Roxana Marachi writes about two proposals before the California State Board of Education today. Maybe the decision has already been made.
Question: Is it true that “anyone can open a charter school in California?”
Does it matter if the proposal comes from an organization that has previously failed?
Does it matter that no one knows who will actually run the school?
Do California taxpayers care how their money is spent?
Does the State Board of Educatuon have any quality standards?
Can convicted felons open charters?
Can maniacal parents home school their children and chain them to their beds?
Does California have any standards?
Or is it Betsy DeVos’ Dream State?
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Thank you, Diane. To be clear for readers, I did not ask the specific questions above and the qualifications for the lead petitioners of these two charters are vastly different. I have met with Dr. Anthony Johnson and do not question his qualifications. I did ask in the blogpost about who would actually be leading the school given that there are open positions yet to be filled.
The video I posted was from CCSA, where they state specifically in the introduction that “Anyone can open a charter school…” Here’s the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3oCQToUT1Q
It is unfortunate that these two petitions are being heard together. While I’d still urge denial for both, in retrospect, I would have split the post into two and critiqued the petitions separately.
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To answer the questions in the order in which they appear
Yes, but they do have to be breathing, though lack of brain waves is allowed (if not preferred)
No, previous failure is a badge of honor and actually preferred. How else can they learn?
No, it’s good to keep everyone guessing who is in charge
No,
No, they are competing with The LA School Board, where Standards Limbo is the game
Yes, preferably
Yes, absolutely, maniacal, even homicidal, chainsaw-wielding parents are welcomed with an open pocket book and chainsaws and handcuffs are thrown in as an added bonus.
No
No, of course not. That would still be Michigan
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“Charter Limbo”
How low can they go
In California?
‘Bout charters, you know
They never warn ya
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Betsy DeVos wants a “Pol Pot” in every Corporate Charter — not a pot.
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Betsy DeVos bought a lot of destruction in Michigan, but Broad, Hastings, and the rest of the California billionaires have a chainsaw and limbo stick giveaway every weekend in every city.
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Yes, but Betsy is loyal to Michigan, where her dream is “charter in every pot” (or was that “pot in every charter”?)
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You must be thinking of Bill Gates, who wants to charter a genetically engineered chicken in every pot. All billionaires, though, want public education forever potted.
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I think Bill Gates has smoked too much pot over the years.
Or maybe not enough.
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Roxana Marachi is a reflective, thoughtful, and passionate educator. Her clarifications on this blog post make it clear how deeply she cares about research and language. I have rarely witnessed charter operators having such honest and reflective public discussions about their work with children. I hope that the California State Board of Education listens to the on-going concerns and red flags on charter schools in our state. California has deep inequities in funding, teacher pay, segregation, and some of the largest class sizes in the country. I dream that our state board honors to our most experienced and knowledgeable teachers and researchers – we have the potential to make the most impact on the lives of children, but we need generous deep support for our public schools, and we can’t keep giving up our time to fight privatization of the public good. I call on our state to support the NAACP moratorium on new charter schools!
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I particularly enjoyed the meaty paras on digital ed platforms. I was just discussing the NJ Govr’s announcement he would scrap PARCC w/my engr husband. Told him I was worried Murphy might lean in this direction (toward ‘personalized learning’) based on a comment he made to press. Usually my husband’s eyes glaze over when I get into ed nitty-gritty, but one sentence of explanation was enough. He recognized & lambasted it immediately, said this kind of crap program was creeping into every aspect of his business.
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Oh, heck yeah: http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-times-guild-vote-20180119-story.html
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