Risks of Charter Schools?

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I've tried numerous types of schools for my children as they've made their way through the education process: open enrollment, magnet, neighborhood schools. The common thread is these were all traditional school district run schools.

One of my concerns about charters has always been the financial aspects, and sadly today my concern was realized. A well-respected charter closed its doors today, several hundred thousand dollars in the red, with students and parents rightfully angry and upset.

The school attempted a 15:1 ratio among other wonderful innovations, and boasted a 100% college attendance rate for its 21 graduating seniors. For the other students, however, they're left scrambling to find a school for the fall--well after the magnet deadline and with little time left for open enrollment.

My question is do charter school parents need to be worried about financial statements? Do parents now need a degree in economics just to enroll their children? How could the parents have known to question the school's board to see the impending closure?

Many of my son's friends from middle school went to this school, and some of the kids I used to coach attended this school, so my heart goes out to those families affected.

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We live in a coveted school district, of which, I am not impressed. I drove/drive my elementary aged children 30 minutes each way to a wonderful Charter school that has turned their learning upside down. Public schools usually follow a preset calendar of when and what to teach, leaving out those that are advanced or falling behind. As teachers, that is beyond their control. Our charter school teaches each kid at their level through a variety of learning techniques. Hands on, real life lessons encompass all subjects and involve all students. They choose as a group, what they will study while the teacher incorporates the TEKS (Texas requirements for each grade level) into their interests. They work in groups and learn teamwork and community, the same skills we need as adults in the working world. It is amazing to see floundering students finally "get it" when presented with material in ways they can finally understand. All Charter schools are different and should be evaluated before enrolling your children. A great way to see the truth is to show up for a tour during school hours. See for yourself what really goes on. Remember, any day can be a bad day for a student or teacher, we all have them. Don't finalize your judgement over one infraction. View the picture as a whole and make your determination from that.

Sorry to hear about the school closing. In our community, we had two "for profit" charters close, leaving families scrambling, too. It's harder when a grass roots venture sinks. I think it's important for everyone, teachers, parents, students, too, to attend board meetings to hear what's going on. Financial statements are one of those great freedom of information requests schools hate to deal with, but it keeps everyone honest. The charter school I teach at has an amazing board that really looks at the bottom line before decisions are made (Can we afford to send the 4th graders to Boston and Philly? Can the teachers get the raises they deserve?). Are audits part of the charter process in California?

In Florida it is not done by lottery. First come first serve while adhereing to the minority ratios assigned by the school board and the basic sibling rule. My daughter was on the list for two years when they called her up in the middle of the school year. If you don't go when your'e called you loose your place in line.

It is definately up to the PTO to be savy on the bottom line. I would definately check on how involved the treasurer is at your school. Our volunteer times averaged 100 hrs per parent per year in the school where the average in the town in general is only 6 hours. Parent participation is the key. I averaged 600 hours per year and still had a job. Let me tell you, I knew what was going on at the school board. We had a treasurer that was also a lawyer and he was on top of what we needed in way of fund raising. We even had an alumni that was still involved in supporting the school.

One of the issues here in Cali is the cost of the real estate. Charters don't have their own buildings and in this case, the school rented a warehouse in an industrial complex and converted it to classrooms.

This school was half a million in debt because of the combination of the costs of building rental and their attempt to keep the student ratio down. Charters here also get slightly less per pupil than regular public schools. Parents were quoted as being totally in the dark about how far in debt the school was.

Where the risk comes in, is while there are very successful charters, some with phenomenal PTA-PTOs, who's job is it to worry if ALL the big bills are being paid on time? Certainly it's not a conversation that comes up on the campus tour. While many schools might fundraise $20-30K for a computer lab, would anyone know they needed to raise that amount every month or two to pay the rent?

I am not clear how charters get students in Florida but in California, students are zoned only for "regular" schools. Children apply to charters and are awarded seats by lottery. So I'm not clear how zoning would affect a school's existence.

I don't believe there is a great need to worry about the finances of a charter school. There are factors in any school staying afloat. I'm a little unsure of this schools history but a charter school does receive funds from the public school system as well as PTO funding. My research has come up with a solid foundation in most charter schools. Often times the charter school is better funded due to the added support of the PTO. During the depression in our town the charter school was the only public school that was able to stay open. It even provided a milk program for city children not attending the school. Certainly it sounds like the size of the school could be a factor in this situation, and it depends greatly on the participation and fund raising skills of the parents. (I seriously would wonder where the 80,000 went) but often times when a city is restructuring it's public schools the charter school will take a hit with public funding. Was there any re-zoning of the public schools in the area that would effect your charter?

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