Washington State Charter School Updates

There are three two new charter schools opening in Washington State this fall with a current middle school expanding to include a high school.  They have both have been authorized by the Washington State Charter Commission.
Green Dot is opening a 6-12 school in Seattle, called Rainier Valley Leadership Academy.  This is Green Dot's second school in Washington.

Summit is opening a 6-12 school in West Seattle.  This is Summit's third school in Washington.

Willow Public School, an independent charter, will open in Walla Walla for grades 6-8 in 2018.  (They had previously applied but their application was rejected but they had been encouraged to apply again.)  On that last sentence I was thinking of another charter when the Commission first started up.  Willow says they are enrolling which would seem odd for a school not opening for more than a year but hope springs eternal, I guess.

One of Spokane's charter schools, Pride Prep, which serves students in grades 6-8, is expanding to 9-12.  (So not a new charter but an expansion of one.)

As well, one charter, Excel Charter School in Kent, is being absorbed by Green Dot but will keep its own name.  Oddly, Excel's website has no notice to the public or parents about this.

This brings the total number of charter schools in Washington to 10.  Keep in mind, there could have been up to 40.  I believe that when the new law was passed by the Legislature, it reset that count so there could now be 51.  And yet, the Washington State Charter Commission only received three applications in 2015 and two in 2016.  Not sure about Spokane but clearly, they are not moving quickly.

Despite this, I've seen a spate of stories over the growth of charter schools in Washington State.

Why is the growth so slow?  It might be because of the continuing fight over the charter school law. I was told by someone highly connected that many charter groups are reluctant to come into Washington until the dust really settles.  (Clearly, Green Dot and Summit have taken on that challenge.)

Additionally, the Washington State law makes the application process a heavy and somewhat expensive lift.  While that's a good situation in some ways, it also means it would be harder for a stand-alone, home-grown group to start a charter school on their own.  Hence, Green Dot and Summit contribute the majority of charter schools in Washington State.

There is an application for a new charter school in Tukwila called Impact Elementary. The group starting it wants to create a network of eight new charter schools across the state called Impact Public Schools. With major moola from the Gates Foundation, they are on their way. But the group also intends to wait until the current charter school lawsuit is settled.

In other news, the Washington State Charter Schools Association has a newish head, Patrick D'Amelio.  He was formerly the head of the Alliance for Education, Big Brothers and Big Sisters and Washington STEM.  He was the only head of the Alliance I ever liked and felt good about and it was a loss when he left.

Another odd thing about the landscape in Washington state for charter schools is how the WSCSA thinks they are the group of record for charter schools.  They are not; the Charter Commission is.

The Spokeman-Review story says students are designing the new high school for Pride Prep.  But I do smile at some of the statements from Pride Prep:

In its first year Pride Prep had few rules and no tradition or settled-upon procedures. In fact, there weren’t even classes in a traditional sense. 

Instead students enrolled in classes that interested them, regardless of their age. Everyone worked in a large open room. Classes were separated into pods.

Starting this fall the middle school classes will have walls. 

The school will also be a candidate school for the International Baccalaureate program. That will add structure to the school, McDonald said.

Charters or not, for the most part, classrooms need walls.  The open-space idea never works and you tend to see that change fairly quickly.  And yes, structure - both physical and mental - is a good thing for a school.

As well, I have seen a photo for the development of the building for the new Summit school in West Seattle and a sign just says "public school."  C'mon kids, let's be truthful.

I also note that there are now billboards - all in the south-end - for charter schools as well as ads on KUOW.

Lastly, I believe I have found a loophole in the charter law around management and operations.  I'm still exploring it as both the State Board of Education and the Washington Charter Commission have been somewhat vague in their answers to my queries.  Both have encouraged me to get a lawyer for clarity.  It is baffling that I should have to get a lawyer to get a question answer on a law that not one but two government entities administer.

As well, I have found the term "common school" used in a couple of charter contracts (and it's another oddity that some have it and some don't).  I thought that was made clear in the Washington State's Supreme Court decision - charter schools are NOT common schools.  That's why they can't get General Fund dollars.  An oversight?  Hmmmm.

I'll let you know what I find out.