Charter Schools Ruled Unconstitutional In Washington State
In the ruling, Chief Justice Barbara Madsen wrote that charter schools aren’t “common schools” because they’re governed by appointed rather than elected boards.
Therefore, “money that is dedicated to common schools is unconstitutionally diverted to charter schools,” Madsen wrote.
Justice Mary E. Fairhurst agreed with the majority that charter schools aren’t common schools, but argued in a partial dissenting opinion that the state “can constitutionally support charter schools through the general fund.”
I always wondered why charters just received tax payer money when they weren’t listed on operational referendums. Consider that districts have to clearly spell out how they will use our money if the referendum passes. Shouldn’t the amount being diverted to current (and future) charter schools be listed? Those figures could result in public schools losing operational funds that the public actually, you know, voted on. Our referendum votes include funding these charters. Shouldn’t charters have to tell us how they plan on using our tax dollars?
Tags: Charter Schools
This is exactly what some of us requested the ACLU to do in Delaware last spring…
This argument has been made over and over and over that since property tax dollars are assessed on us, We The People , to have our school money diverted to charters when it should be going to build up the schools in our neighborhoods, (the reason we willingly pay taxes is because great schools boost our homes value). without our knowledge and consent, is unconstitutional…
Of course there is lots of room for interpretation in that… but Washington State made the challenge, and ….. in a court of law, facts win out… usually…. (when bribes are not readily available)…
Facts are all solidly in one column. Charter Schools hurt education overall.. Public schools help education over all..
After 20 years… Charter schools have never ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, been able to refute it… In fact, I even remember one candidate for governor at a gubernatorial candidate’s debate featuring himself, Protack, and Carney, making the case mentioned above, that charter schools are a monetary drag on education. and must not be allowed to grow and continue… Ask Allan. He was moderator.
Here’s my comment from January 2013:
Yep, taxation without representation.
How do we think this ruling may effect Delawares Vo tech scheme? Or more likely Sussex vo tech’s lust to become an unregulated charter school?
Not as much. The argument hinges on how Charter Schools rob public schools then pocket large portions of that funding into private pockets… With your vocational school argument there needs to be established first, a case of harm… How is the average Sussex County student harmed by Sussex VoTech? Just saying more taxes on their parents is not enough. You have to chart how your tax money is going to go straight into a non governmental function completely unconnected with the state educational apparatus… if you can do that, you may have grounds to pursue a lawsuit.
Charters have ALWAYS been about I don’t want my kids to have to go to school with those kids
“Shouldn’t the amount being diverted to current (and future) charter schools be listed?”
How come they are not required too do this?
Who made that decision, for Charter schools not be held accountable for the monies they receive from taxes?
The amount diverted to charters should be required to be printed on referendum ballots.
100% agree! It should also be stated on the ballot what things (programs, textbooks, smaller class size, etc.) will not happen if new charter schools open, expand grades or add students after passage of the district referendum.
For example, if new charter schools open then class size at public schools will be larger, not smaller – or, the district will not be able to purchase new textbooks. Seriously, charter schools alter what the public is voting on. It’s a hidden expenditure. The voting, tax paying public has a right to know how charters can change what they actually voted for.
Delaware shouldn’t even be discussing new charter schools. The discussion should be how to systematically close the charter schools here that already exist. Charter schools are nothing more than tax payer funded, white flight private schools within the public school system. Close the Charters, concentrate on our existing, traditional public schools and make them world class again. You would think that a government led by Democrats would be able to at least get this one right.
Delaware Democrats can’t even get taxes right.
Anon:
So East Side Charter is a “taxpayer funded, white flight private school”?
And Prestige Academy is a “taxpayer funded, white flight private school”?
And Kuumba Academy?
And the late, lamented Reach Academy and Moyer Academy/Academic Institute?
Look closely and you might see neighborhood schools in African-American communities, or schools chosen by families who opted out of the resegregated Red Clay and Christina school districts.
Or look at Las Americas Aspira Academy or Academia Antonia Alonso, and you might see schools where Anglo and Latino kids see the value of learning how to communicate in two languages at an early age.
There is a lot of what you’re referring to going on — not too many minority kids are lining up to learn Greek at Odyssey Charter, for example, and Newark Charter’s 5-mile radius has had the effect of limiting minority enrollments — but the issue is hardly as black and white as you suggest.
I suspect that charters are coming close to peaking in New Castle County — enrollments will grow in the newer schools in the next two-three years as they fill out their grade levels but you won’t see any more new charters there. You might see more charters downstate, but transportation issues and lack of densely populated areas will hamper their growth.
Within five years, I predict we’ll see a substantial weeding out and a greater proportion of students attending traditional public schools.
Charters are segregated, too. The difference is that an A at East Side or Kuumba isn’t the same as an A at CSW or NCS (if it were then we would find these students at CSW, and in AP and IB – and we don’t). That’s due to poverty.
We should also consider that while city charters are majority low income and black and brown kids that they segregate within that group. Not sure if Kuumba still has mandatory volunteer hours for parents. But this was a way city charters skimmed too.
“We should also consider that while city charters are majority low income and black and brown kids that they segregate within that group. Not sure if Kuumba still has mandatory volunteer hours for parents. But this was a way city charters skimmed too.”
Agreed — but the segregation that occurs within the group is the result of parent/guardian choice, which takes me to a point that I have long made about charters — that one reason charters tend to do better than traditional schools is that they have a more engaged parent base. Not saying that parents whose kids are in traditional schools are less caring, BUT the mere act of applying to a charter requires an affirmative effort, which de facto gives charters a stronger parental support system. (BTW, I’ve had a number of charter administrators tell me that they don’t think their parental support is any better than at traditional schools. I’ll let you decide whether they’re lying or they don’t know what they’re talking about.)
I don’t think the charter administrators are lying, mediawatch. I do think they have a tool that public schools don’t have – counseling out. And that’s the difference: who they allow in and who they can counsel out (along with 5 mile attendance zones). Those two things, alone, disqualify charters as public schools.
And if SBA test scores are all important (I don’t think they are) then city charters are in trouble. Like we knew they would be.