charter schools as an integral part of public education in south carolina wayne brazell, ph. d.,...
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Charter Schools as an Integral part of Public Education in South Carolina
Wayne Brazell, Ph. D., SuperintendentSouth Carolina Public Charter School District
2013 Innovative Ideas Institute
Charter School History in the US
Developed by a Massachusetts professor named Ray Budde in the 1970s who advocated for a new type of public school that would be organized more by teachers and less by district administrators
In return, the schools would be required to adhere to an accountability program for student performance as outlined in a charter contract
Now 42 states and D. C. with charter schools
The National Picture: Quantitative
Currently 6,000 public charter schools in US Equals almost 6% of all public schools Half of all public charters are in urban settings Over 2,500 of the 6,000 are elementary schools,
and that area is growing quicker than other grade configurations
Only 8.7% of public charter schools are from a public school conversion method
87.7 % of public charter schools are non-union
The National Picture: Qualitative
Some extraordinary public charter schools with national reputations in Chicago, Denver, New York, and elsewhere, serving diverse student populations
US News and World Report says that two of the three best high schools in the nation are public charter schools (BASIS in Tucson, AZ and Gwinnett School of Math, Science, and Technology in Lawrenceville, GA)
Half dozen public charter schools in the top twenty nationally-recognized public schools
National Picture: Trends Public charter schools are pioneering more
innovations, such as different curriculum designs, effective school culture modifications, different teacher compensation plans, etc.
The majority of public charter schools are funded below traditional public education, making them cost-effective examples of public entities
Charter School History in SC
The South Carolina state legislature passed the charter school law in 1996
Since 2006, interest has increased significantly Now fifty-three public charter schools in South
Carolina with over 20,000 students, total Over half of those students are attending one of the
seventeen schools of the South Carolina Public Charter School District; other schools are authorized by local school districts
How They Open
Groups submit a charter application in the spring to open anywhere in the state
Charter School Advisory Council reviews applications
Boards of school districts vote on accepting applications or not for the next academic year
Schools apply for some minor federal funding; no state funding is available until July of the opening year
SCPCSD History Alternative authorizer for the entire state Created in 2007; first school year
was 2008-2009 District quickly came to house the
virtual learning schools, which nowserve 8,000 students
District started with five schools in 2008; now over 11,000 students inseventeen schools
SCPCSD Status
Seven more schools approved to open in 2013 One of these is a virtual school, bringing the total
number of virtuals in the state from six to seven Six more brick and mortar schools will open
There is always the possibility of charter transfers (into or out of) the District at appropriate junctures in time
Many virtual learning students are not well-prepared for taking courses online, causing significant student churn
SCPCSD Funding Lowest funded public school district in the
entire state with virtual schools even lower The district was the lowest funded public
school district in the nation from 2008-2010 No local funding creates a financial challenge:
No access to facility funding No bond options for renovations or construction
District office operates on 2% of state funding
Authorizing Mission of the SCPCSDAs the authorizer, the district office: Disperses money to schools as a pass-through Reviews new charters applications annually Monitors active schools for charter compliance Supervises all student testing (live, state-wide) Maintains student data base information Contracts for district legal services Meets state and federal reporting requirements
District Mission of the SCPCSDAs the provider of services, the district office: Handles personnel training and benefits Provides daily IT Help Desk support to schools Provides special contracted support services Leads PR, media relations, and funding initiatives Represents the schools to the SDE Organizes special events, such as the teacher
recognition banquet, science fair, CCS workshops, etc. Leads district special education services
– District is the LEA– Over 11% of the students in the district have special needs
Accountability in SC Most public charter schools in the state are
fairly new, so the results are still forming So far, we see a mixture of results:– Greenville Tech Charter School is nationally known
as a well-respected public school– A few other public charter schools in the state
have not demonstrated solid results; some of them have closed and others might close
– The rest of the schools fall between these two extreme conditions
Innovation Examples in SC East Point Academy is a Chinese language
immersion school showing impressive results Palmetto Scholars Academy uses gifted and
talented curriculum with high expectations Calhoun Falls Charter School is taking the idea
of tailoring individual student needs to a whole new level with great gains in student academics
CREECS in McClellanville is teaching through the local environment
GREEN is opening as a renewable energy school
How Public Charter Schools are Different
Public charter schools have their own governing boards
No transportation is provided by schools (and no transportation money is provided to schools)
Decision-making is not district-driven Lower pay for almost all personnel Some flexibility from non-health, safety, and
equity issues Lots (and lots) of parent involvement At-will employee status is widespread
How They’re Similar with Traditional Public Education
State standardized testing applies No for-profit entity can be granted a charter;
charters are given to boards, like school district boards, and not to corporations
The vast majority of teachers are certified Students pick the schools, but no school can
pick the students All safety and health regulations apply
Conclusion Public charter schools have never claimed to
be “the” answer but merely “one possible” answer
For the next few years, we’re going to see the quality level for new public charter schools in South Carolina continue to increase
A funding formula for the schools of the District needs to be established
Parents and students are seeking more options for public education
Questions Many educators have questions and misconceptions
about public charter schools The district staff is always available to answer questions;
what questions do you have now?
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