Chartered by Whom and for What?

In a parallel universe, the state of Ohio is handing over nearly $540 million of tax money to 300 private enterprises providing basic services that also are provided by state and locally financed agencies. The intent is to create greater competition and choice so that the consumer is not solely dependent only on the publicly supported agencies. Because of competition and choice, the privately run enterprises should in theory provide better services. There is little or no oversight of the business and management practices of these enterprises. They can operate with a much larger degree of flexibility and independence that the state supported ones. Given our undying faith in power of the marketplace and need to offer choice, one would assume that the privately run agencies would provide better service and outperform the state run enterprises.

Unfortunately, that isn't the case. This Ohio experiment has been an abysmal failure. The privately run agencies with public funds, charter schools, have been an enormous disappointment. Fifty-seven percent of these schools are either in Academic Watch or Academic Emergency and the State Attorney plans on closing 30 very soon because of illegal business and management practices. Of our publicly funded schools, only 12% are either in Academic Watch or Academic Emergency. Over $2.7 billion have been allocated to charter schools in Ohio for past 10 years and this is the result.

If these were not charter schools that were receiving the funds, can you imagine how loud our cave man caucus (state legislature) in Columbus would be screaming about wasting tax dollars? Somehow because our Republican led house and state senate hold on to specious notions that school choice works, they continue to pour money down this rat hole of educational failure.

On the national level, charter schools have not faired any better. In a recent study compiled by the Department of Education, fourth graders attending charter schools in urban settings consistently tested lower in math and science than did children from the same socioeconomic setting in publicly-funded urban schools. These disparities are consistent when comparing students by race, income or geography.

Millions of tax dollars are turned over to these schools, and in most cases, to private companies who run charter schools with no oversight by the state of Ohio. These schools are not required to meet many of state requirements that do public schools. If students are not performing or are expelled for behavioral issues, they are disappeared. They become the problems of the public schools.

The wing nuts that continue to advocate for choice in schools will ignore these data or trash these studies. They really don't want to come out and admit that their support for private or charter schools has very little to do with improving student performance. Their irrational advocacy for school choice is grounded in their suspicion and mistrust of all forms of public education due to their religious or personal beliefs. Don't bother them with the data or the facts, competition and choice is just one-way to dismantle the common good public education has brought to this country. Deregulation or competition may work in particular areas to reduce costs and improve some efficiencies. Unfortunately, it does not and will not work in schooling or airline travel. Schools are just too important to leave up the whims and vagaries of the marketplace. And airline travel? Has anyone recently flown out of JFK in New York? What a nightmare!