It sits close to $200 per student, Horne said, while the need is significantly higher.
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The program was signed into law by Governor Mike Pence as part of the state budget. The new state budget includes language that accounts for Ritz and Kenley’s concerns.
Eight elected board members, seven Democrats and one Republican, on Monday sent Mr. Ross a letter urging an investigation by an independent firm. It aims to bridge what supporters call a funding gap between charter schools and traditional public schools, which receive local property tax revenue for that type of project.
Citing feelings that “DPI was never in love with charter schools”, last month Senator Jerry Tillman (R-Randolph) gutted a House bill penned by Rep. Charles Jeter (R-Mecklenburg) and used it to put forth his own bid to move the Office of Charter Schools out of the Department of Public Instruction and to the State Board of Education. Tillman’s version of HB 334 would strip the Governor of his ability to appoint the board’s chair and disallow a sitting State Board of Ed member from being part of the panel.
Charters are eligible for both programs if they are in their first two years of operation, located in an innovation network or if they serve a population that is mostly made up of students with developmental, intellectual or behavioral challenges.
Charter schools were authorized in Massachusetts under a 1993 law and state officials describe the schools as “independent public schools” that operate with “increased freedom” and “increased accountability”. Schools may not receive a loan of more than $5 million.
Kasich’s opponent, Ed FitzGerald, claimed that the Republican had cut money from public schools to give to charter schools which were allegedly performing poorly. John O’Neal, Government Relations representative for the Indiana State Teachers Association, told the board he’s anxious about that amount, which he considers quite a large allocation for just one sector of the state’s school system. Critics say state funding formulas hurt traditional public schools when charter schools are established or expand.
State board staff says they hope to finalize and release those applications by the end of the week. “A public School, your classes change each semester so I think there’s a lot more diversity in a public school”. “The difference between the Common School Fund and this particular loan program is something that I would be interested to understand”. The state board may only make a maximum of $50 million in loans over the next two years.
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The board must receive loan applications by October 15, and after being vetted, each application will receive a public hearing.
