The only part of a charter school that is a public school, according to this initiative, is the use of tax payer funds.

 

• Initiative 1240 circumvents our State Constitution because it would set up an alternative state school system not under the supervision or oversight of the Superintendent of Public Instruction or the local school board.

• The Washington State PTA voted not to support Initiative 1240 because the initiative did not meet the Washington State PTA’s  “criteria for local oversight.”

• According to the fiscal impact report of Initiative 1240, the projected implementation costs are estimated to be $3,090,700.

In addition to the $3M, “School districts that choose to become authorizers of charter schools will incur costs to solicit and review applications, contract with charter school boards, monitor and oversee their authorized charter schools, and annually report to the Board.”

When our schools desperately need funding, money should not be wasted on an experiment that has failed in New Orleans, Los Angeles, Chicago and New York City to name a few examples

 

• The next layer of bureaucracy would be the “Charter School Authorizers” who are appointed by the State Board of Education. These “authorizers” would have a six year contract to review and approve applications made to create a charter school.

An authorizer may delegate their responsibilities to a third party, either an employee or a contractor. At that point, an authorizer could be a contractor who benefits from a particular charter franchise being approved. It also removes the process of authorizing charter schools one step further out of the public eye.

For all of the reasons to vote “No” on Initiative 1240, check out the post in full at Seattle Education.