The “issue” about charters is that they are completely unnecessary.  They are a corporate- and foundation-sponsored construct to privatize public education with our own tax dollars. That was not the original intent of charters, but the “voucher” crowd soon saw (in the 1990′s) what a great Trojan Horse to privatization charters could be.  If you don’t believe this, just look at the corporate names on the boards of charter schools and charter school management organizations.

There is nothing about charter schools, educationally speaking, that can’t be done in public, parochial or private schools as well.  The big “innovation” they keep touting is their longer school day and longer school day.  All these do is wear out students and teachers alike.  

Go North Carolina!

The “issue” is that there is no need for charter schools.  They are just a corporate- and foundation-sponsored effort to privatize public education with our tax dollars.  Need proof?  Just look at the board of directors of any charter school or of charter management organizations.  

There is no advantage or innovation that charter schools bring to actual learning that can’t also be done in any other school — public, private, parochial or charter.  It’s just a question of will  on the part of people who oversee these schools as to what actually happens inside of them.  

The big educational “innovation” that charters crow about is their longer school day and school year.  What’s innovative about that?  It just wears the kids out. 

Charters represent a problem in many ways for public education but PPA’s saving really was a grassroots effort that put us outside BOTH the DOE and the Teachers Unions interests… and we won. No payoffs, no help from the UFT… just the determination of the parents and Advocates for Justice, who were classy enough to put kids before politics.