A new report from Innovation Ohio shows that the state regularly Shortchanges public schools to favor charters. Charter operators give generous campaign contributions to the governor and legislators.
“Proponents have long claimed that community or ‘charter’ schools are the cure for much of what ails Ohio’s education system. If only parents had more “choice” over where their children attend school, they say, competition and the magic of the market would surely improve all schools.
“Equally important, boosters claim that charter schools are cost neutral to the state. Unfortunately, a data set recently produced by the Ohio Department of Educationi explodes that particular myth. According to the data, the way charter schools are funded in this state has a profoundly negative impact on the resources that remain for the overwhelming majority of kids — 1.6 million — who stay in Ohio’s traditional public schools. Actually, it’s even worse than that. In the vast majority of cases — even in many urban school districts — the state is transferring money to charter schools that perform substantially worse than the public schools from which the students supposedly “escaped.”
“Here are the facts:
Because of the $774 million deducted from traditional public schools in FY 2012 to fund charters, children in traditional public schools received, on average, $235 (or 6.5%) less state aid than the state itself said they needed.
More than 90% of the money sent to rated charter schools1 in the 2011-2012 school year went to charters that on average score significantly lower on the Performance Index Score than the public schools students had left.ii
Over 40% of state funding for charters in 2011-2012 ($326 million) was transferred from traditional public districts that performed better on both the State Report Card and Performance Index.
“IO [Innovation Ohio] does not claim that all charter schools are bad, or that charters don’t have a place in Ohio’s education landscape. We do say that the way Ohio’s political leaders have chosen to fund charters has had a profoundly negative impact on the children who remain in traditional public schools.
“That impact can no longer be ignored, and IO believes it is incumbent on the Governor and the General Assembly to develop a funding system that is not detrimental to the majority of Ohio’s school children.”
Diane Ravitch's blog 
No charter advocates have not suggested that charters are the cure for much of what ailes Ohio or any other state. Here’s what an Atlanta mom recently wrote, urging that people stop lumping together all district or all charters:
http://t.co/1j4SUvDCSz
Happy Mother’s Day
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Yes, these advocates have stated exactly that–charters are the cure and regular public schools are the disease. Why else would Newark, Detroit and other districts be going to all or mostly charter formats?
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Joe,
LOL! Go back and read this sentence you wrote, again: “No charter advocates have not suggested that charters are the cure for much of what ailes Ohio or any other state.”
What?
Whether you admit it or even understand it, you’ve just written that ‘There isn’t even one charter advocate who HASN’T suggested that charters are the cure for much of what alies Ohio or any other state.”
Did you never learn to proofread or are you trying to confuse us with poor and tortured writing?
Or…could it be as I’ve often suspected, that deep down, a good percentage of Privatization Cheerleaders and shills know that what they’re claiming is nonsense, and that sooner or later, the truth will find its way out. Guilt and remorse don’t exist for the true sociopath; Joe, I’m happy to see that there may be hope for you yet.)
However, this is one time where I’m in complete agreement with what you’ve written.
I sincerely hope that you are having second thoughts and that IS a beginning.
Cheers!
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Should have put a comma after the word No, so that it read, No, charter advocates have not suggested…
Our 3 children all attended urban district public schools and one of them currently teaches at an urban district public school. I’m a strong advocate for excellent public schools, whether district or charter. The same is true of a number of people who believe in the value of options part of districts, as well as charters, and what you in Washington State call your “Running Start” program.
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Ohio’s legislature has a history of making unfunded mandates. School boards have to find ways to fund the mandates with the local taxes raised by levies, usually property tax increases. It has never been easy to pass school property tax levies in Ohio. The poor economic times have made it even more difficult. Our district passed a bond levy that obtained support for a building improvement and new high school. It was matched by state funds but part of the money was delayed due to a state formula for paying their share. As of this year, the final phases are being completed.
We passed an operations levy that taxes earned income. It keeps retirement income from being taxed. We may have an additional tax on the ballot in the fall. We try to keep our levies on ballots that don’t require a special election. It is very expensive to run a special election in Ohio.
Meanwhile, as expenses for testing, half-hearted professional development, and the rise of the cost of technology has increased, the district has pushed experienced teachers towards retirement through the constant demands of “change” — often change to the focus on testing and the new vocabulary that it promotes. Many districts are doing well despite the low morale created by administrations that are pushing for high state rankings and prestige while pushing for so-called “accountability”.
Bill Phillips has pushed and pushed for equity in state funding, but he has not gotten further than to have the Supreme Court say that the funding formula isn’t fair. There has been no compliance by the Legislature. Yet more mandates are made.
Many veteran teachers have retired, saving money for districts. New teachers are given little support for success and are often shown the door in the first few years. Teachers with 7-15 years try to stick it out but often find themselves working under nightmare conditions.
Yet Kasich makes funds of putting money into education. He just forgets to tell the public that much of the money goes into private charters, not public charters, that aren’t held to the new, twisted standards. The actually PARCC tests won’t be given until 2015. People in Excellent with Distinction and Excellent districts may have a crash into the wall in 2015, dropping many from their feelings of safety.
On another note, some districts have made gradual changes in anticipation of Common Core implementation. Those of us who have taught the changed curricula haven’t found that our students have been exposed to as thorough or vibrant education as they received prior to all the testing mania. Once all the veteran teachers have had enough of all this, there will be few let to realize what education once was. Those willing to go along with the nonsense will have more security …temporarily…because it will change again.
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A first step would be for all Ohio public teachers and their supporters to vote for Democratic state senators and representatives. And, they should vote for Ed Fitzgerald for governor. The anti- public schools position of state Republicans is clear.
Senate Bill 5 proved the power of the ballot box.
Are the Ohio chapters of the NEA and AFT organizing for the November election?
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“That impact can no longer be ignored, and IO believes it is incumbent on the Governor and the General Assembly to develop a funding system that is not detrimental to the majority of Ohio’s school children.”
It seems the Gov and the General Assembly can ignore the “Unconstitutional Funding”
ruling (DeRolph v. State) 1997.
Maybe “IO” will have more social relevance than winkey Sup. Crt. ruling…
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Ohio public schools don’t have any advocates in government except for local school boards.
I suppose one could also include superintendents as they are public employees, but they’re obviously somewhat constrained because government at the federal and state level is so charter-school centered.
It’s a real shame.
I wouldn’t have believed lawmakers would abandon public schools if I hadn’t watched it happen. Someone needs to step into the void left by lawmakers because it’s really not a fair debate. It’s ridiculously one-sided, overwhelmingly pro-charter and anti-public schools.
Partly it’s because the vast majority of the think tanks and various “orgs” are pro-charter and anti-public, and they have an out-sized megaphone in media coverage. One rarely hears anything positive about public schools. It’s just this relentless negative coverage.
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You have not read or understood the immediate and well documented drain on public schools of a largely unregulated charter school enterprise in Ohio, or the model ALEC legislation that Kaisch et al have followed, or the RttT gifts to charters, including for profit charters where CEOs earn over $ 250,000 and taxpayer dollars intended for education now flow to marketing. I agree that stereotypes are too easy, but the evidence against the efficacy of charters as a means to address issues in education has been as overstated as the the unrelenting characterization of all public schools as failing.
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Kasich’ s ads on tv would have people believe that he is providing all students with more money. He is not. Many people are quite aware of the damage ALEC’s dollars have done. We are being lied to again and again as this Lehman Brother lawyer continues to try to run for President in 2016.
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We can’t just blame Kasich. The truth is the Obama Administration have endorsed (or promoted themselves) every single Kasich initiative.
Kasich’s OWN state RttT-type grants program is indistinguishable from Arne Duncan’s.
Kasich could conceivably (honestly) run on “I endorse President Obama’s education priorities”. The only difference would be one of rhetoric, and even there it’s a fine line.
I think it’s an actual problem for Democrats in this state. How can they possibly run on a pro-public schools platform when everything at the federal level contradicts that?
It was like a perfect storm for Ohio public schools. Funding was gutted, they piled on mandates, and both federal and state lawmakers were bashing them for political purposes at every turn.
Public schools are politically orphaned in this state. They’re the collateral victims of the ed reform movement. It’s a real shame.
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Reblogged this on Dolphin.
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Reblogged this on Scarlet Rialto.
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