Despite a flood of charter school scandals in Ohio, the lobbyists for the big-money charter operators are working hard to torpedo any reform of the charter industry.
Stephen Dyer of Innovation Ohio warns that lobbyists want to block any reforms of a system they created, which enriches their employers.
Dyer writes:
“All-
“It looks like the Ohio House won’t take up the charter reform package that cleared the Ohio Senate last week before the end of business tomorrow. So now, it’s being slow walked, which means at best we wait until mid-July for the bill to pass and at worst, we wait until September, which means that many of the provisions would likely be delayed by a year. I suppose the worst that could happen is nothing changes — a possibility that becomes more and more likely with each delay. We know that the powerful Ohio poor performing charter operator lobby would love for both chambers to bog this bill down so nothing changes.
“Anyway, I was reminded of just how sneaky our state’s big charter school operators (and campaign donors) are when the Beacon Journal wrote a story late last week that showed that E-Schools don’t have their students’ first-year test scores counted (and by extension, neither do most other charters).
“Again, every minute the legislature deliberates on this bill is another minute for these legislative ninjas to work their magic. Hopefully, the bill gets worked out tomorrow and we can have a meaningful piece of legislation passed. But until that happens, I’m nervous that all this work over the last couple years may go for naught.
“Best,
“Stephen Dyer
Education Policy Fellow
Innovation Ohio
35 E. Gay St.
Columbus, OH 43215
http://www.innovationohio.org”
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Ohio’s charter school reform efforts by the state legislators are diversionary tactics. Regardless of what “reforms” are put in place, Ohio’s public schools are on their way to becoming ATM’s for vouchers and Charters. As long as public school advocates ignore the real fight- changing the state’s constitution, the more Ohio’s schools wither and ultimately die. There is simply too much payoff for the states’ elected politicians to do the right thing.
My guess. The slowdown will continue on regulation of the charter industry, not just in Ohio, but elsewhere. The conservatives hope to win in forthcoming elections. They will press for deregulation, more charters, increased on-line learning and the rest. Stalling out on reform is an easy, wait and see strategy.
HB70 to privatize Youngstown’s schools: Rammed through in less than 24 hours after adding a 66-page amendment without discussion.
HB2 to clean up glaring example of failed privatization: Delayed and now shelved until after recess because “we don’t have time to read the changes.”
More embarrassment and shame for those who legislate education in the Buckeye state, but they’re not the ones who lose out. Yet.
Charter schools are no longer the experiment that Albert Shanker foolishly put forward. (He must have been drinking that public schools are failing cool aide.) In any case, charters are now a significant segment of tax payer financed education and should be regulated like public schools for the safety of students and protection of tax payers from widespread fraud. Ohio is probably the leading state for fraudulent dangerously unregulated charter schools and the citizens there deserve better.
The more favorable treatment of charter schools over public schools really puts paid to the “we’re agnostics!” nonsense. Look at this:
“The latest example? Apparently, E-Schools don’t have their poor test scores counted for the first year a student attends the school — traditionally the worst testing year for these students.
Need I remind you that the two largest individual campaign contributors since the charter program started are William Lager, who runs the nation’s largest for-profit school The Electronic Classroom of Tomorrow, and David Brennan, who runs OHDELA, another E-School? Lager’s school got all Fs and 1 D on the state report card, while Brennan’s school has the worst overall test scores of any statewide Ohio E-School.
Imagine how bad these schools would be if the state actually counted their first year? ”
It’s a double whammy for public schools, because the for-profit “eschools” have incredible churn- the kids move in and out of public schools. When the e-school student returns to their public school behind, the public school then gets that score counted against them immediately.
Ohio has a public referendum process. Maybe the people of this state can pass their own charter law if our lawmakers are too busy protecting donors to do their jobs.
http://www.10thperiod.com/2015/06/one-more-way-campaign-cash-keeps.html