DeKalb’s Eugene Walker: Keep schools in local hands. “No” on charter schools amendment
DeKalb school board Chairman Eugene Walker opposes the charter schools amendment. Here’s why:
For an opposing view, read DeKalb board member Nancy Jester’s piece.
By Dr. Eugene Walker
While most of us are going about our daily lives in our normal routines, there are a handful of folks at the State Capitol who have been up to no good. With our economy still in tatters and our home values still at historic lows, these lawmakers approved a referendum which will appear on the November ballot which would have devastating effects on the DeKalb County School District and the children we are charged with educating.
If passed in November, a governing organization would be created, called the Georgia Charter Commission. Although the words “Georgia Charter Commission” won’t appear anywhere on your ballot, this seemingly well-intended and well-worded question would put the State of Georgia in the local school business and created a new bureaucratic umbrella. Local residents would have no control over this new commission, yet the system would cause these same taxpayers to shoulder more of the tax burden for schools than they do now.
To be clear, this has nothing to do with the whole charter school debate. DeKalb County has 13 charter schools, and the Board of Education believes in them and supports their work.
This would be yet another new state entity which would suddenly erect and operate new charter schools in areas that already have charter schools or public schools, or both. Funding for the students that end up at the new state schools would follow the students. It is estimated that this would amount to $430 million in state funding alone. Who would end up shouldering this $430 million tax shift into the duplicate school system? Local taxpayers, of course.
It’s easy to point out the enormous and obvious cost of this new behemoth, but the sinister is always more subtle, and much more dangerous.
Separate school systems used to be the norm in America. Prior to 1954, children who were white went to one school, and children who were black went to a “separate but equal” school. The Supreme Court unanimously ruled in Brown vs. the Board of Education that “separate educational facilities are inherently unequal”. I could have told them that, because I was in school then.
You see, public schools are constitutionally mandated to educate all children. Charter schools can pick and choose. Since the measure of success of all schools is test scores, charter schools have their pick of the brightest students which often are from households of confortable affluence. Now as long as all of the children remain under the control of a single, locally controlled school system, there is stability of the funding mechanism for all of the students regardless of their means.
It goes without saying that in our current economy, local school systems cannot take a $430 million hit from the get-go, and be able to continue to provide a quality education for all students. The children of the rich will always be able to afford to go to any lengths to attend the best schools. Children of lessor means will be trapped into the underfunded remains of a once-great school system. This referendum places us back on the path to separate and very unequal educational system. No, children won’t be divided on the pure basis of race, but on the basis of economic class.
The referendum before voters is, in short, the beginning of the end of universal free public education, and the decline of the control of local residents to control their own school systems. It would be turning back the clock to pre-1954 segregation, and we must fight to keep this from happening.
It is often said that “those who do not study history are bound to repeat it”. I find it ironic and heartbreaking that this phrase now applies to people who call themselves educators.
–from Maureen Downey, for the AJC Get Schooled blog
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155 comments Add your comment
Pardon My Blog
October 21st, 2012
8:47 am
While I think publicly funded “Charter Schools” should not exist and that it is just a way for a certain few to attend a private school on the taxpayers dime, being a DeKalb resident I think if we are to have these schools, then let the State make the determination on the need and funding, etc. The BoE and Administration do NOT know how to manage funds responsibly and care even less about a good education for the students. This would be just another fraudulent “friends and family” program. DeKalb already has magnet programs, montessori schools, etc. so I personally do not see the need for the “Charter” schools!
Disgusted in Dekalb
October 21st, 2012
9:19 am
Just remember, everything you read on the Internet is true…….
There are so many issues in place here that it is almost impossible to have a coherent thought, let alone conversation, on this topic. Which is evidenced by some of the posts here.
Cactus has it hit the nail on the head. Its about the money. If the amendment stated that the charter schools had to be run as non-profits, I wonder how much out of state support it would have….
It is despicable how our governor and state legislature treat our kids. The local school boards are a joke. But it seems we aren’t bothered by it too much because we continue to support these people for office. If they are so bad, vote them out of office.
I love the ‘competition is good’ mantra. Its the perfect example of the problem in this country. Competition is good on a level playing field. How is it fair when the for profit charter schools play by different rules than the local school systems?
Nathan Deal and his cronies and these corporations don’t care about our kids, they only care about the money. You can try to spin it anyway you want, but that the root issue. You can state ’studies’ or white papers or whatever you want, but thats where it is.
The question here is: Would there be this much interest in our kids if there were no amendment? No, the interest is in the money, which is deceitful and despicable.
What we have now is bad but its ours. If it needs to be fixed, get in there and fix it instead of spending all your time looking for ammunition to support a flawed solution that only benefits a bunch of crooked state officials and non-caring corporations.
SEE
October 21st, 2012
9:35 am
My husband and I discussed this amendment and we’ve decided to vote against it. Personally, I agree with charter schools and school choice, but I do not believe that the state should have a say in how a local county should spend its money. While I agree that certain counties may have corrupt school government and misuse funds, and that misinformed constituents will continue to vote for the same ole, same ole (think Eldrin Bell), but I vote with my feet. Dekalb parents who are dissatisfied can move elsewhere. What happens, though, if you open the door to the state telling a county that they must fund this charter school. The same type of corruption could manifest itself on the state level, and that would be much harder to eradicate. Counties that have been fiscally responsible may end up being forced to hand money to a fly-by-night charter that does nothing but line some pockets. I can easily see someone abusing this system by starting “charter” schools in several counties through bribes and political connections and making money for 5 years until the charters are forced to close. If it happens on the local level, then it will probably happen on a state level.
Mary Elizabeth
October 21st, 2012
9:40 am
SEE, 9:35 am
“I can easily see someone abusing this system by starting “charter” schools in several counties through bribes and political connections and making money for 5 years until the charters are forced to close. If it happens on the local level, then it will probably happen on a state level.”
========================================
SEE, I am glad you see the picture and have stated it so well, above. To put it bluntly, imo, many have been duped, and by forces outside of Georgia (as well as within Georgia).
mountain man
October 21st, 2012
9:51 am
“Who would end up shouldering this $430 million tax shift into the duplicate school system? Local taxpayers, of course”
I love it when these anti-choice demagogues use patently false statements.
Why would LOCAL taxpayers be on the hook for money? They are not controlled by the State. The local school syystem will actually have MORE money per student to work with when some students leave for charters, and the local tax is the same. The only money that MIGHT be in jeopardy would be State funds, and that has not been announced. You would think that local school systems would LOVE this idea, less students to deal with and the same money. But they are afraid that they will be shown up by these charter schools who can institute programs for tighter discipline, required attendance, parent involvement.
mountain man
October 21st, 2012
9:59 am
How did you get your doctorate, Dr. Walker without being able to spell? Lessor? How about lesser.
You seem to not want segregation – I welcome it. Segregation of the students whose parents CARE about their education from the children whose parents are destroying education. Segregation of children who want to learn from the discipline and attendance problems that suck up a teacher’s time, leaving nothing for the better students. We need segregation of this sort – it used to be done in the same school building by isolating the discipline problems, by confining SPED students to classes of their level, by tracking of students. It worked, and it worked well, until some egalitarian maniacs decided that everyone was totally alike and needed to be all treated the same. Alike and equal are NOT the same thing. All children have an equal chance to take advantage of a good education – a lot just coose not to. And they are dragging down the rest of the students and the administration doesn’t care. That is why the charter school movement has started – because local administrators won’t clean up their own messes.
gsmith
October 21st, 2012
10:00 am
the fact that one of the a$$ clowns on the dekalb board of education opposes this….. then i will vote YES !!!!
mountain man
October 21st, 2012
10:13 am
SEE – “Personally, I agree with charter schools and school choice, but I do not believe that the state should have a say in how a local county should spend its money.”
I SEE that so many people are still misinformed. If this Amendment passes (which I hope it will), it will take NO local money from the local school system. Actually, the local system will have the same amount of money to be split among LESS students, so the spending per student RISES.
These state charter schools will be dependent solely on STATE funds – no local taxes used.
John
October 21st, 2012
10:13 am
Our locally controlled school districts have failed us. We need alternatives. My family lives in DeKalb and our daughter attends a wonderful charter. if she had not gotten in, we were prepared to move out of the county before we would have sent her to the local county school with the 55% CRCT pass rate. You people who are for “local control” need to get your heads out of the sand. It’s not only local control you are voting for, it is local MONOPOLY control, under which the local districts have no incentive to improve. Please send a message to these districts, that their continued failure is not an option. Support state charters!
mountain man
October 21st, 2012
10:19 am
“Dekalb parents who are dissatisfied can move elsewhere.”
RICH Dekalb parents ALWAYS have had choices – private schools, home schooling, moving – but what about the lower to middle class parents whose children are currently trapped in lousy schools? They have NO choices. What if their job is in Dekalb county, they are upside down in their mortgage due to a vast lowering of property values, and cannot sell their house? Still think that moving is a reasonable idea? They would like to see better schools but their votes for better BOE members gets lost among those that are voting for “non-educational” reasons (dare I say it – race). Their BOE is being investigated by SACS for pushing hiring of family members. They routinely turn down charter schools because they are treatened by the competition.
Vote YES for REAL parental choice.
Ben
October 21st, 2012
10:26 am
No charter school funding with public money. If parents want more “choices” they should either homeschool, go private or pay $5000 dollars to send their child to a district like Decatur.
mountain man
October 21st, 2012
10:31 am
That’s right, Ben – keep all the public tax money for the current corrupt, under-performing “traditional” school systems. Then keep the students who don;t have the financial means trapped there.
mountain man
October 21st, 2012
10:32 am
Good call, Maureen, using Dr. Walker as a spokesperson for the anti-charter crowd. That probably increased support for the Amendment a lot just by publishing his article.
Mary Elizabeth
October 21st, 2012
11:12 am
Just posted on Kyle Wingfield’s blog:
“ ‘Teaching once was a ‘calling’, but it now is merely a job for many people. I shall always be grateful that my education came at the hands of very dedicated professionals.’
========================================
I am a retired teacher. No one could have considered teaching to be a ‘calling’ more than I. After I retired in 2000, I worked as a substitute teacher until 2006. I continued to see dedicated teachers in each of the 10 schools in which I functioned as a substitute teacher through 2006.
Please vote NO on NOvember 6 to defeat the Constitutional Amendment, and then work in your local districts to make traditional public education better, with the support of public charter schools which have been authorized by local school districts or by the State Board of Education.”
Ned
October 21st, 2012
11:41 am
As someone who plans to vote “no” on this amendment, but who strongly supports charters, I find parts of Dr. Walker’s piece highly offensive:
“DeKalb County has 13 charter schools, and the Board of Education believes in them and supports their work.” Historically the BOE sure has had a funny way of demonstrating that “support.” For example, the various ways in which the Board has shown “support” include letting Forest Hills rot for 5 years rather than letting ICS use it, not inviting charters to school choice fairs, referring to non-charter children as “our children” (implying public school charter children are not) . . .
“Charter schools can pick and choose. Since the measure of success of all schools is test scores, charter schools have their pick of the brightest students which often are from households of confortable affluence.” This is simply a LIE and Dr. Walker should be ashamed of himself for continuously pushing it. Charters are open to all and hold lotteries when there are more applicants than openings. Dr. Walker is LYING here.
“It goes without saying that in our current economy, local school systems cannot take a $430 million hit from the get-go,” One wishes the BOE would show such fiscal prudence with regard to their endless lawsuits.
“Children of lessor means will be trapped into the underfunded remains of a once-great school system.” It went to “once-great” a long time ago, and the charter movement is not to blame.
“children won’t be divided on the pure basis of race, but on the basis of economic class.” Visit schools in Dunwoody and Clarkston on the same day next week and tell me this isn’t happening now.
As I said, I’m voting “no” because the amendment seems motivated much more by money and special interests and less by any concern for children or education. About the only thing that would persuade me to vote “yes” would be more misrepresentations and LIES about charters like the ones Dr. Walker is pushing.
Private Citizen
October 21st, 2012
11:48 am
@Ben Outside the US, every single (?) 1st world country either has school choice or a portion of the school tax funds is allotted to the private schools, there is some portion of revenue sharing. We’re all adults here, so I am going to use a colorful phrase I have seen from political discussion on the wrong side of the internet. Seems to be in the US the public schools gobble up all the money and tell you to pay again if you want anything else. The rationale seems to be Why? Because f.u. is why.
DeKalb Wonkette
October 21st, 2012
11:54 am
The headline of this piece is enough for a “Yes” vote from me although I would have preferred the opportunity to vote on abolishing the school board itself in favor of a charter system.
It’s time for the incompetent “education mafia” to go both for the sake of students and taxpayers.
My two cents
RAMZAD
October 21st, 2012
12:09 pm
If you believe that State chartered public schools will be any way worse than the ones Dr. Walker is running over here in DeKalb I have a piece of Cincinnati beach front property to sell you. Let us look
at the deed.
Continue to delude yourself if it makes the current pain of local school control go away.
Private Citizen
October 21st, 2012
12:14 pm
Mary Elizabeth Where I live the school system is completely obsessed with their power and they take real good care of their own. If you want to be one of “their own” you have to cater and play personality and go long with any number of things and if a teacher counterpoints ever for any reason, even something genuinely constructive, it embarrasses the directors and that teacher will be made to pay, The power people are always “seeking ideas and input” and then they smash anyone who makes a suggestion if that person is not part of their cliche and pays homage to the right people, says the expected phrases when expected, etc. There is a church down the street from me that runs a little school in their church. I stopped by their yard sale and they said the county messes with them whenever possible, for example “that stair railing needs to be moved 2 inches” because the county resents that they operate without allegiance to the county system. The people who said this at the church were sophisticated level headed and nice people.
And mainly what the local school system does is tote water for these policies from the state that require teachers to do any manner of things. That is really what the Georgia school systems have become. They are fully occupied with re-delivering the mandates from the “agents of change.” That is what the school systems literally spend all of their time on, like they are bought-off zombies, and meanwhile there is very little in the way of books and supplies. Maybe I live where they take all of this stuff seriously. I’ve heard of at least one Georgia county that did not sign on to “Race to the Top” and they have my respect. Working in Georgia public school system means a whole lot of indoctrination and very little support and supplies.
The joke is that Gates Foundation is behind the indoctrination and is also behind the charter schools amendment. There must be a lot of pressure on policy makers to do this policy. They seem to have no alternative.
mountain man
October 21st, 2012
12:16 pm
When I had my battle with the Cherokee County school in the late 90’s, I was fortunate that I had the resources first for my wife to home-school him for a year, then private school, and finally to move to East Cobb. But I grieve for the parents of “lessor” means who were (and are) trapped in failing school systems, with no recourse.
Charter schools are a type of school choice that is available to children of all financial means. Vote yes and don’t leave certain children trapped in the likes of Dekalb County School System from lack of resources.
Mary Elizabeth
October 21st, 2012
12:26 pm
The Constitutional Amendment is more political than educational, in my opinion. Children “trapped” in their present school system already have the option of attending a state charter school by having their parents apply to the State Board of Education to establish a state charter school for them, which will remove them from their local school districts.
The Constitutional Amendment is unnecessary. The fact that it is unnecessary to create state charter schools for parents and children should alert readers to just how political this amendment is. Vote NO in NOvember to this amendment.
Private Citizen
October 21st, 2012
12:50 pm
Maybe someone can clarify. Currently, can a county obstruct or otherwise interfere with the functioning of a charter school? It seems that on a local level there are charter schools that are subsumed under the county system whether they want to be or now, i.e. are forced to do so. And the there are charter schools with more independence, for example KIPP academy, etc? I do not know much about this, but I know of one charter school that is considered to be under the county school system and the county does not like that they exist and exerts dominion over them if possible. Any clarification on this? Currently the model I know of it that the charter school is part of the county school system and does not have complete autonomy from the county, not even close. I recall one issue where a county was telling the charter school how many students to have, sort of wanted to “load up” the building and make them do their fair share. The main impression I got was not that number of students was the issue, but that it was one county by themselves asserting themselves with their own subjective and recently / locally rules, which then becomes a clumsy and power-stricken affair even if there is some justification to why they want to do it. I definitely got the impression that the county was ordering the charter school around and the charter school just had to sort of “take it.” The mood of these interactions was not pleasant at all.
Private Citizen
October 21st, 2012
1:09 pm
Counties want to protect their brand and are used to being able to feature their high-performing schools. They do not like when a charter school steals their thunder and they can no longer tout schools x,y, and z as being the examples of excellence. It confuses the information space and counties want their reputation and power to be simple and direct.
I love teaching. I hate what it is becoming...
October 21st, 2012
1:15 pm
I think everyone would agree that there are traditional school systems within Georgia that need a MAJOR overhall…
However, this amendment does not just address THOSE systems. It changes the constitution for the ENTIRE state, including many well performing districts. I know people are concerned about their children, but PLEASE consider that this is NOT just about your child and your district; it is about ALL of the children in Georgia and every district. Some of the rural districts are barely holding it together. That is the plan, I suspect. Starve us till we fail, then scream about the need for charters and vouchers… and they money to run them. It has all been very well carried out and in the future, folks will wonder how they were so easily duped.
My district is a very well perfoming district, and we do not have a huge, ungainly central office. Our schools and teachers are suffering already due to cut-backs from the state. I am sure we would look very appealing to some for profit charter educational corporation… high performing students that will make them look good on paper, engaged parents who are willing to jump in and help… and a certain percentage of the population who would be pleased with a taxpayer funded opportunity to get their children away from our growing ESOL and special ed population.
We do not need charters. No parents have asked for charters. Our traditional schools do a great job, year after year. But your tax money will go to run charters in our district, because there will be a good profit in it, and a ready made, successful student population.
Watch and learn.
mountain man
October 21st, 2012
1:16 pm
“Children “trapped” in their present school system already have the option of attending a state charter school by having their parents apply to the State Board of Education to establish a state charter school for them, which will remove them from their local school districts.”
Mary Elizabeth – Would you please tell me how many charters have been approved by the State Board of Education after they were turned down by their local system?
And what is to stop the charter opponents, after they use this argument to defeat the amendment, from going to the Georgia Supreme Court and declaring this method unconstitutional, just like they did with the earlier commission?
Vote YES
October 21st, 2012
1:19 pm
Dear DeKalb County parents, how is that “local control” working out for you? Seems like every week, the AJC is publishing another story about corruption and incompetence regarding DeKalb County Public Schools. Most damning is aimed at the administrative/executive level. So vote yes and you will truly see what a PARENT CONTROLled charter school is about. Don’t believe the hype from either sides, go visit a state charter school. Ask around, find a parent of a charter school kid, and ask their opinion.
mountain man
October 21st, 2012
1:22 pm
I love teaching, etc – You say on one hand that you have a very well-performing district, but then on the other hand you say you are being squeezed with funds and you have a growing ESOL and SPED population. Have you ever thought that the two go together. How many high-performing students have been getting less attention and options because of the funds and attention diverted to ESOL and SPED?
You say parents don’t want charters, but I see some clear evidence that this is not true.
If all parents are happy with the local school system, there will be no charters.
mountain man
October 21st, 2012
1:27 pm
“Starve us till we fail, then scream about the need for charters and vouchers”
As you undoubtedly know, the majority of school funding comes from local property taxes. State funds are the one you are talking about being cut. If you hadn’t noticed, there has been a recession. State income taxes are down. Which other epenses would you like to see cut rather than spreading the pain? Prisons and courts, perhaps?
If your school has seen very large cuts, maybe your county should raise property taxes to pay for the schools.
mountain man
October 21st, 2012
1:44 pm
I keep seeing comments about :”local control” of schools. If the locals want 100% of the control, maybe they should pay 100% of the cost. Do away with all State funding of schools and make it 100% dependent on local county property taxes.
But then create an alternate State school system funded with State dollars for parents wishing to escape the “local control”.
RAMZAD
October 21st, 2012
1:53 pm
Please read this if you want to see what we think of Dr. Walker over here in DeKalb:
http://www.crossroadsnews.com/view/full_story/20297908/article-Let-us-diversify-the-kind-of-public-school-supply-in-state?
LarryMajor
October 21st, 2012
1:58 pm
@mountain man, the SBOE has approved 19 charter school petitions (that were denied by their local BOE) since 2001 and 15 are still operating.
no mas
October 21st, 2012
2:20 pm
Maureen, is fact-checking not required for guest posts on this blog? Dr.Walker continues to repeat the same lies over and over, even as he is rebutted by the facts – don’t you care?
Mary Elizabeth
October 21st, 2012
2:21 pm
Mountain Man, I have answered your questions already to a poster by the name of “Phil” on Jim Galloway’s blog. I will provide you the links to the two pages of dialogue with “Phil” in this post and in my next post. Please read my dialogue with “Phil” to get the answer to your questions.
http://blogs.ajc.com/political-insider-jim-galloway/2012/10/18/charter-school-fight-makes-a-jumble-of-georgia-politics/
Link to last page of dialoque with “Phil” on my next post.
Mary Elizabeth
October 21st, 2012
2:23 pm
Continuation of my dialogue with “Phil” about the Constitutional Amendment on Jim Galloway’s blog is in the link below:
http://blogs.ajc.com/political-insider-jim-galloway/2012/10/18/charter-school-fight-makes-a-jumble-of-georgia-politics/?cp=2
Dr. Monica Henson
October 21st, 2012
2:53 pm
Disgusted in Dekalb posted, “If the amendment stated that the charter schools had to be run as non-profits, I wonder how much out of state support it would have….”
There is no charter school in Georgia that does not operate as a nonprofit, and there is no such language in the amendment because the original charter school legislation stipulates that all charter schools are to be governed by nonprofit boards of directors. Part of the process of startup includes incorporation as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.
Any charter school board that has a contract with a for-profit charter management organization or education services provider is still governing a nonprofit organization. Read the law, please, before you post misinformation.
Further, and it’s important for voters to realize this, EVERY PUBLIC SCHOOL BOARD in the United States, charter or district, has multiple contracts with various for-profit entities to provide goods and services necessary to the operation of the schools.
Dr. Monica Henson
October 21st, 2012
2:57 pm
“How is it fair when the for profit charter schools play by different rules than the local school systems?”
There is no such thing as a for-profit charter school. And charter schools in Georgia are held to far more stringent academic and operational standards than district schools, with the consequence of school closure for those that fail to meet the goals outlined in their charter contracts.
There is nothing preventing ANY public school district in the state of Georgia from seeking any of the identical flexibility waivers under Title 20 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated that charter schools are awarded. Except that their BOEs and central offices prefer not to request them, save for extremely limited circumstances.
Dr. Monica Henson
October 21st, 2012
3:08 pm
Private Citizen asked, “Maybe someone can clarify. Currently, can a county obstruct or otherwise interfere with the functioning of a charter school?, [etc., etc.]”
Schools that are chartered by local boards of education are under the control of the local BOE and must submit to its mandates. For that reason, the State BOE looks very carefully at those petitions that are for “conversion” charters in an effort to ensure that there will be true local governance, as much as possible, of the school. The devil’s deal that is made by start-up charter schools that are awarded local authorization is that they receive local tax funding, but they submit to local BOE control.
This is why an alternate authorizer is so needed. Yes, it’s possible for a start-up charter that is denied by a local BOE to appeal to the state and be chartered as a state special school. However, as the number of state-chartered schools grows, it will become unwieldy for the state administrative entity (GaDOE) to continue to be the administrative overseer of dozens, eventually hundreds (I hope) of state-chartered schools.
The legislature moved teacher certification out of GaDOE years ago for the same reason–to establish an independent body to deal solely with the important function of teacher certification and renewal. It will similarly be the purview of the Charter Schools Commission to serve as an independent body–dealing solely with authorization and oversight of charter schools.
bu2
October 21st, 2012
3:14 pm
Reading Nancy Jester’s paranoid rant about educrats made me want to vote no. Reading Gene Walker’s paranoid rant about separate systems made we want to vote yes. Such is the state of the Dekalb School Board.
Charters are good and I think they are necessary alternatives. This bill will not directly take any money from the counties. It is about state sponsored charters. Now the state does have to find that money somewhere.
If the counties were not so protective, this would not be necessary. There are counties who fight charters regardless of merit (I would put Cherokee in this category and probably a lot of rural GA counties). There are others who are accepting. So is the good of these charters in reluctant counties worth the risk of lower state funding elsewhere and the negative effects on those who don’t choose charters (underutilized schools, the weakest students being even more concentrated)? And how many schools are we talking about? 5? 10? 20? We certainly aren’t talking about large numbers as many are already school district approved. Maybe it isn’t a big impact statewide, only in those few reluctant districts where it could be a very big positive.
I love teaching. I hate what it is becoming...
October 21st, 2012
3:37 pm
@mountain man “State funds are the one you are talking about being cut. If you hadn’t noticed, there has been a recession. ”
They started cutting at the state level LONG before this recession.
mountain man
October 21st, 2012
3:52 pm
“They started cutting at the state level LONG before this recession.”
And if you look at spending per student, in inflation-adjusted dollars, we spend about four times (that is 400% more) than we spent in 1960 without ANY increase in achievement. How can you say that funding is DOWN (just down in the short term after being at historic highs)? Publish, if you dare, the spending per student (in inflation-adjusted dollars) for all the years from 1960 to the present and see how funding stacks up.
(Hint: you will see a LOT MORE funding for ESOL and SPED)
mountain man
October 21st, 2012
3:56 pm
Dekalb Count Board Charman Walker is a poster child for why we need State ability to approve charters.
mountain man
October 21st, 2012
4:03 pm
Mary Elizabeth – I read your response to “Phil”. So you called the State BOE and they “guaramteed” they woud continue to be able to approve charters at the state level. But they are not the Georgia Supreme Court and if a lawsuit is filed, then the Supreme Court will make the decision. I prefer not to wait and see and then have to go AGAIN and put the Amendment on the ballot. The decision will be a tight one, but I believe it will pass. If not, I will live with it. My kids are grown, so it doesn’t affect me directly. I just feel sorry for those parents who, like me, had problems with their school system that were not being addressed and they are trapped in those school systems.
Mary Elizabeth
October 21st, 2012
4:36 pm
mountain man,
In my opinion, you should not vote for this amendment because fear of what the Supreme Court may, or may not, do in the future.
There is a big difference in establishing a separate State Charter School Commission to authorize state charter schools, and already having a State Board of Education which has approved state charter schools for almost 20 years. I feel pretty confident that Georgia’s Supreme Court would easily distinguish between the two, i.e., a separately appointed educational agency vs. the state Board of Education for all of Georgia’s public schools, including state public charter schools.
mountain man
October 21st, 2012
4:48 pm
Mary Elizabeth – I plan to vote YES because I think charter schools are a viable alternative that might actually tackle some of the issues that exist in today’s “traditional” schools. (You as a retired teacher should know first-hand the effects of no discipline and poor attendance on school achievement). A State commission and a constitutional amendment would not be necessary if local schools would address these issues or at least approve all charters that meet minimum requirements. But no, they do not want to do either one. They want to keep on doing the same things that dig them into holes. They are “insane” by Einstein’s definition. They don’t want to discipline students because that might seem that blacks are being disciplined more than whites. They don’t want to require attendance because their poor students’ parents can’t get their kids to school. They don’t want to hold back under-performing students because that might make it seem like their schools are not working.
So charters seem like a better answer.
Fix your local schools or give parents the choice of getting their children out.
Marney
October 21st, 2012
4:49 pm
@Mary Elizabeth. The state BOE is appointed by the Governor…who is elected. The commission will be created by nominations made by the Governor/Senate/House leadership who then select by group vote what they consider the better of the candidates presented. The nominees get a lot of scrutiny and the folks nominating them know it.
And the State Board hasn’t approved charters for 20 years…there wasn’t even an a law allowing creation of start-up charters 20 years ago.
DeKalb Inside Out
October 21st, 2012
5:24 pm
SHAME on Dr Walker for playing the race card!
Lies to play the race card?? Don’t be that person Dr Walker. It’s a brave new world and we don’t need your race baiting.
Charters CANNOT pick and choose students
Charters have an attendance zone and blind lotteries to get in.
Charters currently cannot appeal to state
In 2011 the Ga Supreme Court majority report said the 1877 Constitution of Georgia granted local boards of education the exclusive right to establish and maintain K-12 education. The state cannot therefore establish competing State-created general k-12 schools.
Where are the new state charters
If the state can commission NEW state charters, where are they since the 2011 GA Supreme Court ruling? Barge estimated 7 new charters every year.
Amendment 1 addresses this.
Marney
October 21st, 2012
5:36 pm
@Mary Elizabeth. I can’t remember any more then 2 state only charters start-up charters, commissioned before 2005…CCAT,& Odessy, Both teetered on bankrupcy on only state funds, so the state BOE stopped approving any more because they understood any of them to be doomed to financial failure. Then the commission law passed and several got “out the gate” through them. When the commission was ruled unconstitutional, the Govenor stepped forward and said to the state board…If you approve them I will find bridge funding until we can get the constitution fixed. (The state BOE had already reviewed all of them very carefully in their role of overriding the commission, so they had good knowledge of the groups as well as a 1-year track record of actual performance) So the state BOE quickly stepped in to approve the majority of existing state chartered schools AFTER the court ruling. They know that their authority is questionable, but the existing schools and kids that were in them are real, so they elected to continue the best of the existing commission schools.
yuzeyurbrane
October 21st, 2012
6:03 pm
Jim Cherry—or I should say the ghost of Jim Cherry. If he were alive he would not think your post very funny nor would he support the state charter school amendment. To paraphrase former VP candidate Lloyd Bentsen, I knew Jim Cherry and you are no Jim Cherry. The real ghost of Jim Cherry says vote NO.
Mary Elizabeth
October 21st, 2012
6:25 pm
“The commission will be created by nominations made by the Governor/Senate/House leadership who then select by group vote what they consider the better of the candidates presented.”
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I believe that this commission will be a political group that has its underlying intent to supplant traditional public education. And, I did not say 20 years, I said “almost” 20 years.
Private Citizen
October 21st, 2012
6:51 pm
I love teaching. I hate what it is becoming…
“I am sure we would look very appealing to some for profit charter educational corporation… high performing students that will make them look good on paper”
Interesting point. They can come in and raid you like Bain Capital and take credit for everything.
My friend called me on the telephone today. I told him we should start selling Race To The Top dog biscuits.