Will lack of charter schools cost state federal grant funds?

COMPETITION: More than $4 billion up for grabs for reform efforts

BY DONNA GORDON BLANKINSHIP | The Associated Press • Published August 18, 2009

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Eleven states have said no to charter schools, one of the education reforms President Barack Obama backs. The states, including Washington, may soon be paying a penalty for that choice.

As states compete for more than $4 billion in federal education grants, Education Secretary Arne Duncan has made it clear that those willing to embrace charter schools and other favored innovations will get preference. Those who refuse may end up shut out of the money.

The strong-arm tactics put politicians in a tough spot. Many teachers union members strongly oppose charter schools, most of which use nonunion teachers. And school districts themselves don�t like giving up resources to the schools, which get government dollars but operate independently from the local school board.

But boosters, the president and Duncan among them, think they are key to turning around failing schools in part because charter operators have a big motivation for boosting student achievement. If kids don�t do well, the schools can be shut down.

Charter schools can also keep kids in school longer, offer more one-onone attention and try different ways of teaching and learning.

Duncan recently wrote in an opinion piece that states with charter school limits will decrease their odds of getting the grants � dubbed the Race to the Top competition by the administration. He has proposed a rating system to separate the winners from the losers; not every state will get a share of the money.

At the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools Conference this summer, Duncan called the charter movement �one of the most profound changes in American education � bringing new options to underserved communities and introducing competition and innovation into the education system.�

Starting at a competitive disadvantage will be 10 states, including Washington, that have never allowed charter schools. The others are Alabama, Kentucky, Maine, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont, and West Virginia. An eleventh, Mississippi, which recently let its charter schools law expire, is expected to adopt a new law when its Legislature convenes in 2010.

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