Bill Could Allocate Millions To Charter Schools

The U.S. House recently voted to pass a bill that would allocate an additional $300 million in federal funds to charter schools, such a Grayslake’s , but there is strong opposition from the public school sector.

H.R. 2218, or Empowering Parents Through Quality Charter Schools Act, passed the House in a 365-54 vote Sept. 13. The bill since has been referred to Senate committee.

If approved, the bill would replace the charter school grant program with a program awarding grants to state entities, and through them, subgrants to charter school developers to open new schools and expand and replicate high-quality charter schools, according to the bill’s summary.

The measure would require grantees to use 10 percent of the grant funds to provide technical assistance to subgrantees and authorized public chartering agencies, and to work with those agencies to improve the charter school authorization process.

The National School Boards Association has called the House vote misguided and costly.

“This flawed legislation lacks accountability by allowing independent charter sponsorship and is extremely costly in this current economic environment,” stated Michael A. Resnick, National School Boards Association’s associate director for federal advocacy and public policy.

In a statement to Patch.com, Executive Director Nigel Whittington said, “This is a complex issue and people have strong opinions about both charter schools and public schools in general, and how money should be spent.”

“There is still a strong debate at all levels about how much the federal government should be involved in education," Whittington said. "Regardless, I think many of us who work in schools have been monitoring the bill as it wends its way through the political process. It is too soon to begin to make any plans. That will begin once we know the final outcome of the bill and the federal government sets some guidelines.”

The National School Boards Association, said Resnick, supports charter schools provided they are authorized by the school boards in the communities where they are located. This is not the case in , where the funding of long has been debated and challenged.

Any student residing in or is able to apply for enrollment at , which is determined by lottery. In turn, the charter school receives a portion of those districts’ general state aid. It’s long been too much, according to Woodland.

Superintendent Dr. Joy Swoboda said that her district supports parents’ rights to choose an alternative form of education for their children, but that state-authorized charter schools such as are chartered over the objections of the affected school boards.

“The district's concern with state-chartered schools is not with the school itself, but with the funding formula that has been calculated by the Illinois State Board of Education,” said Swoboda.

More than $23.7 million in general state aid has been diverted from to since it was chartered in 1999, said Swoboda.

“The board of education has been monitoring and taking action regarding the financial impact this funding formula has had on . As it continues to closely watch the district's budget, the board has asked for revenues and expenditures relative to to be clearly delineated in the budget as well as in the district's audit to ensure that the public is aware of where district dollars are going.”

Regarding H.R. 2218, Swoboda said the district’s concern lies with offering additional federal dollars to charter schools during a time when traditional public schools are facing challenges that will “be clouding classrooms for years to come.”

School boards, said Resnick, should have the authority to decertify or not renew the charter of any school that fails to demonstrate improved student achievement.

"Given that only 17 percent of charters outperform traditional public schools, where the majority of our American schoolchildren attend, the cost benefit of investing $300 million into this effort rather than into programs within traditional public schools is not justifiable," Resnick said. "Instead, Congress must focus on investing in and improving traditional public schools that are currently facing budget shortfalls, laying off teachers, and cutting programs that advance student achievement."