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Assembly Education Committee hears Charter School Legislation
Star Ledger - Assembly Education Committee approves bill requiring charter schools to win voter approval ..."The bill calling for voter approval, sponsored by Education Committee ChairmanPatrick Diegnan (D-Middlesex), drew the most controversy. As the number ofcharter schools increases in New Jersey — there are 73 operating currently,with 23 more approved and another 58 proposed — not all have been broadly welcomed..."

The Record -letter from ‘The Item’ of Millburn and Short Hills’: 'Charter schools will creat taxpayer burden'

Associated Press - Assembly panel to considercharter school measure on Monday

The Record- Letter: Charter schools will create taxpayer burden

WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 2011

THE ITEM OF MILLBURN AND SHORT HILLS

Charterschools will create taxpayer burden

Editor, The Item:

Recently, some letters to the editor have touchedarticulately upon an issue of great concern to those with or without childrenin our schools. Our depleted tax dollars will become even more scarce ifspecialized charter schools are allowed to mushroom in the cash-strappedsuburbs. I appreciate that various religious and ethnic groups try to maintaintheir language and customs. Traditionally, this need is resolved throughprivate after-school classes or full-time private school.

The prospect of members of our community seeking acharter to develop and construct a publicly-funded alternate school concerns megreatly. Especially in the present economy, diverting resources from ourdistrict will diminish our ability to maintain excellence. If those townshipresidents succeed in their quest for a publicly-funded "private" school,called a charter school, they thereby open the door for the establishment of aplethora of charter school applications interested in maintaining theirnational, ethnic, and religious connections at taxpayer expense.

It is an enigma that folks would move into acommunity whose bedrock is composed, in great part, of its exemplaryeducational program, then distance themselves from it by attempting to create ataxpayer-funded school complex of their own. For almost a century and a half,people have moved to this community and contributed to it through volunteerismand participation in its multitude of activities and, especially, supportingour public schools.

The US Secretary of Education, in 2010, confirmedthat charter schools fill in the void created by substandard or insufficientpublic schools, and recently stated that "... charter school operatorsturn around struggling schools and provide innovation and choice to studentsand parents.... charter schools have an important role to play in the school turnaroundbusiness."

If, in the opinion of some, the district is restingon its laurels and there are curricular and other voids that should be filled,I recommend those seeking to develop a charter school divert their energytowards a constructive dialogue with those professionals entrusted to maintainthe integrity and relevance of our district before jumping into the tenuousworld of elite charter schools.

Arthur Fredman

152Myrtle Ave.

 

© 2011 NJ.com. Allrights reserved.

 

AssemblyEducation Committee approves bill requiring charter schools to win voterapproval

Published:Monday, May 23, 2011, 10:07 PM     Updated: Tuesday, May 24,2011, 8:17 AM

 By Jeanette Rundquist/The Star-Ledger

 

TRENTON — A bill that would requirecharter schools to win voter approval in their communities was voted out of theAssembly Education Committee today, after a number of charter school advocatestestified that requiring a referendum could divide communities and doom someschools.

Thecommittee hearing room was packed with charter school supporters and educationadvocates, and a group of charter school students marched with signs outsidethe Statehouse before the vote, as the committee considered a package of fourbills.

Allthe bills advanced to the full Assembly, including bills that would allow up tothree public universities to authorize charters; allow private or parochialschools to convert to charters as long as religion is stricken from thecurriculum; and clearly spell out charter school accountability measures.

The bill calling for voter approval, sponsored by Education Committee ChairmanPatrick Diegnan (D-Middlesex), drew the most controversy. As the number ofcharter schools increases in New Jersey — there are 73 operating currently,with 23 more approved and another 58 proposed — not all have been broadlywelcomed.

InPrinceton, for example, where one charter school already operates, the statehas also approved plans for a Mandarin Chinese language immersion schoolserving students from Princeton, West Windsor and South Brunswick.

RebeccaCox, president of the Princeton Regional Board of Education, called charters"an unnecessary luxury that local taxpayers just can’t afford."

"Thereis an important role for charter schools in New Jersey, but it isn’t inhigh-performing districts," she said.

InHighland Park and Edison, residents have also opposed plans for charterschools.

JuliaRubin of the organization Save Our Schools — whose daughter attends a charterschool — said it is "really a matter of democracy."

"Ithink some schools would get authorized (if a referendum were required), somewould not, but you have to leave it up to the community," she said.

Localschool districts provide the funding for charter schools that educate theircommunities’ students, paying 90 percent of the per-pupil cost of the"regular" district.

Severalpeople testified that requiring a referendum could stop the growth of charterschools, however.

ParkerBlock, one of the organizers of the Princeton International Academy CharterSchool, cautioned that requiring a referendum on innovative ideas could have achilling effect.

"Innovationby nature is new and it is not always popular," he said. "If you putinnovative programs to a popular vote, in the short term, the popular vote isnot always there."

JonathanGonzalez, 18, a graduate of Leap Academy Charter High School in Camden, who isnow a student at the University of Rochester, said charters need independence.

"Charterschools already face greater challenges than regular public schools," he said."Why place a blockade?"

Thebill advanced with eight "yes" votes and four abstentions — althoughone abstainer, Assemblyman Joe Malone (R-Burlington) said he is leaning infavor of it.

"DoI think charter schools in some urban areas are absolutely needed? I do,"Malone said. "But to have proliferation of charter schools, littleboutique schools for specialty things, I think will absolutely decimate thepublic school system in New Jersey."

Theremaining three bills advanced without as much debate, including theaccountability bill sponsored by Assemblyman Albert Coutinho (D-Essex). Amongother things, it would require that all students in a charter school’s districtbe put into a lottery for attendance, and parents can "opt out" ifthey want. Currently, parents have to request to have their child’s nameincluded in a charter school lottery.

 

© 2011 NJ.com. Allrights reserved.

 

Associated Press - Assembly panel to considercharter school measure on Monday

SUNDAY, MAY 22, 2011

TRENTON — New Jersey voters would ultimately decidewhether charter schools could open in their towns under legislation making itsway through the Assembly.

The measure would bar state education officialsfrom formally acting on a charter school's application until voters in thedistrict where it would be located have given their approval. Voters would havetheir say during the annual school elections held each spring.

Decisions regarding charter schools proposed for"Type 1" districts — larger cities where school elections aren't heldbecause voters don't decide those school budgets — would be made by therespective Board of School Estimate, which oversees the districts' financialmatters.

The Assembly's Education Committee is set toconsider the measure Monday. If it approves the bill, it will then head to thefull Assembly for a vote later this year.

Opponents see the proposal as another unmeritedattack against charter schools, which are funded by taxpayers and licensed bythe state but run independently. They are places where educators can try newteaching methods and offer competition to traditional K-12 schools districts,and advocates say they offer parents and students alternatives tounderperforming public schools, especially in poor and urban areas.

New Jersey currently has 73 charter schools and 23more are scheduled to open. They receive the bulk of their funding throughtheir local districts, which also must provide transportation for theirstudents who attend charter schools.

Supporters of the legislation say voters shoulddecide whether the schools can open, since their tax dollars cover the charterschools' operating costs.

"Our democracy relies on giving the communitya voice, and charter schools that are worthy will surely get the support theyneed," said Assemblyman Patrick Diegnan Jr., D-South Plainfield, who isone of the measure's primary sponsors.

"With that in mind, let them prove theircase," he added. "Should we be opening (charter schools) in stronglyperforming school districts, and should taxpayer money be used to support them?That's a question for the voters, whose money is being spent, to decide."

David Wolfe, the committee's ranking Republicanmember, was a co-sponsor of legislation that helped create charter schools inthe state several years ago. And he's "very concerned" about theproposal, which he sees as another attempt to stop charter schools.

"I'm all for the public having a voice, butthere's been constant attempts to chip away at the effectiveness of the(charter school) program," Wolfe said. "All this (measure) would seemto do is impose another hoop, another hurdle for (charter school applicants) togo through."

Allison Kobus, a state Department of Educationspokeswoman, declined comment on the proposal. She said the department does notcomment on pending legislation.

Besides Diegnan, other primary sponsors of themeasure in the Assembly include Democrats Peter Barnes III of Edison, Ralph Caputoof Belleville and JohnWisniewski of Sayreville.

Identicallegislation has been introduced in the state Senate by Majority Leader Barbara Buono of Edison and fellow Democrat Shirley Turner of Trenton. It was referredto the Education Committee, which has not yet scheduled a hearing on the matter.