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An end to the matter
The executive director of the Ohio Ethics Commission told the Joint Committee on Agency Rule Review (JCARR) on Monday that the commission has no plans to reintroduce its requirement for charter school governing board members to file disclosure forms. This after their initial proposal received strong pushback from legislators and was tabled. It seems unlikely that the issue will resurface any time soon.
Analyzing Kentucky court ruling
Last week, we discussed the recent ruling by Kentucky’s Supreme Court that found a law that would fund charter schools in the state unconstitutional. This week, the editor in chief for State Court Report discussed the implications of this ruling. “At their core,” she concludes, “recent school choice cases [like the one in Kentucky] raise the question of what public education really means. Look for ongoing dialogue and conflict between courts, state legislatures, and voters about how states should answer that fundamental question.”
The view from Tennessee
Meanwhile, Tennessee House Bill 2000 (and its Senate counterpart) proposes an expansion of allowed sponsors and operators of charter schools in the state. If passed this would, among other things, allow sponsorship by religiously-affiliated groups and churches. Gov. Bill Lee has yet to weigh in on these provisions as the legislative debate gets underway.
Sponsor limitation effort in Michigan
In Michigan, only higher education institutions and traditional school districts are allowed to sponsor charters. Even with this limitation, more than half of all K-12 students in Detroit currently attend a charter school. And it seems like the district would like to change that dynamic. Case in point: A bid to limit the proposed Sound Mind Sound Body Preparatory Academy to no more 20 percent of its students coming from within the Detroit Public Schools Community District and to require those students to apply to district high schools upon graduation from the grade 4-8 school. While there is some pushback among elected school board members, their objections seem to stem from the “one-off” nature of this proposal and would likely disappear if the board adopted such a plan for all sponsored charters going forward.
Survey opportunity
Momentum Strategy & Research and the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools are collecting survey data from charter schools in low-density and rural areas that have had experience with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and facility financing, or have outstanding facilities needs and want to learn more about what USDA can offer. If you are an Ohio charter school leader or staff member in such a school—in a community with a population under 50,000 people—this simple survey is a great way to make your voice heard and to share your facilities challenges with a federal agency looking to help. You can access the survey and more information about USDA’s programs by clicking here. For more information or to check your school’s eligibility, contact Jim Griffin at [email protected].
Register now for the 2026 Ohio Charter School Leadership Summit
Ohio’s premier annual gathering of charter school leaders, policy makers, and industry experts will be held on Wednesday, April 1, 2026, from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm in Columbus. Click this link for registration and more information on this opportunity to foster collaboration, share perspectives, and join the forward-looking conversations that support long-term success.
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