Banda Won't Vote for Charters?
Haven't had time to listen but a reliable source tells me that Superintendent Banda, in an interview today on KUOW's The Conversion, said he wouldn't be voting for 1240. Listen for yourself.
Understand that this is man who already has his hands full - put a few charters in and/or have a charter takeover a couple of existing schools (maybe yours?) and our district will be on very weak footing.
I have a feeling he is only going to be the first in a long, long line of district superintendents in this state - particularly in the Puget Sound region and the small/rural districts - who will say no to this poorly-written initiative.
Understand that this is man who already has his hands full - put a few charters in and/or have a charter takeover a couple of existing schools (maybe yours?) and our district will be on very weak footing.
I have a feeling he is only going to be the first in a long, long line of district superintendents in this state - particularly in the Puget Sound region and the small/rural districts - who will say no to this poorly-written initiative.
Comments
KUOW listener
Washington Association of School Administrators Opposes Initiative 1240
OLYMPIA, Washington (July 26, 2012)—The WASA Board of Directors recently took action to oppose Initiative 1240, which would allow public schools to become independently run using public taxpayer funds. WASA supports options that meet the unique needs of local school districts and believes schools should be freed from burdensome regulations and given flexibility to innovate; however, I-1240 shows a serious lack of accountability and structure.
Charter schools put power into the wrong hands. Existing public schools can be “converted” to a charter school by a majority vote (signed petition of teachers or parents) without proper professional assessment, analysis, or investigation. Under this initiative, schools are defenseless against those holding the unverified opinion that a particular public school is ineffective.
Other serious flaws of I-1240 include:
· A newly created charter school commission must have a diverse membership; however, each member must hold a “demonstrated commitment to charter schooling,” with only one member of the commission being a public school parent. In creating charters, the charter school commission or approved local school boards may delegate responsibilities to employees or contractors and are excused from legal liability.
· If a charter applicant is denied by the charter school commission or an approved local school board, it can “shop the proposal around” and be approved by another authorizer, which allows sub-par or poorly planned charter school applications to be accepted. No standard or universal contract exists between charters schools and their authorizer—each school contract establishes its own policy and standards.
· Although proponents claim I-1240 is a “modest” proposal, with a limit of 40 charter schools over the next five years, any current school that converts to a charter school is not counted as part of the cap.
· Converted charter schools can remain in their existing facility, but cannot be charged rent by the school district. Further, the district is responsible for repairs and upgrades. A school district cannot stop a conversion, yet it must still pay facilities costs.
· A district must allocate public-approved levy moneys to converted charter schools, although charter school boards cannot request levy or bond moneys from the public.
WASA President and Pullman School District Superintendent Paul Sturm reported:
Establishing charter schools will not fix the issues facing public education. Although this particular initiative carries the positives of innovation, flexibility, and autonomy needed for K–12 education, the real issue and priority is ample funding for our current school system. The WASA Board of Directors is seriously concerned that I-1240 discards the fundamentals of public school responsibility and replaces those fundamentals with privatization of the public’s money. We support innovative schools and options designed for the betterment of every school district and community, but we do not support this initiative.
Wouldn't it have been nice if the Washington Association of School Administrators had said something like: "We know that schools aren't working well for a lot of students, but we know what we need to do to fix it and we're working on it."
They didn't. They didn't suggest that charter schools weren't needed. They picked at the edges of the initiative instead of addressing the real issue of their own dreadful performance.
1. James Bauckman..What is your view on charter schools? Do you believe we should implement them in Washington?
I have been fortunate enough to work at two completely different types of charter schools around the country. One was a for-profit, charter school in Massachusetts that was part of the Edison Schools Inc. and the other was a non-profit Montessori school in California.
The for-profit charter school no longer serves any children and was a huge waste of money and children’s and teachers’ time. Half of the teachers quit at the end of the year because of the administrator and his disrespectful treatment of the staff. We teachers all worked incredibly hard to help meet the needs of the students who were mostly poor, inner city children. The school management company, The Edison Schools Inc., was the reason the schools failed. The Edison Schools, Inc., managed charter schools around the nation and was so poorly run it now only offers services like summer school and testing services. What happened to all of the money and to the lives of all of the children that went through these schools around the nation? It was wasted. These schools did not outperform public schools and wasted tax payer dollars and the learning opportunities of students.
The non-profit Montessori based charter school in California has been incredibly successful and is still serving children. It is not a chain of schools or run by a management company. It was created by concerned educators and is based on best practices.
To me, we are taking huge risk by allowing charter schools in our state. We already can offer alternative education in our public schools in our state. We already have STEM, Waldorf, Montessori, IB, and other alternatives in our schools. Now that we have been granted a waiver from No Child Left Behind, we can be even more innovative in our state. We do not need to risk wasting tax dollars for a poorly written initiative like 1240. We can have people and businesses who have great ideas on how to help our children achieve write proposals to OSPI and districts and establish alternatives right now with state certified superintendents, principals and teachers working to help implement them. I do not support initiative 1240. I would be open to a better written initiative in the future for review, but I really do not think our public schools need the addition of charters to our state’s offerings for public education.
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Dan Dempsey
Charlie nails it - I'm wondering why didn't the senior Admin organization get on the teacher bashing bandwagon ?
I'm going to vote for Bauchman. Dorn has proven himself very effective at keeping the finger in the air and at not making mad the billy gates kool aid slurpers. Don't need his cowardice.
LeadersNotCowards
We have Waldorf public schools in WA state? Where? I know we have Montessori, STEM and IB but I haven't heard of any Waldorf.
FHP
That struck me as I listened to Banda. No glibness, no jargon or blather, no talking points. How refreshing!
Irene B
The students and staff of the Seattle Schools All-City Marching Band cordially invite you to join us for the 2012 Band Jam Friday July 27th at 6:30 pm at Memorial Stadium - 401 5th Ave N. The evening will feature musical performances by the:
Ten Man Brass Band
Junior All-City Marching Band (presented by Denny International Middle School, Chief Sealth International H.S., and the All-City Band)
Sumner High School Marching Band
Seattle Seahawks Blue Thunder Drumline
Seattle Sounders Soundwave FC Band
Seattle Schools All-City Marching Band
It will be a fun night celebrating the best part of any parade - the marching bands. Hope to see you. Pass it on.
Band Geek
I suppose I could find another avatar; I'm just not in any specific kind of mood.
Give me a couple days and I'll think of something.
I don't know about the Uno Cycle (I thought it was a photoshop joke), but I actually ride an Aprilia.
I toyed with the idea of an old Lancia logo, but I haven't driven a Lancia for over twenty-five years.