Search Results for 'charter schools'
Yet Another Charter School Closes Abruptly
This time, the Delaware Academy Of Public Safety And Security. You know, a school allegedly designed to prepare “…students for careers as first responders, such as law enforcement, firefighters and EMTs.” Over $500K in debt and disastrous educational results. Which, come to think of it, is what you’d expect from a school preparing students for […]
May 11 Open Thread: Study Finds Charters an Existential Threat to Public Education
The problem with arguing from facts is that you have to take the time to gather them. So now we have a study that reaches the same conclusion Delawareans reached a decade ago: charter schools are an existential threat to public education, and for the same reason we have witnessed: In siphoning off students from […]
The Settlement Between Christina and Charters Should Stand
The Short: Christina School District, DOE, and the general public gain previously non-existent oversight on how Charter Schools spend restricted money they are conditionally entitled to at a cost to the District of $150,000 (a one time payment to be divided equally among all 15 Plaintiff Charter Schools) plus the District’s legal fees.
Now, if you’re interested in the gritty details, come on inside and get comfortable, it’s a long read.
BREAKING: Charters vs Christina School District & DDOE Settlement
What’s it mean? The funds generated by the 2003 Christina School District referendum (10 cent referendum) that went to pay for 4 specific district programs will now be shared between District schools and all Charters and Choice schools that have Christina resident students attending them, it’s straight up division. Total revenue from $0.10 tax, divided by total number of Christina resident students enrolled in District, Charter, and Choice schools going forward (FY 18 and beyond).
For the current fiscal year (FY 17), Christina will take the total generated revenue from the $0.10 referendum (approximately $5.5 million according to the settlement), divide it by the total number of students and make payments to the appropriate schools by December 3oth. In addition to a one time payment in the amount of $150,000 to each of the plaintiff charter schools, which totals $2,250,000.
It Was Bound To Happen – Charters Sue Christina & State
“Fifteen charter schools have filed suit against the state Department of Education and Christina School District to get what they claim is their fair share of funding.”
As you may be aware, the issue of public school districts hiding money from deserving Charters has been brought up before. Many times. Most recently in August, when the results of a months long funding adjustment made by DOE were first made public in the form of recalculated charter bills sent to the Districts. That was when the General Assembly, District leaders, and the public first became aware that changes were made and it eventually became clear that what started as a “statewide adjustment” of local per student funding was really just a thinly veiled attack on Christina School District originating from the Western Newark area.
Representative Mike Ramone, Charter School Lobbyist
Mr. Ramone needs to read the regs pertaining to per student funding in public education. When a student moves from a District school to a Charter school, the tax money collected by the original district for spending on that student goes with the student to the charter. There is no fiscal “responsibility” borne by the Charter, the sending District is paying that child’s per-student expense. If Mr. Ramone doesn’t believe that, I have a $21 million charter bill Christina School District is paying this year for him to look at. Email me, Rep Ramone: brianstephan@gmail.com and I can help you understand how public schools are funded in this state.
Wilmington Education Advisory Committee Weighs In On Priority Schools
The letter inside was sent to Governor Markell yesterday. It is asking for the same thing most of us are asking – to slow down the process because more time is needed.
One thing is clear. The more people learn about the Priority Schools Plan the more they ask for more time before implementation.
The time frame is what frustrates so many – it simply cannot be taken seriously. The problems facing these schools are complicated, and ones we’ve ignored for years. Sadly, there is nothing in those MOUs that address, let alone acknowledge, the real issues facing these schools. And longer school days, getting rid of teachers and bringing in new “school leaders” (I hate that phrasing, btw) doesn’t address the very real challenges these children, and the schools serving them, face every day.
I stood on the steps at Warner when the Priority Schools plan was unveiled and, when the announcement was over, I walked away shaking my head. By the time I got home I realized that the main priority of the plan was the consequences of failure; that the only thing carved in stone in the MOU was the loss of our public schools. The time frame all but guaranteed that outcome. Hopefully, this letter will help slow things down.
Christina’s Plan For “Priority Schools” And Last Night’s Meeting
Here’s what happened at last night’s Christina’s School Board meeting:
With two days remaining before a threatened state takeover of its three inner-city schools, the Christina board delayed action on the state’s priority schools plan – but it gave Superintendent Freeman Williams permission to work with education officials on a compromise.
Department spokeswoman Alison May said officials there were willing to extend the deadline for negotiations – at least for the moment. Gov. Jack Markell has said he will close those schools down or hand them over to charters or other outside operators if the district and state can’t agree.
The board’s move comes after the Department of Education rejected draft plans the district had crafted after months of meetings with parents, teachers and others in the schools’ communities.
“At the highest level, the plans propose continuing the work that is already underway at the schools, which we know has not been effective,” May wrote. “The plans propose supplementing the current work in minor ways, which we do not believe will be transformative for students.”
Before continuing, let’s break this down. First, Gov. Markell will not close these schools down, so he should probably drop that bit of nonsense. Charter and privatization have always been the end game for these Priority Schools (It’s actually more than the end game, it’s the entire point of this), so let’s stop pretending that closure is on the table. It isn’t… unless someone wants to tell me where the children attending the closed schools would go? And while the MOU doesn’t have much to say about the children attending these schools, they do, in fact, actually exist.
Please Sign The Petition – Let’s Make Priority Schools A Real PRIORITY
Via Exceptional Delaware:
A group of like-minded individuals who are against the priority schools initiative has created an iPetition to give to Governor Markell, Delaware Secretary of Education Mark Murphy and the Delaware Department of Education. Please take a minute or two during the busy holiday season and make a difference! The timing is crucial on this petition.
If you agree… please sign the petition then help spread the word by sharing the petition with your friends on Facebook, Twitter, email, etc..
I’m counting on my DL community – you guys haven’t let me down before. Let’s knock this out of the park! Come inside for the Petition Link.
Wilmington City Council’s Meeting On Priority Schools
Last night I attended the City Council Meeting on Priority Schools.
I’ve stared at the above sentence for quite a while, not sure how to proceed. Mainly because I think last night was simply window dressing, a box checked off… the deal is done. These schools, imo, are headed for charter conversion, privatization or closure. The only question is when this will happen. Shortly after the December 31, 2014 Plan deadline? Or after the specified four year, approximately 6 million Plan doesn’t meet the standardized test bar?
Wilmington City Council To Hold Meeting On Priority Schools “Plan”
If you’re free on Thursday, you may want to attend this: WILMINGTON CITY COUNCIL NEWS AND INFORMATION News Release Wednesday, September 24, 2014 Wilmington City Council’s Education, Youth and Families Committee to Focus on the State’s Priority Schools Plan Public is Invited to the Thursday, October 9 at 6 p.m. Meeting Featuring a Priority […]
Red Clay Super’s Message Regarding The Priority Schools’ MOU
“Please be aware that the MOU and the planning process are not the same. The MOU is an agreement to collaborate during the planning process.”
So… is Merv saying that the MOU is simply an invitation to get-together and chat? That nothing in it is binding? It’s just a “Hey, could you RSVP so we can set up a time to come up with a plan that doesn’t exist – just ignore all that talk in the MOU about the school leaders’ salaries and teachers having to reapply for their jobs, etc. because none of that means anything.”
Question… the 9/30 due date is today – there’s a workshop scheduled tonight. Can the board vote at a workshop? If not, what happens if the deadline isn’t met?
The Takeover of Wilmington Public Schools
This issue has been percolating for awhile, especially since this was announced by the Governor’s office as a Major Education Initiative — and it turns out that this isn’t about education, but about moving around teachers and school leadership to continue to pretend to do something about Wilmington’s failing schools. The NJ writes about this today:
The Delaware Department of Education says six low-income schools in Wilmington are failing, and the way to fix them is to make the more than 200 teachers reapply for their jobs – and to hire elite principals at each school who won’t have to follow most district rules while earning annual salaries of $160,000.
Mark Murphy, secretary of education, says it’s necessary for teachers to reapply for their jobs to ensure that every educator in the six “priority” schools has the commitment and skill to improve student achievement, as measured by the state’s standardized tests.
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