Failing Charter Schools Are Converting Into Private Schools

[jodymarie aimee]

Failing Charter Schools Are Converting Into Private Schools–

–and Using Voucher Programs to Thrive on the Public Dime

http://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/318-66/45959-failing-charter-schools-are-converting-into-private-schools-and-using-voucher-programs-to-thrive-on-the-public-dime

Two key factors underlie these conversions. The number of voucher and voucher-like programs across the country has more than tripled over the past decade from 16 to 53. And charter schools, which became popular as a way to spur educational innovation with reduced regulation, have increasingly faced more stringent oversight. Jeanne Allen, founder and CEO of the Center for Education Reform and a longtime supporter of charter schools, lamented in a recent op-ed that increased government regulation is turning them into “bureaucratic, risk-averse organizations fixated on process over experimentation.”

“Why not just be a private school if the kids qualify for the scholarships?” said Christopher Norwood, a consultant for the Orange Park school, in an interview. “With 90 percent fewer regulations, schools can be independent and free, and just deal with the students.”

As private schools, the ex-charters are less accountable both to the government and the public. It can be nearly impossible to find out how well some of them are performing. About half of the voucher and voucher-like programs in the country require academic assessments of their students, but few states publish the complete test results, or use that data to hold schools accountable.

While most states have provisions for closing low-quality charter schools, few, if any, have the power to shut down low-performing voucher schools.

[The_Casual_Observer]

1. They will shut down right away. there isn't enough voucher money to support it.