An education in choice: Massachusetts should drop charter caps

Worcester Telegram & Gazette

Editorial

March 23, 2012

The Worcester Telegram Editorial Board called for the removal of caps on the number of charter schools in Massachusetts, writing that: "When it comes to education, freedom and choice should have no limits."

They argue that "Charters have been a strong addition to the educational landscape for the better part of 20 years, both in Massachusetts and across the nation — 40 states and the District of Columbia now have charter school laws."

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Must issues for Boston schools

Boston Globe Opinion

Scot Lehigh

Boston Globe columnist Scot Lehigh writes an opinion piece about the ongoing contract negotiations between the Boston Teachers Union and school officials, citing charter public schools as an "obvious point of comparison for the new contract."

"There were more than 10,000 applicants for about 1,200 Boston charter slots that will be available in the fall [of 2012]. Although that figure undoubtedly includes some families that applied to several charters, it still shows the deep interest in an alternative to the traditional schools. If the traditional system can’t or won’t respond appropriately itself, expect pressure to grow for change to be imposed from outside. After all, the last education reform bill, which raised the charter cap and gave managers enhanced authority to turn around chronically troubled schools, was in part a reaction to BTU intransigence on reform."

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Your View: Charter schools are good for New Bedford

New Bedford Standard Times

April 11, 2012

By John R. Schneider

John R. Schneider is director of Gateway Cities Initiatives for the Massachusetts Charter Public School Association.

When the mayor of your city says that your schools are "falling backward" you've got a problem. It is a problem that New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell wants to fix and he has made school improvement a priority of his administration. He's not alone.

Like many Gateway City mayors, Mitchell is determined to see the city's schools improve. Thirteen of the state's 19 lowest performing school districts are in Gateway Cities, smaller cities like New Bedford that anchor regional economies.

After almost 20 years of education reform, the achievement gap isn't closing.

At one time, the achievement gap wasn't such a big deal. New Bedford's mills provided jobs and decent wages for many. But those days are long gone.

Click here to read the story on the Standard Times website.

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Letter: Charter schools are intended to help students

New Bedford Standard Times

March 9, 2012

Charter schools are intended to help students

A March 1st op-ed in The Standard Times ("Guest View: Let's get the facts straight on innovation schools") comparing the proposed innovation schools to charter schools is a bit misleading.

It's time to get the facts straight on charter public schools, too.

New Bedford is served by two charter public schools, Global Learning Charter Public School and Alma Del Mar Charter Public School. Both of these schools — like charter schools throughout Massachusetts — are open to any student from the district. Charter schools are required to have an open enrollment policy as well as a district recruitment plan. However, many of the state's charter public schools, including the charter schools in New Bedford, have waiting lists for admission. Clearly, New Bedford's charter schools are meeting a need.

New Bedford's charters receive funds when families make the choice to enroll their children. Since the district no longer educates these children, it does not keep the funds. New Bedford receives additional state aid to reimburse the city when funds are allocated to charters. The district gets more than double its money back over a six-year period. It's the most generous reimbursement policy in the country and it recognizes that a district has fixed costs it is still responsible for.

Charter public schools are also accountable for their results, and every five years they must seek charter renewal by meeting tough student performance standards. And charter schools do collaborate with local schools on strategies to improve education for all district students.

As New Bedford develops a plan for the future of public education in the city, charter public schools should be considered an important part of the education reform effort. New Bedford parents, like all parents in the state's Gateway Cities, deserve more choice in public education.

John R. Schneider

Director, Gateway Strategic Initiatives

Mass Charter Public School Association

Let’s Lift Strictures From Charters

Worcester Telegram & Gazette Editorial

February 20, 2012

The Worcester Telegram editorial team is of the opinion that there is no longer any doubt that Massachusetts’ experiment with charter schools has been a success. The paper supports the effort of Charter school supporters to lift the cap on Charter schools, allowing promising proposals to designate the number of new Charters. Approving Charters based on educational criteria, the paper said, is what the system should be designed to do:"The job of education is to provide the broadest possible range of choices, options, and experiments for schoolchildren and their families."

Click here to read the story on the Telegram's website.