GothamSchools — daily independent reporting on NYC public schools

As parents and advocates, we are convinced that the bill being promoted by the charter school lobby to raise the cap on charter schools would seriously harm the city’s children who attend both district and charter schools.

We have seen how the city’s charter school operators have misused public funds for their own private ends because of lax financial oversight. We have seen how too often, children enrolled in charters have received inappropriately harsh discipline, and have been suspended or “pushed out” of school, especially those with learning issues or disabilities. We have seen how the city’s Department of Education has pitted parent against parent in fighting over space, in a school system that is badly overcrowded. And we have seen how both the DOE and charter school operators have deprived parents of a voice in how their children are educated.

Unlike the bill earlier passed by the Assembly, this bill would bar the State Comptroller from auditing the books of charter schools, despite the financial scandals that have erupted in New York and throughout the country regarding conflicts-of-interest, self-dealing and misuse of public funds. It would continue to allow for-profit management companies to try to make a buck off our children, despite the cuts that are decimating school budgets. And it would deny parents from having any say in where these schools are located, intensifying bitter battles that already are ripping communities apart and leading to more overcrowding and the loss of critical cluster spaces and libraries.

Class Size Matters and the New York Charter Parents Association have developed a framework of shared principles for district and charter parents, calling for enhanced accountability, transparency, and protection of parent and student rights at both sets of schools. (more…)