3 Democrats join opposition to Department of Education charter school proposal
Three Senate Democrats have joined Republicans who are alarmed by the U.S. Department of Education’s plan to revamp the federal charter school program — a proposal that advocates say will cut support for independent charters serving primarily black students and Hispanics.
The proposed rule would allow “federal reviewers to ignore state and local decisions to license new public charter schools,” the senses wrote. Michael Bennett from Colorado, Diane Feinstein from California and Cory Booker from New Jersey in a May 5 letter to the United States Secretary of Education, Miguel Cardona.
Republican senses Marco Rubio of Florida, Tim Scott of South Carolina, Bill Cassidy of Louisiana and Richard Burr of North Carolina also signed the letter. The proposed requirements, they wrote, “would make it difficult, if not impossible, for new start-up public charter schools, and for high-performing public charter schools seeking to replicate or expand, to access [Charter Schools Program] funding.”
Related: Charter Backers Blast Ed Dept. Proposal that could hinder the growth of the sector
The $440 million competitive grant program, now nearly 30 years old, supports school start-up costs, from facility needs to staffing. Department officials say the revisions, which would require potential recipients to demonstrate “sufficient demand,” would encourage more racially balanced schools that don’t compete with traditional districts that are losing enrollment. The provisions would also require charters to be transparent about any contracts they have with for-profit organizations, which Democrats support would increase accountability. But charter advocates argue the plan would make it harder for applicants to gain approval, even if there is demand from families.
After the backlash of the pitch and six Republicans in the Senate, the department last month extended the comment period on the rule by five days. Over 26,000 commentsboth for and against the plan, have been filed.
Ranking Republicans on the House and Senate Education Committees have also threatened to repeal the rule if the administration does not change it. They asked the department to confirm by May 12 that it will submit the final rule to Congress for consideration.
In the recent letter, the senators said the proposal “would add significant burdens and time to an already complex application process, with little time for technical assistance, particularly for the upcoming 2022 grant cycle.”
Under the current schedule, the department must award state grants by Sept. 30, which means the department has less than four months to finalize its rule, post the grant application, and review submissions. New and expanding charter schools depend on the grant program because they only receive funding after they begin serving students.
The senators want the department to allow charter operators to apply for the program under existing rules released in 2020.
“The schedule is definitely very tight, which is why it’s best to stick to the old rule this year,” said Nina Rees, CEO of the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. The Alliance opposes the ministry’s major revisions to the rule and argues it would hurt charters at a time when the sector has seen record growth.
The department did not directly respond to the bipartisan letter, but said in a statement that the proposed rule is intended to “improve the quality and accountability of charter schools.”
Bennet, Feinstein and Booker advocate for funding for the charter school program each year, Rees said, but added that it was significant that they “expressed their views publicly.”
“We hope the department takes them seriously,” she said. “The three are not just any democrats. They come from… States with a rich charter history.