Governor Tom Corbett wants charter “reform.” He is trying to persuade the state legislature to allow him to create a commission that could authorize charter schools over the opposition of local school boards.
As a Pennsylvania blogger says, this puts the fox in charge of the henhouse.
This is ALEC model legislation. It’s on the ballot in Georgia next month, where ALEC allies hope to eliminate local control.
This is not conservative. It is radical. Since when do conservatives destroy local control to advance the monied interests?
Diane Ravitch's blog 
I thought conservatives believe in small government?
I thought the same. It seems the rules change everyday. I guess Tom feels “the state knows best.” Hopefully, the residents of PA will do the same during the next gubernatorial race in 2014.
Diane, I love your use of the word “radical” to describe these so-called “reform” efforts. I couldn’t agree more. Looks like we are seeing a new “Radical Right.”
Meanwhile REAL and much-needed charter reform efforts struggle to gain traction in states like Pennsylvania with a GOP-controlled House and Senate. There’s a very good new bill just introduced yesterday that would help fix many of the problems plaguing charter school funding. (More here: http://yinzercation.wordpress.com/2012/10/03/now-thats-more-like-it/)
But it will be exceedingly difficult to get this bill passed. Over the past few years, moderate Republicans have been chased out of our legislature, their opponents backed by the deep pockets of out-of-state superPACs, and many of the remaining folks on that side of the aisle have signed pledges that they will not pass certain legislation. Pennsylvania used to have Democrats and Republicans willing and able to work together and there was a lot of common ground in the legislature. That has all but disappeared. Worse, many Democrats are siding with these “radical reform Republicans,” buying into the mythic national narrative of failing public schools and the lure of the corporate-reform mentality.
We here in the grassroots have our work cut out for us! But this issue can really resonate as we help people understand the way in which this ALEC-model legislation attempts to take away local control and override elected representatives on our school boards. That can be a powerful and tangible message. Thank you for helping to spread it.
Yours,
Jessie Ramey
Real Republicans support local control. Real Democrats don’t pass ALEC bills.
Diane
This legislation was passed in Louisiana last spring. Don’t let this happen to Penn -teachers get the word out to fight this. This December our Board of Education will present the first list of applicants to fall under this new provision and they have shown that they decry true accountability. My school district,St. Tammany Parish, is the highest performing large school district in the state with highest average ACT score in the state and above the national average. We have never allowed charters but we are now expecting to be invaded. One prospective charter operator is advertising on Craig’s List for personnel to open an “international school.” He is a former instructor of Muslim studies at the Air Force Academy (5years) from Edinburgh, Scotland. Where do these charter promoters come from and how do end up here.
I know this is not new, but the original mantra of charter schools was that they provided parental choice. Whether it’s happening locally, as in NYC, by state government or federal government, suddenly this underlying idea that used parental choice to promote the expansion of charters has been abandoned. Parent voices are systematically being ignored. As in Los Angeles, the majority of the board of education was stacked with members who received large donations from the mayor who, not surprisingly, is charter friendly. That means that charters that should not have been approved were, and charters that should have been revoked weren’t.
So, basically, parents know everything if they ask for or support the opening of new charters, but know nothing if they show opposition. What kind of choice is that?
The amount of money being funneled into the campaign supporting the constitutional amendment is huge-and a lot of it is coming from the private companies who will benefit if this amendment passes.
Those of us against the amendment are trying to keep the message going about why it’s wrong and how it would hurt our public schools but it’s very difficult when we are up against a well-oiled and heavily financed machine.
I have been a regular blogger on the AJC Get Schooled website trying to educate others as to why the vote it wrong on so many levels. Do you have any other suggestions about what I can do, Diane? I would love to hear them if you do.
Tell your friends and relatives to vote against the referendum.
Write letters to the editor.
Appeal to supporters of public education.
Appeal to supporters of local control.
Appeal to state pride.
Appeal to those who don’t want outsource education.
Organize other teachers to join you.
Thanks, Diane. Great suggestions; already got a few on the list ticked off. I know you have a heavy travel schedule but I wish you had Georgia on your list, especially with this groundbreaking vote coming up. Your blog inspires me and gives me the motivation to keep fighting the good fight against the privatization of our schools.