Charter school groups complain to LAUSD, then score some new schools
The Board of Education did reject one proposal for a new charter, but members approved two others. Backers withdrew four other start-up petitions rather than face an anticipated thumbs-down.
In addition, one current charter won its bid for another five-year operating agreement even though the L.A. Unified charter division had called for it to be closed.
Twenty-one charters groups, which enroll about 56,000 students, had complained in a letter sent Monday to district officials. Among the figures they cited: The district approved about 9 in 10 charter petitions two years ago, compared with under half this year.
The decisions on Tuesday followed long discussions among board members about the specific issues before them and the handling of charters in general.
"It was encouraging to see the board seriously and openly examine whether it has been inconsistent in its review of charter school petitions,” said Malka Borrego, founder of Equitas Academy and one of the charter directors who signed the letter.
he added that charter leaders want to meet with the district “to press for clear, consistent guidelines for charter petition reviews. All we want is a transparent and consistent process that supports schools and students.”
The issue weighed on board member Monica Ratliff, who said during the meeting that she would like to see a review going back five years. She would like to know whether the charter division is handling evaluation and oversight differently than before.
“I believe we should take all allegations seriously,” Ratliff said, adding that she does not assume that any change is necessarily for the worse.