OP-ED: Information Every Parent Should Know About Charter Schools

Dear Parents,

Two charter school proposals have been filed which would affect the South Orange-Maplewood School District. As representatives of our school district’s Parent Teacher Associations, we feel strongly that our community must be informed about these schools and the impact they might have on our public schools and our already incredibly tight school budget.

What is a charter school?

A charter school is a publicly funded school that has been granted a charter exempting it from selected state or local rules and regulations. It is usually governed by a group or organization under a charter with the state. Charter schools often exist in communities where the existing public schools are struggling to provide a quality education to all of their students.

Who decides if a charter school proposal will be granted or denied?

Charter school proposals are sent to the office of the State Commissioner of Education. Districts named in the proposals (five contiguous districts from which students will be drawn) have sixty days to respond to the charter proposals. However, decisions about charter schools are made at the state level and not the community level and it is unclear how much weight, if any, the comments made by the affected districts are given. That means that the members of a community and their educational leaders are not a part of the charter school decision-making process.

Who funds charter schools?

The money to fund charter schools comes out of the school district’s budget. This means that the South Orange-Maplewood School District would pay the costs for students in our district attending either of the two proposed charter schools and if the distance is more than two miles away, the school district would also have to provide transportation. For example, our school district would have a per pupil cost of $12,000 per student. If 40 children left our public schools to attend one of these two charter schools, $480,000 would be taken out of the South Orange Maplewood School District’s budget (in addition to transportation costs, when necessary). Additionally, since these students would likely be coming from a number of our district’s public schools, we would still have to carry the same number of teachers and all related costs at our public schools.

Do taxpayers have any say in whether charter schools are established in their communities?

No. Presently communities do not have the opportunity to vote on charter schools.  There is pending legislation in the NJ Senate (Bill S 2243) that would require voter approval at the annual school election or by the board of school estimate prior to the establishment of a charter school. However, the Christie administration is not in favor of this bill.

What does our state government think about charter schools?

Governor Christie and his administration are pro-charter schools, and districts in which charter schools have been established, even those where a significant number of the constituents are not in favor of the proposals, feel as though their input and concern have been ignored. Many feel that Governor Christie will veto Bill S2243, denying constituents any say on whether charter schools are established in their communities and paid for by their tax dollars.

What are the two charter schools proposed that would affect our district?

One of the schools is a . The other districts named in the proposal are Livingston, Millburn, West Orange and Union. The  century learning.” That proposal does not specify a location yet but the affected districts would be Maplewood/South Orange, East Orange, Newark, Irvington and Orange.

How does the Presidents’ Council feel about the charter school proposals?

As representatives of all of our district’s PTA and HSA organizations we work to ensure that all our children are receiving a quality education in our public school system. We also are fully aware of the ever increasing budget constraints we face as a school district. Charter schools will divert funds from our district that will lead to cuts in our current programming, resources, and teaching staff. This could have an extremely negative affect on the 6,500 students our public schools serve. While we fully believe that students in some school districts can benefit from charter schools, we feel strongly that in a community like ours, charter schools will cause a severe financial strain.

What can we do?

We can educate ourselves on charter schools and their benefits and drawbacks.

A few recent articles provide overviews including:

http://www.njspotlight.com/stories/11/0424/1448/

http://www.njspotlight.com/stories/11/0509/2355/

Tune in or come to the Board of Education meeting on Monday, May 16 at 525 Academy Street in Maplewood, at 7:30. The charter school proposals will be discussed as the Board of Education begins to prepare their official response to the proposals.

Contact legislators. Let your state legislators know how you feel about community input on charter schools. This is crucial.

Richard James Cody (D), sencodey@njleg.org

Mila M. Jasey (D), aswjasey@njleg.org

John F. McKeon (D), asmmckeon@njleg.org

Contact Assemblyman Patrick Diegnan who is the Chairman of the Education Committee and sponsor of Bill S2243 and let him know how you feel, asmdiegnan@njleg.org.

Contact Acting State Education Commissioner Chris Cerf who feels that local districts and their voters should not have a direct say in charter schools. Phone #: (609) 292-4450.

This is an issue that can have a profound effect on our public schools and the children they serve. Please make your voice heard.

 Sincerely,

Cecelia Cancellaro

Jeaniene Brownlee

Co-Presidents, South Orange Maplewood Presidents’ Council