Governor DeWine proposes increased charter school funding
Governor DeWine released his state budget proposal for fiscal years 2020–21 last week. In it, he recommends allocating an extra $250 million per year in state funding to schools, including charters, to better support the needs of disadvantaged students (with high poverty schools getting higher allocations). In addition, he proposes an additional $30 million per year for top-performing charter schools. For more analysis on the budget, check out this piece from Fordham’s Aaron Churchill.
The current state of Ohio’s charter schools
The New Political, a publication run by Ohio University students, recently published a story on charter schools in the Buckeye State. It gives an overview of how House Bill 2 has impacted the charter sector and discusses how charters are funded and currently performing. The article includes interviews with several Ohio charter school leaders.
Online school superintendent discusses e-schools and mobility
Marie Hanna, the superintendent of Ohio Connections Academy (OCA), recently opined in the Columbus Dispatch about the importance of considering mobility when evaluating e-schools. Hanna writes in response to a recent study from CREDO on the performance of online schools, noting that student mobility has negative effects on student performance and that online schools have the highest mobility rates in the country. Hanna acknowledges that full-time online education isn’t for every child, but argues that OCA’s strong policies on engagement and accountability has led to the success of many of its graduates.
Legislative update
The House and Senate Education Committees both met this week. Bills having their first hearing in the House included House Bill 111 on transferring student records, House Bill 121 on educator tax credits, House Bill 122 on private school choice, House Bill 123 on school security and suicide awareness, and House Bill 127 on academic distress commissions. Testimony and legislative analysis for the March 19 hearing can be found here. In the Senate, Senator Matt Huffman offered testimony on Senate Bill 89, a bill regarding career-technical education, and the Ohio Department of Education submitted proponent testimony in support of Senate Bill 34, legislation regarding school employment and educator licensure.
Congress needs to hear from the charter community
Over the next few weeks, Congress will set their budget priorities—and charter school advocates are working to ensure that the federal Charter Schools Program (CSP) is at the top of their list. The National Alliance for Public Charter Schools (NAPCS) is making it easy to contact members of Congress to show your support for an increase in funding for the CSP so charters across the country can grow and improve. Take a minute to have your voice heard.
