Arizona Charters The Real Wild, Wild West Education Still Reigns - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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Oct 08, 2023 26 likes •345 views

Arizona Charters The Real Wild, Wild West Education Still Reigns for Voters https://azednews.com/education-is-voters-1-issue/ Voter Priorities for Education https://azednews.com/education-is-voters-1-issue/ What are AZ Charter Schools? ARS

SLIDE 1

Arizona Charters

The Real Wild, Wild West

SLIDE 2

Education Still Reigns for Voters

https://azednews.com/education-is-voters-1-issue/

SLIDE 3

Voter Priorities for Education

https://azednews.com/education-is-voters-1-issue/

SLIDE 4

What are AZ Charter Schools?

❖ARS 15-181: “Public schools that serve as alternatives to traditional

public schools”

❖Funded by the state and “free”

to all Arizona students

❖Don’t operate by same rules as

district schools

❖Most loosely regulated in the nation ❖Essentially, charter operators are contractors that receive taxpayer

dollars to operate privately controlled schools

❖In 2017, there were 427 charter holders and 579 schools

http://www.azcsa.org/uploads/3/9/2/3/39234099/charter_pp_pdf..pdf

SLIDE 5

History of Charters in AZ

❖First approved, along with open enrollment, in a 1994 special legislative session ❖Originally, three approval pathways: through local school district, AZ

Department of Education, or AZ Board for Charter Schools

❖In the beginning, state agencies could only approve 25 per year ❖Annual limit soon lifted, charter contracts changed from 5 to 15 years, and

ability to apply for additional money if enrollment exceeded projections allowed

❖GOP-led Legislature added seats to state Charter Board and authorized

governor to fill them

❖With 2015 budget, the Legislature stopped allowing districts to charter schools ❖AZ charters educate 17% of public school students in 28% of public schools https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona-education/2018/12/14/charter-schools-take-root-arizona-1994-legislation/ 2015754002/

SLIDE 6

How Schools are “Chartered”

❖ Either the state board of education or the state board for charter schools

grants charter status to qualifying applicants

❖ Applicants must pay $6,500 and submit a detailed education plan,

business plan, and operational plan to a proposed sponsor

❖ Sponsor can be ❖ State Board of Education ❖ State Board for Charter Schools ❖ A university under AZ board of regents, or community college district ❖ Must also submit fingerprints to the approving agency for the purpose of

btaining state and federal criminal records check

❖ Charter schools operate under state legislative contract, or charter, that

utlines mission, curriculum, management structure, and accountability

SLIDE 7

Who Determines Charter Admission?

❖ AZ state statute (ARS 15-184) delineates charter school admission requirements: ❖

Shall enroll all eligible pupils who submit timely applications, unless number exceeds set capacity

❖

May give preference to returning pupils/siblings, children in foster care; homeless; and children, grandchildren or legal wards of those affiliated with school

❖

May use lottery process for enrollees if necessary

❖

Charters may not limit admission based on ethnicity, national origin, gender, income level, disabling condition, proficiency in English, or athletic ability

❖

May limit admission to a given age group, grade level, or single gender and may refuse to admit pupils expelled from another school

❖ Research however, shows that most charters do not educate the same numbers

f special needs and low income students as districts

SLIDE 8

Charters Accept All, Right?

❖ State funding formula divides SPED students into two categories ❖ Group A = mild needs such as speech impairment or dyslexia

Group B = significant hearing or vision impairments, autism or intellectual disabilities

❖ Formula created in 1980s before school choice options existed

and assumes Group A students spread evenly among all schools

❖ Every district and charter gets extra funding for each student

enrolled, regardless of # of SPED students attending

❖ For every $1 districts get for SPED students, they spend ~$1.50 ❖ 2016 amount = $241 per high school student and $362 per K-8

SLIDE 9

Charters Accept All, Right?

❖ Of 50 districts and charters with the largest positive funding

gap per student, 45 are charters

❖ 16 Basis charter schools SPED population is 5X lower than

the average of schools and combined, they get $3.4M more per year in state funding than they spend on SPED students*

❖ 2017 ACLU charter report, found “illegal or exclusionary”

enrollment practices in AZ that recently forced documentation and policy changes at almost 100 charter schools in state**

*https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/politics/arizona-education/2017/10/05/arizona-special-ed-funding-benefits-schools-fewest-special-ed- students/649712001/ **https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona-education/2018/07/12/arizona-charter-schools-get-more-state-funding-pay-their-teachers- less/686900002/

SLIDE 10

Two Charter Goliaths

❖ Mom and Pop schools dominated the first wave, but now the big boys rule ❖ Between 2014 to 2017, just 10 charter companies, including Basis and Great Hearts,

accounted for 73% of the growth in students attending AZ charters

❖ Basis and Great Hearts combined, educate about 30,000 of AZ’s one million students, and

have already tapped almost 2/3rds of construction loans given to 500+ charter schools

❖ Basis founded in 1998 ❖ Has 22 campuses in Arizona, three in Texas and

ne each in Louisiana and Washington, D.C.

❖ U.S. News & World Report says they have five best schools

in country with a waiting list of 5,775 students

❖ Great Hearts opened in 2004 ❖ Has 22 schools in the Phoenix metro and seven more in Texas ❖ Say they have 12,000 students waiting for a spot https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona-education/2018/12/16/arizona-rise-big-charter-schools-fueled-powerful-friends/ 1822430002/

SLIDE 11

The Special Hookup

❖ Governor Ducey announced policies last year to help the “big boys”

❖ One gave more cash to schools with students who passed

AP and International Baccalaureate exams — the primary focus of a Basis high school education

❖ A second gave extra money to schools with high

standardized test scores, measures at which Basis and Great Hearts excel

❖ A third program provided low-interest construction loans to

public schools as Basis and Great Hearts were adding campuses

❖ Unfortunately, 53% of students at charters that received performance

funding were white versus 38% enrolled statewide and only 25% were Latinos although they account for 45% of enrollment statewide

https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona-education/2018/12/16/arizona-rise-big-charter-schools-fueled-powerful-friends/ 1822430002/

SLIDE 12

District vs. Charter Funding

https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona-education/2018/12/15/what-does-take-open-charter-school- arizona/2284765002/

SLIDE 13

Funding Differences

Type School District Charter Funding Sources

❖ Property tax collections ❖ State General Fund (equalization) ❖ Federal Funding ❖ Locally-Supported Funding (Bonds,

Overrides, Deseg)

❖ Tax Credit Donations ❖ School Facility Board (less than 1% of

total education funding dollars)*

❖ State General Fund ❖ Additional Assistance ($1,700-$2,000

more per student than districts)

❖ Tax Credit Donations ❖ Federal Funding ❖ Fees requested of Parents

2017 Amounts Per Pupil

❖ State = $6,748 ❖ Local/State/Federal = $9,474 ❖ State = $5,389 per student ❖ Local/State/Federal = $8,523

Rest of the Story

❖ Only 28% of students live in districts

that can reliably secure local funding

❖ When students leave district for another

ption, 19% of fixed costs are left

❖ Taught only 16% of students, while

receiving 27% of state education dollars

*https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona-education/2018/07/12/arizona-charter-schools-get-more-state-funding-pay-their- teachers-less/686900002/

SLIDE 14

Spending Differences - Administration

❖ District schools spend approx. 75% of revenue in

classrooms (only 10.4% on administration in FY2017)*

❖ Charters spend at least twice as much on administration** ❖ Profit off large management fees (BASIS had $10M no bid

management deal with founders)

❖ No-bid deals to furnish IT services or facilities for

themselves

❖ Spent $57M more on administration than if the

students had been in district schools

❖ BASIS alone spent $13M more on administration in

2014-15 than a public district of same size***

*https://www.azauditor.gov/sites/default/files/18-203_Report_with_Pages.pdf **https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/politics/fact-check/2015/10/13/arizona-charter-spending-fact-check/73518748/ ***http://www.azcsa.org

SLIDE 15

Accountability Differences

Type School District Charter Budget

❖ Must run deficit-free, have restrictions as to

how much can be carried over

❖ Administrator’s salary negotiated in public

and published

❖ Debt restricted by capacity for local support ❖ Allowed to run deficits and pay out

distributions (for-profits) even when “in the red”

❖ Compensation for executives is

unchecked

❖ Allowed to exist with excessive debt/

income ratios Audit

❖ Must undergo annual comprehensive state-

run audits

❖ Are included in AG’s annual district

efficiency report

❖ Are subject to detailed performance audit

by same that requires district to appear before legislative committee

❖ Must have annual audit performed by

auditor of their choice

❖ By law, state auditor general can’t

monitor charters

❖ Not included in AG’s annual district

efficiency report

❖ Only state agency receiving public funds

not monitored by AG

*https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona-education/2018/12/17/arizona-charter-schools-spend-more-district-school- admininstration/2015982002/#

SLIDE 16

Accountability Differences

Type School District Charter Procurement Rules

❖ Districts must obtain competitive bids ❖ District employees or board members

may not accept “gifts” not provided to public at large

❖ 90% have waivers exempting them

from competitively bidding out contracts and purchases

❖ Are not held to same gifting laws

Financial Reporting

❖ Must submit annual audit results to AZ

Auditor General

❖ Accounting must follow Unified

System of Financial Records (USFR)

❖ 25%+ of charter operators outsource

administration to private companies, shielding finances from the public

❖ The private companies are often

pened by charter board members*

❖ Nearly 90% have been granted

exemptions from the USFR

*https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona-education/2018/12/17/ arizona-charter-schools-spend-more-district-school-admininstration/2015982002/# **http://www.azcsa.org/uploads/3/9/2/3/39234099/charter_pp_pdf..pdf

SLIDE 17

Governance Differences

Type School District Charter Board

❖ Locally elected ❖ Not paid ❖ Don’t really “govern” but set policies ❖ Self-appointed board may have only one

member (may be CEO)

❖ Unlimited compensation allowed ❖ May be non- or for-profit ❖ Religiously affiliated group may operate/

govern Ownership of Facilities & Assets

❖ State of Arizona ❖ Usually privately owned (can be by CEO) ❖ Then leased to school at taxpayer expense ❖ All land, buildings, instructional materials,

and equipment purchased by the charter school become sole property of the charter holder, even if the school goes bankrupt*

http://www.azcsa.org/uploads/3/9/2/3/39234099/charter_pp_pdf..pdf

SLIDE 18

Governance Differences

Type School District Charter Open Meeting Law

❖ Decisions of Board

must be made in meetings open to public

❖ No requirements for board meetings ❖ Don’t follow Open Meeting Law

Nepotism

❖ Hiring of relatives is

not allowed

❖ Allowed and prevalent especially at

management level (related party contracting)

SLIDE 19

Operational Differences

Type School District Charter Transportation

❖ Must be provided ❖ Not required to provide

Parental Involvement

❖ Districts work hard to include

parents but are often not successful

❖ Charters often insist parents

volunteer a certain number of hours per month Teacher Hiring

❖ Required to hire state-

certified teachers unless they can prove they aren’t available

❖ 16/17 Avg salary = $48,372 ❖ Not required to hire state-

certified teachers

❖ 16/17 Avg salary = $41,066

SLIDE 20

Operational Differences

Type School District Charter Curriculum

❖ State Board of Education

required to prescribe a minimum course of study incorporating adopted academic standards

❖ Must provide a comprehensive

program of instruction but can have special emphasis

❖ Not required to follow

curriculum guidelines stipulated for district schools,

❖ Students must take all state

tests School Lunch

❖ Provide school lunch and

many also provide breakfast

❖ Not required to provide

SLIDE 21

Charter Student Achievement

❖ A Brookings Institute study in 2014 said:

“in Arizona, for example, on average, charter schools do no better, and sometimes worse than traditional public schools”

❖ Half of charter schools outperform their

neighboring district school, when compared using the state’s letter-grade system

❖ 77% of charter high school students

graduate in four years, districts graduate 88% in that time

❖ Charters are doing well on Az MERIT, but

validity of any conclusion questionable

https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona-education/2018/12/17/arizona-charter-schools-spend-more-district-school-admininstration/ 2015982002/#

SLIDE 22

So What Needs to Change?

Bottom line: Where public funds are spent

n education, accountability

and transparency MUST be the same!

❖ Bill sponsored by Rep. Kelly Townsend (R-Mesa) to require charters

comply with Open Meeting Law, but won’t help unless they are required to have meetings

❖ Also need to (at least) match district rules for: ❖ Procurement and purchasing ❖ Audits and reporting to AZ Auditor General (to include efficiency

reports)

SLIDE 23

And Speaking of Public Funds…

Arizona needs to ensure the schools where 83% of our students are educated are adequately funded before we continue to shift resources to charters and private schools

School Choice ABC Charter District School

SLIDE 24

#RedForEd Helped

SLIDE 25

Funding Increases for FY 2019

Name % Increase Avg Teacher Salary Amphi 9 $43,122 Altar Valley 10 $43,260 Basis OV 10 $42,573 Catalina Foothills 10 $51,057 Flowing Wells 9 $48,914 Marana 10 $38,738 Oracle 10 $53,856 Sahuarita 19 $55,421 TUSD 9 $45,303

Governing Boards worked hard To give teachers the 10%

https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/politics/arizona-education/ 2018/07/30/arizona-teacher-raises-vary-widely-doug-ducey-legislature- education-funding-district-charter/850571002/

SLIDE 26

Funding Increases for FY 2019

SLIDE 27

But…

$600

Million

❖ Funding is still short of 2008 levels by:

SLIDE 28

What Is the Answer?

❖ We must have a commitment at highest levels to:

❖ Equity of opportunity for all AZ students ❖ View education expenditures as investment ❖ Hire high-quality educators, pay to retain, and

trust them to do their job

❖ Voters MUST be informed and engaged ❖ We must all demand full accountability and

transparency

SLIDE 29

What You Can Do

Get and stay informed
azsba.org/advocacy/legislative/
sosarizona.org
RestoreReason.com
dianeravitch.net
Sign up for and make comments at AZ Legislature’s Request to Speak system
Join the Friends of ASBA and refer to their Legislator Voting Record
Communicate your concerns!
To your state legislators at AZLeg.gov
Write Letters to the Editor

SLIDE 30

Make No Mistake…

❖The war on public education is a systematic, concerted effort to:

❖Redirect $500 to $700B in funding for public ed to private entities ❖Eliminate local control and public voice in education

❖Whether by design or by default, these actions are destined to

ensure an oligarchy, not a democracy

❖Privatizing public education primarily serves those who “have” at

the expense of those who “have not”

❖The will continue to weaken our democracy as it solidifies power

and influence with those at the very top

SLIDE 31

Immediate Past President, Arizona School Boards Association

Linda Lyon

Blog: www.RestoreReason.com

lindalyon1222@gmail.com 520.818.8024