Local Superintendents Band Together to Call for Charter Law Reform

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Image via The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Nearly 30 superintendents from the Philadelphia area stood together earlier this week as they demanded changes to Pennsylvania’s charter law, which is forcing their school districts to send increasingly larger shares of their budgets to charter schools, writes Maddie Hanna for The Philadelphia Inquirer.

They called on Gov. Tom Wolf, who pledged changes to the system last year, to make the issue a priority during his budget address next week.

Among the requests was a moratorium on new charters and expansions on existing ones.

“It simply cannot wait any longer,” said Souderton Area School District Superintendent Frank Gallagher.

Among the main issues for district officials is the special-education funding system that mandates districts to pay charters the same rate for every special-education student, regardless of their needs.

As a result, said West Chester Area School District Superintendent Jim Scanlon, the district is sending the same amount to charter schools it did five years ago, despite recruiting back around 200 students from charters.

Meanwhile, charter leaders argued that the increase can be attributed to students rejecting traditional schools in favor of charters.

Click here to read more in The Philadelphia Inquirer.

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