and programs for advanced students, but in doing so the system can’t afford to shortchange the needs of its average learners

MASSACHUSETTS

State Should OK More Charter Schools For Cities
South Coast Today, MA, April 30, 2013
As former federal and state government education officials, we continue to be impressed by the performance of Massachusetts charter public schools.

MICHIGAN

State School Takeover Bill Stalls In Senate, Republicans Want Changes
WKAR, MI, April 29, 2013
Republicans in the state Senate say it’s time to go back to the drawing board on a bill that would facilitate state takeovers of struggling schools.

MISSOURI

New Teacher Evaluation Guidelines Coming
Southeast Missourian, MO, April 30, 2013
Changes in the way future teachers are certified and how current teachers are evaluated are coming soon to Missouri.

House Speaker Gets His Way: Teacher Evaluation Bill Revived
St. Louis Post-Dispatch Blog, MO, April 29, 2013
A bill requiring annual evaluations of public school teachers is headed to the Missouri House for debate, thanks to a shove from Speaker Tim Jones and a do-over by the House Fiscal Review Committee.

NEW JERSEY

State Arbitrators Rule on First Cases Brought Under New Tenure Law
New Jersey Spotlight, NJ, April 30, 2013
Eight months into New Jersey’s new teacher tenure law, state arbitrators have ruled on a trickle of disputed cases, many of them dealing with egregious cases of misconduct.

Charter School Bill Would Add More Oversight
Star-Ledger, NJ, April 29, 2013
A new bill is in the works for New Jersey’s charter schools, that could require the schools to provide more reporting on enrollments and budgets, according to a report in NJSpotlight.

NEW YORK

Charter Rent War
New York Post, NY, April 30, 2013
A bid to force charter schools to pay rent for the use of public-school building space has been derailed — for now.

Strange Location For A New Bronx Charter School–And Not Because It’s To Be At Site Of Former Strip Club
New York Daily News, NY, April 30, 2013
A new elementary charter school is set to open next year on the site of a former strip club, but that’s not why the location is a strange choice.

PENNSYLVANIA

District Spars With Charter School At Phila. Hearing
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, April 30, 2013
The Philadelphia School District and the city’s oldest charter school sparred over the school’s academic performance during a district hearing Monday on whether its operating charter should be renewed.

The Reality Of Charter Schools
The Reporter, PA, April 29, 2013
The funding of charter school is typically accomplished by a transfer of funding from the school district to the charter school. The student’s home district would contribute the student’s portion of funding (cost per student) to the charter school.

UTAH

Mike Lee Asks For Stop To Federal ‘Interference’ In School Standards
Salt Lake Tribune, UT, April 29, 2013
Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, has jumped into the ongoing fray over Common Core State Standards, signing a letter asking Senate budget leaders to “restore state decision-making and accountability.”

WASHINGTON

Charter School Boosters Have Eyes For Tacoma
News Tribune, WA, April 30, 2013
Pierce County is emerging as one of the hot spots in Washington’s fledgling charter school movement. November’s voter approval of Initiative 1240 allows the creation of up to 40 of the independently operated, publicly funded schools over the next five years.

WISCONSIN

Private School Tax Credits Wrong
Appleton Post-Crescent, WI, April 29, 2013
As an alternative to an expansion of the state’s voucher school program — in which low- and middle-income parents in some school districts would receive state tax money to send their children to private schools — two Republican legislators are proposing a tax credit for all private-school parents.

Debate Over Expansion Of Voucher Program Heats Up
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, WI, April 29, 2013
In recent months, Green Bay School Board President Brenda Warren’s schedule has been packed with an uncharacteristic number of public speaking engagements.

ONLINE LEARNING

Cyber Student Not Allowed To Attend Prom
ABC27, PA, April 29, 2013
Eleanor Lohry, 18, already has the dress and the shoes, but the West Shore School District is not allowing the cyber student to attend Cedar Cliff High School’s prom.

Online Charter Schools Could Split in Two, Avoiding State Cap on New Schools
StateImpact, OH, April 29, 2013
This fall Ohio will lift a moratorium on the creation of new online schools, allowing up to five new online schools to open.

Superintendents Urge Temporary Halt On Virtual Charter Schools
Chicago Tribune, IL, April 30, 2013
Several area school district superintendents are asking parents and others to support legislation that would impose a one-year moratorium on the creation of new virtual charter schools.

Illinois Policy Institute’s $16 Million Virtual Charter School Tax Grab
Chicago Now, IL, April 30, 2013
You may have heard about the plan to establish an Illinois “virtual” charter school for 18 suburban school districts and the new bill that could impose a one-year moratorium on digital schools.

Flipped Classroom Turns Traditional Teaching Upside Down
St. Louis Post-Dispatch, MO, April 30, 2013
In teacher Ron Lamb’s chemistry class, students are embracing a new classroom concept being used this school year in a few classes at Pattonville High School.

Filed Under: Daily Headlines

Unions trolling for teachers in charter schools?

April 29, 2013 By Shapiro Consulting

Fox & Friends
April 29, 2013

CER President Jeanne Allen discusses teachers unions’ efforts to unionize charter schools on Fox & Friends.

Filed Under: CER in the News

Daily Headlines for April 29, 2013

April 29, 2013 By Shapiro Consulting

Misplaced Furor in the Battle over the Common Core
Huffington Post Blog, April 26, 2013
Welcome to the new blood sport, America: the fight over the Common Core State Standards Initiative. No issue in recent memory has served to divide the education community like Common Core.

Leaving No School Behind: Can Bad Ones Be Turned Around?
USA Today, April 28, 2013
The Obama administration has long supported charter school startups, but now aims to invest about $3 billion in those begging for improvement. Some critics say that strategy is bound to fail.

‘No Child Left Behind’ Gets Left Behind
Wall Street Journal, April 28, 2013
It has been 30 years since the landmark report “A Nation At Risk” documented the failings of America’s public-school system, and the past three decades have seen much promising reform on the local, state and federal levels, in legislatures, on school boards and in classrooms.

No Rich Child Left Behind
New York Times, NY, April 27, 2013
Here’s a fact that may not surprise you: the children of the rich perform better in school, on average, than children from middle-class or poor families. Students growing up in richer families have better grades and higher standardized test scores, on average, than poorer students; they also have higher rates of participation in extracurricular activities and school leadership positions, higher graduation rates and higher rates of college enrollment and completion.

Obama’s Big Second-Term Education Problem
Washington Post Blog, DC, April 28, 2013
President Obama has a big problem in his second term in terms of education policy: his first term.

Rethinking Common Core
Washington Examiner, DC, April 27, 2013
Thirty years ago this month, Americans were startled to learn that their underachieving public schools were undermining the future prosperity and security of the nation.

Critics Join Common Cause To Block Latest School Reform
Washington Times, DC, April 28, 2013
Education Secretary Arne Duncan would be a very wise man if he started paying close attention to the sticks being poked in the eyes of the Obama administration regarding those one-size-fits-all Common Core State Standards.

STATE COVERAGE

ARIZONA

Arizona School Vouchers Ramped Up
Arizona Daily Sun, AZ, April 28, 2013
Thousands of students in poorly performing public schools could soon get what amounts to a voucher from the state to go elsewhere — or even get educated at home — a move that could remove hundreds of millions of dollars a year from public schools.

Arizona Education Hindered By Lack Of Central Data System
Arizona Republic, AZ, April 29, 2013
State Superintendent of Public Instruction John Huppenthal has a high-tech vision for school improvement in Arizona.

CALIFORNIA

Rent Increase Could Force SF Charter School To Shut Down
KGO-TV, CA, April 28, 2013
It was a shock for students and parents when they learned their small charter school, located in the heart of San Francisco, may be forced to shut down due to a significant increase in rent. And now those parents are fighting back to keep the school open.

Gov. Brown as Robin Hood
Los Angeles Times, CA, April 29, 2013
His plan to shift money from suburban to urban districts might help disadvantaged students but it could hurt other kids.

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

D.C. Charter Advocates Make Annual Push For Equal Funds
Washington Post, DC, April 27, 2013
The District sends more money per student to its traditional schools than to its charter schools, charter officials and advocates told the D.C. Council on Friday, renewing what has become an annual plea for equitable funding.

Rewarding Charter Schools For Their Failure
Washington Post, DC, April 28, 2013
The April 21 editorial “Give charters their due” suggested that D.C. public charter schools receive increased funding to match that of traditional public schools, in part because students at charter schools are outperforming those at traditional schools.

Quiet, Critical School Reform At D.C. Public Schools
Washington Post, DC, April 28, 2013
As D.C. Public Schools (DCPS) enters the second year of working toward the goals outlined in our strategic plan, “A Capital Commitment,” I often am asked whether the district is still leading the way in education reform.

Proposed KIPP DC High School Stalls
Washington Post, DC, April 26, 2013
KIPP DC’s controversial proposal to build a high school on public land in Southwest Washington stalled this week when officials with Mayor Vincent C. Gray’s administration announced that they will not consider leasing the site this year.

Educating Students To Succeed In The Global Economy
Washington Examiner, DC, April 27, 2013
Fresh off our annual lottery — which saw 1,000 applications for 30 open spots — I found myself thinking about the skills students will need for success as adults.

FLORIDA

State Budget Has More Money For Teachers, But How To Pay It Remains Issue
Naples News, FL, April 28, 2013
The money is in the budget, but Florida teachers aren’t entirely optimistic they will have more cash in their pockets during the coming school year.

Charter Schools Land $91M For Facilities
Bradenton Herald, FL, April 29, 2013
Charter schools will receive $91 million for construction and maintenance needs, state lawmakers agreed late Sunday.

Every Florida Teacher to Get Minimum $2,000 Raise; Scott Sends Up a Cheer
Sunshine State News, FL, April 29, 2013
Gov. Rick Scott came close to getting exactly what he wanted for teachers on Sunday — close enough that he and Florida Education Association (FEA) President Andy Ford jointly applauded the House and the Senate’s agreement to implement $480 million in teacher pay raises.

Fix Evaluations
News Herald, FL, April 29, 2013
First the Legislature had an evaluation plan to identify which Florida teachers deserved “merit” pay raises, but it had no money. Now, lawmakers have $480 million earmarked for “performance-based” teacher raises next year, but they don’t have an evaluation system that is credible or even understandable.

Charter School Group Touts Performance
The Ledger, FL, April 27, 2013
A nonprofit group advocating on behalf of charter schools released a report last week that says charter school students perform better than traditional public school students.

INDIANA

Lawmakers Expand School Voucher Program, Pause Common Core
Indianapolis Star, IN, April 27, 2013
The Indiana General Assembly revised the state’s A to F school ratings and paused its participation in national Common Core school standards late Friday and was poised to expand private school vouchers.

IOWA

Should Iowa Teacher Pay Be Tied To Student Test Scores?
Sioux City Journal, IA, April 29, 2013
Education reform is at a standstill in the Statehouse with the politically rocky issue of teacher evaluations one of the main stumbling blocks.

KENTUCKY

Kentucky Charter Schools Movement May Get Bump From Carl Rollins’ Resignation, Advocate Says
WFPL, KY, April 29, 2013
A leading Kentucky charter schools advocate says he’s hopeful the state House leadership will choose a new chairman for the House education committee who is open to charter schools.

LOUISIANA

Ed Overhaul Under Review
The Advocate, LA, April 28, 2013
Gov. Bobby Jindal’s education agenda, which roared through the Legislature last year, is under fire on three new fronts.

MAINE

Former Thornton Academy Headmaster To Head Baxter Academy
Portland Press Herald, ME, April 29, 2013
The longtime headmaster of Saco’s Thornton Academy has been named executive director of Portland’s first charter school, Baxter Academy for Technology and Science.

MISSISSIPPI

Teacher Bill Raises The Bar
Cleveland Currant, MS, April 29, 2013
“This provision is a component of the Governor’s larger education reform agenda,” said Leslie Griffin, dean of the college of education and human services at Delta State University. “It is designed to increase the quality of those teaching in Mississippi’s schools by requiring a higher entrance standard for teacher education programs than currently exists.”

NEW HAMPSHIRE

Sen. Stiles Misled Voters On School Vouchers
Portsmouth Herald, NH, April 29, 2013
State Sen. Nancy Stiles recently joined 12 other Senate Republicans to table HB 370, which would have repealed the school voucher law. Much will be made by Republicans that the Senate just tabled it; they didn’t kill the bill.

School Choice That Works For Everyone
Foster’s Daily Democrat, NH, April 28, 2013
I believe every parent in America should have the opportunity to send their kids to a school offering them a quality education. I’m not alone.

NEW MEXICO

APS Gives Details On Educator Reviews
Albuquerque Journal, NM, April 27, 2013
Albuquerque Public Schools officials laid out some details Friday of their plan to evaluate teachers and principals. The proposal is a counter to the state’s evaluation plan, which school board members have criticized and talked about resisting.

NEW YORK

Charter School Funding Takes Toll On The Public
Times Record-Herald, NY, April 28, 2013
When news of a proposed charter school in Newburgh first came out, those in charge of the city schools did the math and concluded that this could cost the district $1.5 million, money that it could not afford to lose.

School In Oui Bit Of $$ Trouble
New York Post, NY, April 28, 2013
Mon Dieu! A French-language charter school in Harlem faces a $500,000 deficit after wasting thousands of dollars on dubious consulting fees, staff costs and doughnut sprees, documents obtained by The Post reveal.

In North District, Retired Educator Gillick Urges Shift On Discipline
Buffalo News, NY, April 29, 2013
Susan Gillick is a retired educator whose main priority is seeing that the Buffalo Public Schools spend less time suspending and punishing kids and more time focused on progressive discipline that keeps kids in school and focuses on their needs.

NORTH CAROLINA

The Hijacking Of Charter Schools
News & Observer, NC, April 26, 2013
As a longtime supporter of charter schools, I am distressed to watch Republican legislators attempting to hijack this once-promising notion for school improvement and transform it into a force for undermining public education in North Carolina.

Rodney Ellis: Vouchers Will Harm Schools
Greenville Daily Reflector, NC, April 28, 2013
I have spent my career working with kids who without public education will never experience the hope of the American Dream.

OHIO

Ohio Charter Schools Could Enroll Out-Of-State Students
StateImpact, OH, April 29, 2013
Ohio charter schools could enroll out-of-state students — and charge them tuition — under a provision inserted into the House version of the state budget earlier this month, giving the publicly funded schools another source of revenue.

CPS Teachers Retiring In Droves
Cincinnati Enquirer, OH, April 28, 2013
About 150 teachers are expected to retire this year from Cincinnati Public Schools, the third year in a row the region’s largest district has seen more than 100 workers retire from its teaching force.

Eight-Week Strongsville Teachers Strike Is Over; School Board Unanimously Approves New Contract
Cleveland Plain Dealer, OH, April 28, 2013
The five-member Strongsville school board met at 9 this morning and unanimously approved an agreement to end the eight-week strike by teachers.

PENNSYLVANIA

York City Schools Reform: Breaking Down The Two Plans
York Daily Record, PA, April 28, 2013
Will charters be on the way, or will the York City School District get a chance to prove itself capable of getting on the right track? By the end of the week, the community should have a better idea of how reform will be pursued for city schools.

Hearing To Probe Philadelphia’s Oldest Charter School
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, April 29, 2013
Community Academy of Philadelphia opened in 1997, but the School Reform Commission said in January the school’s operating charter should not be renewed because of low test scores and financial problems.

Philadelphia School District To Seek $60 Million More
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, April 29, 2013
School District of Philadelphia leaders are expected Monday to ask Council to open the municipal wallet again – this time for $60 million – two months before the members have to pass a budget.

Charter Chief Says School Met Needed Benchmarks
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, April 27, 2013
The chief executive officer of a North Philadelphia charter school that is fighting to remain open testified during a Philadelphia School District hearing Friday that the school met the state’s academic benchmarks for 2012.

TEXAS

From Inner-City To Ivy League: College Is Goal For Dallas Charter Schools
WFAA, TX, April 28, 2013
Mendez was one of 40 students from Uplift Education charter schools in Dallas to travel to Boston. They went to Harvard and Boston College.

Small Crowd Rallies For School Choice At Capitol
Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, TX, April 28, 2013
A few dozen activists joined a pair of tea party state senators Saturday to rally at the Texas Capitol for expanding school choice.

UTAH

New Charter School?
St. George Daily Spectrum, UT, April 28, 2013
Spectrum Media has routinely supported the arts — both in terms of news coverage and in terms of assisting with free or low-cost advertising for arts events. And this editorial board has routinely showed support for the great cultural offerings provided in Southern Utah — from the Utah Shakespeare Festival to the performances at Tuacahn to the St. George Musical Theater.

WASHINGTON

Spokane Public Schools Pursues Charter Schools
Spokesman Review, WA, April 28, 2013
Visions of the kinds of charter schools that could open in Spokane are emerging: a dual-language elementary or middle school; a high school that incorporates two years of college; an academically rigorous elementary school; and a K-8 science, technology, engineering and mathematics school.

Lawmakers Still Have ‘A Lot Of Work To Do’ On Education
Seattle Times, WA, April 28, 2013
State lawmakers ended their regular session Sunday after passing only a handful of major education-policy bills. The issue will be a focus of the special session, leaders said.

WISCONSIN

Katherine Berkvam: Take Private School Voucher Expansion Out Of State Budget
Wisconsin State Journal, WI, April 28, 2013
The state budget proposal seeks to expand the taxpayer-funded private school voucher program, which uses tax dollars to support private schools, including religious schools. To qualify, a family of four can earn around $70,000.

ONLINE LEARNING

Easton Teachers Union Files Complaint Over Cyber School Employees
Lehigh Valley Express-Times, PA, April 28, 2013
The Easton Area School District teachers union president says the district broke an agreement to hire district teachers to staff its cyber school.

School System Hailed For Tech
Forsyth News, GA, April 28, 2013
For the fifth time since 2004, Forsyth County Schools has been named one of the nation’s top 10 digital school districts.

Districts 300, 204 Ask Residents To Support Legislation Delaying Online Charter Schools
Aurora Beacon News, IL, April 26, 2013
Some local school districts are asking residents to join them in opposing plans for an online charter school in the Fox Valley.

Charter School Bill Bad
Northwest Herald, IL, April 29, 2013
State lawmakers should not support HB494 – the bill proposed by Rep. Linda Chapa LaVia, D-Aurora, that aims to put a one-year moratorium on virtual charter schools in Illinois.

Bluesky Online School Rebounding After State Effort To Shut It Down
Pioneer Press, MN, April 29, 2013
A year after her school concluded a protracted battle with state education officials, the new leader of BlueSky Online says it is on the rebound.

In Utah’s Digital Shift, Students Turning The Page On Traditional Textbooks
Salt Lake Tribune, UT, April 29, 2013
State cranks up the development of free, open-source science, math and language-arts digital textbooks.

Filed Under: Daily Headlines

Kansas flunks school choice study

April 29, 2013 By Shapiro Consulting

by Travis Perry
Kansas Watchdog
April 22, 2013

When it comes to school choice and giving parents the power to control their child’s education, Kansas earns a failing grade.

Earlier this month the Center for Education Reform released its annual Parent Power Index, which ranks and grades states based on parent choice in education. Overall Kansas earned a score of 59 percent, and ranked 42nd among the states, only outpacing West Virginia, South Dakota, Vermont, Alabama, Kentucky, Iowa, North Dakota and Nebraska.

“The Sunflower State has a less than sunny outlook for reform, making it more difficult for parents to find new and more effective options for their children,” according to the index. “Like other rural states, Kansas offers some access to digital learning modalities, but other than that, parents have few choices and few assurances that teacher quality is acceptable.

States were assessed on a number of different “elements of power,” including transparency, teacher quality and media reliability, among others. Here’s how scoring for the index worked out, according to EdReform.com:

Charter Schools and School Choice were weighted as 75% of the overall grade. Bonus points are calculated based on whether a state has a parent trigger law, and whether or not information on schools and school board elections are transparent, or available to the public. States earn .05 for having a parent trigger law and .01 each for transparency of schools and school board elections, for a possible bonus total of .07. Ties are broken based on choice implementation and how influential these categories are on affording parents true power. Bonus points of .05 were awarded to Alabama for its March 2013 passage of a tax credit law and to Washington for adopting a charter school law in Nov. 2013. Neither state has been graded on these elements as the programs are not operational to date.

While Kansas earned points for electing pro-education reform Gov. Sam Brownback, the state was docked for transparency and for having “one of the weakest charter laws in the country.”

Filed Under: CER in the News

Daily Headlines for April 26, 2013

April 26, 2013 By Shapiro Consulting

NATIONAL COVERAGE

Corrupt Educators Are Threatening School Reform
Washington Post, DC, April 25, 2013
An exploding culture of corruption imperils public education in the United States. Financial misconduct and outright theft are depleting and misdirecting resources critical for the nation’s children to secure the skills and tools they’ll need to become solid citizens and global competitors.

Charter Schools vs. Public: Is One Better Than the Other?
Take Part, April 256, 2013
New data shows just how well kids are doing in many of the nation’s charter schools.

Close Gap In Access To Good Teachers, Curriculum, Schools, Says New Book, Campaign
Washington Post, DC, April 25, 2013
For more than a generation, educators and policymakers have been agonizing about America’s achievement gap, the persistent chasm in academic performance between poor and privileged children.

STATE COVERAGE

CALIFORNIA

A Dangerous Game for UTLA
Los Angeles Times, CA, April 26, 2013
The leadership of the Los Angeles teachers union recently conducted a survey among its members asking if they had confidence in Los Angeles Unified Supt. John Deasy.

DELAWARE

Pencader Charter School Gets $350,000 From Delaware To Help Pay Bills
News Journal, DE, April 26, 2013
The standoff between the state Department of Education and Pencader Charter is over after the state agreed Thursday evening to pitch in $350,000 to brace the troubled school’s budget through the end of the year, school and state officials said.

Five Steps To Continue Improving Delaware’s Education
News Journal, DE, April 26, 2013
“What kind of impact has the $119 million in federal Race to the Top funding had on education in Delaware?” Three years into the state’s top finish in the RTTT competition, a number of people have asked that question.

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

Surprise! D.C. Admits School Test Tampering At Meridian Public Charter
Washington Post Blog, DC, April 26, 2013
The Meridian Public Charter School is a well-regarded institution serving students in preschool through eighth grade on 13th Street between V and W streets in Northwest Washington. Nearly all of its 531 students are black or Hispanic.

FLORIDA

Could A Compromise Be Coming For The Parent Trigger?
Tampa Bay Times Blog, FL, April 25, 2013
Could a compromise be coming for the parent trigger? It’s anybody’s guess what will happen with the controversial proposal, which would let parents demand sweeping changes at failing public schools.

ILLINOIS

State Turns Off UNO Money Spigot After Charter School Scandal
Chicago Tribune, IL, April 25, 2013
State officials have temporarily halted funding to the United Neighborhood Organization, contending the large charter school operator violated terms of a $98 million grant by hiring contractors who are related to one of the group’s top executives.

At Chicago School Closing Hearings, Crowds Fade
Chicago Tribune, IL, April 26, 2013
After months of jampacked hearings over Chicago’s decision to shut down scores of schools, the final round of public meetings — the ones mandated by state law — has often been sparsely attended and overcast by an air of futility.

MISSOURI

Two House Republicans Pulled From Committee Over Education Reform Clash
St. Louis Post-Dispatch Blog, MO, April 25, 2013
Two House Republicans have been pulled from a committee because of their votes blocking education reform legislation.

NEVADA

Rainbow Dreams School Has Its Charter Renewed
Las Vegas Sun, NV, April 25, 2013
The Clark County School Board renewed its contract with the two star-ranked Rainbow Dreams Academy Charter School on Thursday.

NEW JERSEY

Draft Charter Bill Calls for Local Approval, More Reviewers
New Jersey Spotlight, NJ, April 26, 2013
The outlines of a new charter school bill are taking shape, with a draft being circulated by Assembly Democrats that would add tighter controls on new charters and expand the number of organizations approving and overseeing the schools.

Luongo Seeks To Run N.J. Charter School
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, April 26, 2013
A former high-profile South Jersey politician who spent almost a year in federal prison for misusing campaign and township funds is seeking state approval for a plan to open Gloucester County’s first charter school, even though he is barred from working in the classroom.

NEW YORK

Success Academy Cobble Hill Spied On By Teachers Union, Students Photographed: Officials
New York Daily News, NY, April 26, 2013
The founder of the Success Academy charter school leveled the charges in a letter to education officials and the United Federation of Teachers president Michael Mulgrew.

City Schools Won’t Honor Teacher Evaluation Agreement With BTF
Buffalo News, NY, April 25, 2013
The Buffalo schools will not honor an agreement with the teachers union that promised not to use two years of evaluations as grounds to fire any teacher, Superintendent Pamela C. Brown announced Thursday evening.

Paladino Effect On School Board Races Seen In Mailers
Buffalo News, NY, April 25, 2013
Love him or hate him, outspoken developer and unsuccessful gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino has done more than any other candidate to raise awareness and raise the stakes in city School Board elections that are otherwise widely ignored by voters.

OHIO

Strongsville Group Releases Document It Says Comes From NEA, OEA Says It’s Forged
Cleveland Plain Dealer, OH, April 25, 2013
A group of concerned parents and community members gathered outside of Center Middle School April 25 to say they were “fed up with certain tactics” from the Strongsville teachers union.

Common Core Makes Sense, Says Governor
Marietta Daily Journal, OH, April 26, 2013
Gov. Nathan Deal, who was in Cobb County on Thursday for a bill-signing ceremony, was asked to explain his support for the controversial Common Core school curriculum.

Cleveland Names ‘Investment Schools’ Slated For Turnaround
Cleveland Plain Dealer, OH, April 25, 2013
The Cleveland school district this afternoon named 13 low-performing schools to receive intensive help next school year, a major step in kicking off the Cleveland Plan for Transforming Schools.

PENNSYLVANIA

Phila. Schools’ Cash Crunch May Cut Charter Growth
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, April 26, 2013
Citing a $304 million shortfall, the Philadelphia School District announced Thursday that it would recommend against expanding any charter schools in 2013-14.

TEXAS

School Rankings Highlight Challenges
Houston Chronicle, TX, April 25, 2013
his year’s annual school report card, recently released by Children at Risk (“Houston’s learning curve,” B1, April 21), once again shows the enormous difference between our area’s top public schools and its bottom ones.

UTAH

City Studies Charter School Offer
St. George Daily Spectrum, UT, April 25, 2013
City officials are considering a deal with a nonprofit educational foundation that could revive the St. George Musical Theater and provide a local building for students enrolled in a web-based charter school focused on the arts.

WASHINGTON

Legislature Must Enact Key Education Reforms
Seattle Times, WA, April 25, 2013
Promising education reforms before the state Legislature that once seemed doom are moving forward now. Bills in Olympia are never dead.

WISCONSIN

Walker Attends Rally For School Vouchers
Journal Sentinel, WI, April 25, 2013
School voucher supporters who want to see public funds support kids attending private schools in cities beyond Milwaukee and Racine kicked their efforts into high gear Thursday, gathering at a rally in Waukesha to trumpet the benefits of the program.

ONLINE LEARNING

Will Blended Learning Cost Less? (And Should That Be The Question?)
Jewish Week, April 25, 2013
Among the many challenges faced by schools today are rising costs and shrinking budgets.

Be Careful With Charters
Philadelphia Inquirer, PA, April 26, 2013
The Philadelphia School District’s motive to start its own cyber charter school is understandable – recouping some of the $60 million it sends to other cyber charters to serve city students – but that’s not the road to take.

East Lycoming Reviews Cyber School Tuition
Williamsport Sun-Gazette, PA, April 26, 2013
Outreach for behaviorally challenged students and cyber and charter school tuition were topics of discussion at the East Lycoming School Board meeting, held Tuesday evening.

Fla. Online School Target Of Cuts From Legislators
Gainesville Sun, FL, April 25, 2013
Florida’s highly-successful online school is battling proposed cutbacks at a time when state legislators are bragging about boosting money for schools by more than $1 billion.

Learning Anytime, Anywhere
Holland Sentinel, MI, April 25, 2013
“This is their homeroom,” Rebekah Redmer said, as she pointed to a webpage enlarged on a projection screen.

Filed Under: Daily Headlines

Charter Schools Shortchanged During Recession

April 25, 2013 By Shapiro Consulting

University of Arkansas
EDUCATION’S FISCAL CLIFF, REAL OR PERCEIVED?
Public Education Funding During the Economic Downturn and the Impact on Public Charter Schools
By Larry Maloney, Meagan Batdorff, Jay May & Michelle Terrell

A recent analysis by Larry Maloney published by the University of Arkansas on the inequity of public charter school funding versus their traditional public school (TPS) counterparts has been released in preliminary format with final results forthcoming. The analysis is based on data for FY ‘07 through FY ‘11 for five districts (Washington DC, Denver, Los Angeles Unified, Newark and Milwaukee), and aims to compare the parity between funding for charters versus TPS during the “Great Recession.” The numbers among all five urban districts varied, but all the research demonstrated a significant gap in per pupil funding. The report looked specifically at information based on total public funding, which includes federal, state and local funding, and funding that came from non-governmental entities.

The last funding category analyzed was “other revenue,” representing any revenue from non-public sources, including: fundraising and philanthropic gifts, investments, facilities rental, and activity fees. With the exception of Denver Public Schools (a 49.9% increase but only $914 to $1,370 per pupil), all of the other school districts took a hit in this category, but it was more pronounced for charter districts, which traditionally have had to rely more heavily on this category, particularly philanthropy, to make up the funding gap.

The initial report is eye-opening in terms of numbers, the sentiment echoes what we have known and been reporting for years with our Annual Survey of America’s Charter Schools – that charter districts receive significantly less money while doing more to close the achievement gap, especially in urban districts.

Fast Facts:

• In FY ‘11 in the District of Columbia, the traditional public schools received 43.9% more than public charter schools. DC public schools received $29,145 in per pupil funding versus $16,361 for charters, so while the percentages demonstrate a clear disparity the actual figures are even more eye opening.

• According to our charter survey (as of 2010), 80% of all charters receive less than $9,501 in per pupil funding.

• According to our survey, charters spend more per pupil than they actually receive, whereas TPS do not. Average per pupil cost for charters is $8,001 and revenue is $7,291.

• Over the period studied by the report, charters saw a more significant drop in their local and state funding than TPS. For example L.A. Unified’s funding decreased by 0.6% but L.A. charter schools’ funding dropped a much more drastic 21% from $9,085 to $7,174.

• Charter schools in the report recorded a 46.3% increase in federal funding between FY ‘07 and FY ‘11 from $1574 to $2303 per pupil.

• With regards to total federal funding, all but two of the five districts saw an increase in federal funding while TPS saw a more significant funding increase over charters. The two exceptions were Washington DC public schools and Newark charters which both saw their federal funding dip. In Los Angeles, for example, the TPS funding went up 47.5% and charters got a bump of 25%. Milwaukee was even more pronounced with TPS having a 71.7% increase and charters only 1.1%.

• Overall public charter districts in the study weathered the economic downturn, only Los Angeles and Milwaukee actually saw per pupil declines in total revenue. However there remains a significant variance in the funding that TPS get and charter districts and that gap widened in three of the five cities between FY ‘07 and FY ‘11

This report is a snapshot of a larger national study on charter school funding that will be released in 2014.

Filed Under: Choice & Charter Schools

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