Here is the latest from Donald Cohen of “In the Public Interest,” which exposes privatization scams.
Donald Cohen writes:
“A $300,000 plane. $861,000 to pay off personal debts and keep open a struggling restaurant. A down payment on a house and an office flush with flat-screen televisions, executive bathrooms and granite counter tops. This isn’t a list of expenditures from Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous, this represents a small slice of the more than $30 million of taxpayer funds that have been wasted through fraud and abuse in Pennsylvania’s charter schools since they first opened in 1997.
“A new report from the Center for Popular Democracy, Integrity in Education, and Action United is blowing the lid off the lack of public oversight at Pennsylvania’s 186 charter schools.
“Inadequate audit techniques, insufficient oversight staff, and a lack of basic transparency have created a charter system that is ripe for abuse in the Keystone state. But there is hope. The report provides a detailed roadmap for the state to create an effective oversight structure and provide meaningful protections that can curtail endemic fraud and waste.
“The report calls for an immediate moratorium on new charters until the inadequate oversight system can be replaced with rigorous and transparent oversight. That’s the right first step.
“According to the authors, charter school enrollment in the state has doubled three times since 2000 and Pennsylvania’s students, their families, and taxpayers cannot afford to lose another $30 million. Pennsylvania’s students and taxpayers deserve better.
Sincerely,
Donald Cohen
Executive Director
In the Public Interest
Thank you!
From the In The Public Interest Team
Diane Ravitch's blog 
I hope they’re successful, but I haven’t seen it happen yet. It hasn’t happened in PA, OH or MI and politicians all vow to re-regulate every time a report comes out or a newspaper does an expose.
This is from March of this year:
“Auditor General Eugene DePasquale is calling on Pennsylvania lawmakers to overhaul the state’s charter school law to provide better oversight and accountability.
In a report released Monday, DePasquale recommended creating an independent board to oversee charter schools, requiring charter schools to present their annual reports to the host school board in a public meeting and creating more options for boards to monitor and renew charters.
After performing audits on a number of charters and holding public hearings on the subject across the state, DePasquale said the current system is “a mess, and you have sympathy for the charter schools and the traditional public schools.”
It would seem to me wise if other states would NOT follow the example of OH, MI, and PA rather than getting into this mess in the first place, because once it’s done you are stuck with it and it gets worse every year.
http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2014/05/pa_charter_school_reform_audit.html
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It is time for PA taxpayers to call for a repeal of the charter law. The law is not serving the best interest of most of PA students.
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“The report calls for an immediate moratorium on new charters until the inadequate oversight system can be replaced with rigorous and transparent oversight. That’s the right first step.”
This may be the only time the use of the word “RIGOROUS” makes sense.
Well, no. Navy Seals have rigorous training and Seals need grit to make it through, but the failure rate is high. I understand that the failure rate is 80%, but that failure rate isn’t because those recruits don’t all have grit. Many have to go because of severe injuries from the rigorous physical training.
But I’m sure if the U.S. turned Navy Seal Training over to Bill Gates, the failure rate would magically drop when he implemented VAM.
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