Growing charter network under SBE draws interest from lawmakers
A sharp increase in the number of charter schools petitioning – and receiving – permission to open from the California State Board of Education has attracted the attention of the Legislature.
Just three years ago, there were eight schools operating under state board supervision. Today there are more than 30.
Assemblyman Rocky Chavez, R-Oceanside, said the expanding network – now comparable to a mid-size school district – may need to be evaluated in terms of long-term governance issues.
“The best educational experience is one that is unique to the needs of the children and to the community,” said Chavez. “California is a huge state and the educational challenges in the inner city versus more rural areas are unique and need to be scripted to meet the needs of each of the children. To put that challenge on the state board of education, asking them to oversee the needs of 33 charter schools across the state is a pretty big challenge.”
State law empowers three levels of government to approve charter schools – local school district boards, county school boards and the state board, which serves as the option of last resort. While most of the charters now operating under the oversight of the state board were on appeal from the local level, there are also a number of sites opened
Vision testing considered potential key for some struggling students
Current vision screening requirements may indicate a problem with distance vision, advocates for more elaborate testing note that it does not detect potential for a whole spectrum of vision disorders, including binocular dysfunction.