Proposed L.A. charter school expansion aims for 130,000 seats, draft document says
A Confidential draft obtained by The Times seems to confirm earlier reports that the Broad Foundation is or was hoping to place half of the students in the Los Angeles Unified School District into charter schools over the next eight years.
The 44-page report (The Great Public Schools Now Initiative) is dated June 2015 and titled "The Great Public Schools Now Initiative."
“The opportunity is ripe for a significant expansion of high-quality charter schools in Los Angeles,” the report states in its executive summary. “Thanks to the strength of its charter leaders and teachers, as well as its widespread civic and philanthropic support, Los Angeles is uniquely positioned to create the largest, highest-performing charter sector in the nation. Such an exemplar would serve as a model for all large cities to follow.”
Charters are independently run, publicly financed schools that are exempt from some rules that govern traditional schools; most are non-union. L.A. Unified already has a greater number of charters, more than 200, and charter students, about 16% of enrollment, than any school system in the nation. But the draft expansion plan envisions much more.
The document describes an eight-year goal of creating 260 charter schools that would deliver 130,000 seats “to reach 50% market share,” as the report put it.
The Times broke news of the charter expansion plan in August, relying on confidential sources who cited the 50% figure. When contacted last month, the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation said the charter plan is in an early, exploratory phase, but declined to provide specific information.
The June draft talks of massive fundraising to affect three areas: facilities, talent and political climate.
“Los Angeles schools are currently on a trajectory to create around 62,000 seats,” the plan states. “With an added investment of $490 million, however, charter schools should be able to create an additional 68,000, reaching the goal of 130,000 seats by 2023.”
For years, the growth of charters has been a point of contention in Los Angeles and across the nation. Locally, the schools have proved popular with parents, contributing to their growth.
Their increase in number also has been fueled by grant support from the Obama administration and philanthropy, including from the Broad Foundation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Walton Family Foundation. Broad and his wife have invested $144 million in charters in L.A. and elsewhere, according to their foundation.
A few hundred teachers on Sunday protested against rapid charter expansion at the new downtown Broad museum featuring the Broads’ extensive modern art holdings.
"Charter schools are destroying public education," retired kindergarten teacher Cheryl Ortega said at the demonstration. "Mr. Broad wants to own 50% of our schools.... That's untenable."
In a response a spokeswoman for Broad said, "As families demand high-quality public school options -- and more students want to attend public charter schools, we want to support them in meeting that demand. Our only interest is in supporting the growth of high-quality public schools."
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A confidential draft obtained by The Times seems to confirm earlier reports that the Broad Foundation is or was hoping to place half of the students in the Los Angeles Unified School District into charter schools over the next eight years.The Great Public Schools Now Initiative
