Ravitch on Charters: NY Review of Books and Bill Moyers Interview
According to the NY Times, a deal has been cut in a New York state budget bill that will stop New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio from charging rent to charter schools and also prevent his haulting the practice of co-location (putting charter schools in buildings that already house a traditional public school). The budget agreement will preserve these policies of Mayor Bloomberg that Mayor de Blasio has sought to end. “Most significantly, the legislation would require the city to find space for charter schools inside public school buildings or pay much of the cost to house them in private space. The legislation would also prohibit the city from charging rent to charter schools, an idea Mr. de Blasio had championed as a candidate for mayor.”
Mayor de Blasio had resisted New York City’s tradition of accommodating charter schools (funded with public money and in New York endowed additionally by wealthy financiers) with rent-free space in public buildings. While he approved the majority of requests for new space from charter schools in February (the charter school co-locations had been pre-approved by Mayor Bloomberg before he left office), Mayor de Blasio attempted to cancel plans for three schools affiliated with a network known as Success Academy Charter Schools. Two of the schools would have moved very young children into high schools, a situation de Blasio believed created safety issues. A third would have threatened space currently housing physical therapy and other special services for disabled students.
New York’s governor Andrew Cuomo is known to favor charters. This blog has tracked his