Koby Levin, reporter for Chalkbeat, tried to attend meetings of the board of 10 charter schools in Detroit. It was challenging, to say the least.
When parents have an issue with their child’s school, there’s at least one place where they’re guaranteed a hearing on anything from school finance to student discipline: a school board meeting.
Yet in Detroit, a city with an infamously troubled school landscape, dozens of charter school board meetings are hard to find or poorly attended — if they happen at all.
Even finding the meeting times can be difficult. When a Chalkbeat reporter called to inquire about the board meeting at Covenant House Academy, the person on the other end of the line said “I don’t have that information,” and quickly ended the call.
David Ellis Academy did post its meeting schedule online, but the April meeting was set for Easter Sunday. It was canceled without notice.
These schools had not broken the law. But critics view such incidents as proof that charter schools in Detroit, which bring in more than $350 million from taxpayers for the 36,000 students they serve each year, aren’t doing enough to engage the community…
A reporter tried to attend 10 charter board meetings, proceeding roughly in alphabetical order. Four were canceled. When meetings took place, the reporter was the only person in the room who didn’t work for or oversee the school, except for one meeting where an advocate spoke on behalf of a student she believed had been wrongly expelled.
This is a pattern of disrespect.
As a side note, I will add that this story exemplifies why I admire Chalkbeat. Even though it is funded by billionaires including Gates, Walton, and Broad, it’s journalism is not tilted to favor the funders’ clear preference for charters. That’s why I make a small annual donation to Chalkbeat. It is informative and honest.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
While I applaud SPLC’s critique and recommendations for community schools with wraparound services, I doubt DeSantis will be phased or change his mind. DeSantis knows full well what he is unleashing on the Florida public schools, and he has stocked the courts with conservative judges to prepare for a court battle. The governor is a right wing ideologue that wants to undermine public education despite the fact he graduate from a public school. https://www.floridaphoenix.com/blog/public-hs-grad-desantis-touts-vouchers-for-non-public-schools/
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Sorry. I intended to post on the Florida article.
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To All:
Take The Jeanne Allen Challenge.
What’s that, you ask?
Last Friday was the end of National Charter Schools Week, and Bernie Sanders had to go wreck it with his call for charter school transparency. (and also for an end to for-profit charters)
In response to Bernie and the charter critics whom he emboldened to claim this as a victory, charter promoter Jeanne Allen just made a pretty bold challenge, and I’m thinking about taking it.
Perhaps you should, too.
Could you imagine if thousands os people across the country took the same challenge, and then reported back their results on Jeanne Allen’s Twitter, or to the Ravitch blog or elsewhere on line… and The Jeanne Allen Challenge was revealed as the great bluff that it is?
You could sign on to Twitter, and reply to Jeanne Allen’s tweet thusly,
“Hey, Jeanne, I took The Jeanne Allen Challenge at the office of Acme Charter School Academies, Inc, not too far from my house. They called the cops on me. Go figure!”
OR
“Me too, Jeanne, I went to the office of the Ronco Charter Academies, Inc,, the new charter school currently co-locating on my child’s public school campus — a co-location that is wreaking havoc on my child’s education —- and took your challenge, and they called security, and told me that they’re going to try to ban me from my own child’s campus, with which this charter is, again, co-locating. What’s up with that?”
Now, mind you, the charter folks in the office might make the argument.
“You’re not a parent, so we’re not required to provide you with that info.”
Au contraire, you should reply, I’m a taxpaying citizen, and my taxes pay for this place and its operations, so I am a stakeholder with sufficient standing that I can ask for this info. Indeed, Jeanne Allen makes no such “parent” requirement for the person taking up her challenge.
You can add, Hey, I’m just taking “The Jeanne Allen Challenge.” Haven’t you heard of it? It’s the latest craze that’s sweeping the nation.
Again, then report back what happened on this blog, or on Jeanne Allen’s “Twitter” comment (just BELOW), or somewhere else on the internet.
Ask for stuff such as everyone’s full salary and benefits package, (including health, retirement, etc.), the credential status of the teachers, the years of experience of the teachers, the attrition rates, the outside funders, who sits on the charter’s Board of Directors, ethic demographics, socio-economic demographics,, parents’ income & highest level of education, etc…. and so much more.
Without further ado, here’s that challenge:
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
Jeanne Allen @JeanneAllen
There is no more transparent public school than a charter. Try this – walk into your local public school and ask for their budget, their results, their tax return. Do the same at the closest charter school you have. Compare the results. Rinse, wash, repeat.
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x
This is a little reminiscent of Gary Hart challenging reporters to “put a tail on me to see if I cheat on my wife. You”ll be very bored.” If people take up The Jeanne Allen Challenge, it will have the same outcome, or at least, that’s my prediction.
Here’s a little bit of history regarding charter transparency.
Here’s what happened with NY State Comptroller Tom Di Napoli took The Jeanne Allen Challenge with Eva Moskowitz’ Success Academy schools:
https://www.courthousenews.com/Charter-School-Claims-State-Cant-Audit-it/
(SPOILER ALERT: Eva & her schools failed The Jeanne Allen Challenge, with then end result being that Eva and her schools WON this lawsuit, but FAILED The Jeanne Allen Challenge. As the old saying goes, “If you’ve got nothing to hide, you hide nothing.”)
Also, here’s what happened when activist Robert D. Skeels took The Jeanne Allen Challenge with the charter organization Parent Revolution:
http://www.schoolsmatter.info/2011/10/trigger-happy-parent-revolution-refuses.html
(SPOILER ALERT: Robert had a result similar to Di Napoli’s when he took The Jeanne Allen Challenge.)
And then of course, you have the above situation in Detroit.
Oh, and one more thing. You can very easily look up my salary, or the salary of any California public school employee without even leaving your computer — be that teacher, administrator, classroom aide, office worker, kitchen worker, custodians, etc. right up to a district Superintendent.
Just enter that person’s FIRST and LAST NAME on the Transparent California website BELOW:
https://transparentcalifornia.com
There, I just looked up myself, and yep, there I am, with my full salary and benefits cost. (SPOILER ALERT: my costs are not exactly bankrupting the Golden State, if you know what I mean 😉 .)
Now, if you want go and find the same info on any charter school employees, all you have to do is go to THIS OTHER website HERE …
…. errr… wait …
Oh that’s right! I forgot!
NO SUCH WEBSITE EXISTS BECAUSE CHARTER SCHOOLS ARE ALL PRIVATE CORPORATIONS WITH ZERO TRANSPARENCY!!!!!!!
Who’d o’ thunk it?
In the past, when reporters or citizens inquired about charter school budgets, salaries, attrition,.rates etc. , the charter folks suddenly change their tune, and respond by saying we don’t have to tell you anything because we’re all … WAIT FOR IT, FOLKS … private sector entities contracted by a school district, so F– off out of our office with your questions, please.
It’s interesting. When it’s to their advantage to promote themselves to the public, charter folks say, “Charter schools ARE public schools.” The national organization even even re-branded itself, adding “public” to their title when it wasn’t originally there to make this very point.
“The National Charter Schools Association” …
… magically became …
“The National Public Charter Schools Association”
However, when it comes to transparency or accountability, the same folks have lawyers in court making they argument, “We don’t have to do this, or disclose this, or whatever … because we’re private.”
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Charter school. noun. 1. A school that is public when it is asking for money and not public when it isn’t; 2. A means for diverting money from public education into the private accounts of the golfing buddies, ne’er-do-well cousins, mistresses, wives, and husbands of state politicians; 3. A great real-estate investment opportunity that involves using public tax funds to build private equity.
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