Debate over charter schools could be reignited by Class I fight
Posted: Saturday, November 05, 2005
LINCOLN (AP) -- The long-dormant debate over charter schools in Nebraska could be reignited by supporters of elementary-only districts that are being forced to close down.
Nebraska is one of only 10 states that does not have a charter school law.
And while the focus of small-school advocates is on fighting the forced merger law, they are also looking ahead to what they will do if they lose.
Pushing for charter schools is high on the list.
"It's been discussed quite a bit," said Mike Nolles, vice president of Class I's United, a group representing the elementary-only districts also known as "class ones."
State senators working with small-school supporters are looking at options for giving parents as much choice as possible, including charter schools and voucher systems, said Matt Nessitti of Lincoln, a committee member with Nebraskans for Local Schools.
Charter schools have been legalized in 40 states since 1991, but there hasn't been much talk about them in Nebraska since the late 1990s.
While the laws vary among states, in general charter schools are created under a special agreement or charter by parents, community activists, teachers or even private companies. The schools might stress a particular curriculum such as arts or technology. Some are even offered over the Internet.
The schools are publicly funded. They can't teach religion or charge tuition, but they are typically free from many of the state and local requirements that other districts must meet. The contract creating the district sets out the standards under which it must meet to remain open.
Like Nebraska's Class I schools, charter schools tend to be smaller than their regular public school counterparts.
But Class I's may soon be a thing of the past in Nebraska.
A law passed this year calls for all elementary-only schools to merge with K-12 districts by next school year. A petition was circulated and enough signatures were gathered to put a measure on the ballot next year to repeal the law.
However, the mergers are scheduled to take place next June -- 4.5 months before the November 2006 vote. On Monday a judge heard a request to suspend the law before the vote can be taken. A decision was expected later this month.
The charter school issue came up, although under a different name, during debate of the Class I bill earlier this year. Sen. Adrian Smith of Gering, an opponent of the mergers, proposed creating so-called contract schools, which would operate similar to charter schools. He is leading a study of the issue in advance of the 2006 session.
While he is looking at that concept, Smith said, for now the focus is on delaying the dissolution of Class I schools. If the lawsuit fails, Smith said, he will introduce a bill to delay implementation of the law until after the 2006 vote.
School consolidation has not been a primary motivator in other states that legalized charter schools, said Todd Ziebarth, policy analyst with the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, which is based in Washington, D.C.
However, in some states, including Colorado and Oregon, charter schools have been established as a reaction to the merger or proposed closure of local districts, he said.
More often, the push for charter schools comes from a dissatisfaction with large, urban districts that are struggling, Ziebarth said.
Whatever the motivation, charter schools should not be seen as a threat, said Jeanne Allen, president of the charter-supporting Center for Education Reform, in Washington, D.C.
"No one who delivers good education should be worried about choice," she said. "The most interesting thing about Nebraska is there is this assumption that because education generally is good, that they don't really need much help."
Allen said she understands the motivation of those talking about the issue in Nebraska.
"Consolidation is not a good thing," she said. "People who are having trouble with this notion are right to be concerned."
Allen and other supporters of charter schools say they increase opportunities for learning and access to quality education for all students, provide more choice, are more accountable than regular public schools and encourage innovation.
But critics point to problems seen in some states with low test scores and questions over their constitutionality.
Nationwide, there are 3,625 charter schools educating more than 1 million students, according to The Center for Education Reform.
Along with Nebraska, North and South Dakota, Montana and Washington all do not allow charter schools. The other states -- all east of the Mississippi River -- are Alabama, Kentucky, West Virginia, Vermont and Maine.
The current charter school talk is not limited to rural Nebraska.
It has also been bandied about Omaha, where Omaha Public Schools is proposing a one city, one school district plan, said George Lauby of Nebraskans for Local Schools.
Lauby said for now his focus is on defeating the merger law and focusing on improving the public school system.
There hasn't been much discussion about charter schools in Nebraska, in part because of the presence of Class I schools, but more importantly because there is a law allowing parents to send their children to any school they choose, said John Bonaiuto, director of the Nebraska Association of School Boards.
While he expects the charter school debate to be renewed should Class I schools be dissolved, Bonaiuto said he thinks it will be tough going for supporters.
"It will be very difficult to make the case that there's a legitimate need," he said.
The last serious consideration of charter schools in Nebraska came six years ago, when a bill to legalize charter schools failed to make it out of the Education Committee.
That committee's current chairman, Sen. Ron Raikes of Lincoln, said he has not heard any talk of the issue being revived next year, and he would be surprised if it is.
"Other places in the country where they were kind of the panacea for all public education's ills, my understanding is it hasn't really worked out that way," said Raikes, who sponsored the bill this year dissolving the Class I schools.
Nebraska is one of only 10 states that does not have a charter school law.
And while the focus of small-school advocates is on fighting the forced merger law, they are also looking ahead to what they will do if they lose.
Pushing for charter schools is high on the list.
"It's been discussed quite a bit," said Mike Nolles, vice president of Class I's United, a group representing the elementary-only districts also known as "class ones."
State senators working with small-school supporters are looking at options for giving parents as much choice as possible, including charter schools and voucher systems, said Matt Nessitti of Lincoln, a committee member with Nebraskans for Local Schools.
Charter schools have been legalized in 40 states since 1991, but there hasn't been much talk about them in Nebraska since the late 1990s.
While the laws vary among states, in general charter schools are created under a special agreement or charter by parents, community activists, teachers or even private companies. The schools might stress a particular curriculum such as arts or technology. Some are even offered over the Internet.
The schools are publicly funded. They can't teach religion or charge tuition, but they are typically free from many of the state and local requirements that other districts must meet. The contract creating the district sets out the standards under which it must meet to remain open.
Like Nebraska's Class I schools, charter schools tend to be smaller than their regular public school counterparts.
But Class I's may soon be a thing of the past in Nebraska.
A law passed this year calls for all elementary-only schools to merge with K-12 districts by next school year. A petition was circulated and enough signatures were gathered to put a measure on the ballot next year to repeal the law.
However, the mergers are scheduled to take place next June -- 4.5 months before the November 2006 vote. On Monday a judge heard a request to suspend the law before the vote can be taken. A decision was expected later this month.
The charter school issue came up, although under a different name, during debate of the Class I bill earlier this year. Sen. Adrian Smith of Gering, an opponent of the mergers, proposed creating so-called contract schools, which would operate similar to charter schools. He is leading a study of the issue in advance of the 2006 session.
While he is looking at that concept, Smith said, for now the focus is on delaying the dissolution of Class I schools. If the lawsuit fails, Smith said, he will introduce a bill to delay implementation of the law until after the 2006 vote.
School consolidation has not been a primary motivator in other states that legalized charter schools, said Todd Ziebarth, policy analyst with the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, which is based in Washington, D.C.
However, in some states, including Colorado and Oregon, charter schools have been established as a reaction to the merger or proposed closure of local districts, he said.
More often, the push for charter schools comes from a dissatisfaction with large, urban districts that are struggling, Ziebarth said.
Whatever the motivation, charter schools should not be seen as a threat, said Jeanne Allen, president of the charter-supporting Center for Education Reform, in Washington, D.C.
"No one who delivers good education should be worried about choice," she said. "The most interesting thing about Nebraska is there is this assumption that because education generally is good, that they don't really need much help."
Allen said she understands the motivation of those talking about the issue in Nebraska.
"Consolidation is not a good thing," she said. "People who are having trouble with this notion are right to be concerned."
Allen and other supporters of charter schools say they increase opportunities for learning and access to quality education for all students, provide more choice, are more accountable than regular public schools and encourage innovation.
But critics point to problems seen in some states with low test scores and questions over their constitutionality.
Nationwide, there are 3,625 charter schools educating more than 1 million students, according to The Center for Education Reform.
Along with Nebraska, North and South Dakota, Montana and Washington all do not allow charter schools. The other states -- all east of the Mississippi River -- are Alabama, Kentucky, West Virginia, Vermont and Maine.
The current charter school talk is not limited to rural Nebraska.
It has also been bandied about Omaha, where Omaha Public Schools is proposing a one city, one school district plan, said George Lauby of Nebraskans for Local Schools.
Lauby said for now his focus is on defeating the merger law and focusing on improving the public school system.
There hasn't been much discussion about charter schools in Nebraska, in part because of the presence of Class I schools, but more importantly because there is a law allowing parents to send their children to any school they choose, said John Bonaiuto, director of the Nebraska Association of School Boards.
While he expects the charter school debate to be renewed should Class I schools be dissolved, Bonaiuto said he thinks it will be tough going for supporters.
"It will be very difficult to make the case that there's a legitimate need," he said.
The last serious consideration of charter schools in Nebraska came six years ago, when a bill to legalize charter schools failed to make it out of the Education Committee.
That committee's current chairman, Sen. Ron Raikes of Lincoln, said he has not heard any talk of the issue being revived next year, and he would be surprised if it is.
"Other places in the country where they were kind of the panacea for all public education's ills, my understanding is it hasn't really worked out that way," said Raikes, who sponsored the bill this year dissolving the Class I schools.
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sue wrote on Jan 7, 2007 10:53 AM: