Panel faces tight deadline to recommend reforms of California’s charter school law
Task force has until July 1 to come up with solutions
Each Thursday a group of educators and representatives of labor unions meets — out of the public eye — for several hours at the California Department of Education building in Sacramento to take on arguably the most contentious current issue on California’s education reform landscape: charter school reform.
Known as the Charter Task Force, it was set up by newly elected State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond in March at the request of Gov. Gavin Newsom.
The 11 members of the task force, with Thurmond facilitating their discussions, have what some might view as a nearly impossible task — coming up with recommendations by July 1 on tough issues that have been simmering in California for years, but have exploded on the state’s public policy agenda largely as a result of heightened teacher activism in Oakland, Los Angeles and other districts.
With over 1,300 charter schools serving over 10 percent of California’s public school children, the stakes are high. The Charter Task Force, so far, has focused on two of the most difficult issues: who can authorize charter schools and whether school districts can take the financial impact of charter schools into account in deciding whether to grant or renew a charter.
Under current law, county boards of education or even the State Board of Education can overrule decisions by local school districts to deny a charter school application. Teachers’ unions have argued that school districts should have the final say and that districts should be able to consider the financial impact of charter schools during the authorizing process. Some charter school advocates, in turn, worry that such reforms could not only halt charter expansion, but potentially kill the entire sector.
The focus during task force meetings has been hearing from a range of experts and school districts with the goal of “making sure all task force members have the same understanding of the trends and practices regarding charter schools in California,” Thurmond said.
One feature of the task force is that it is not open to the public.
“I care about transparency as much as anyone else,” Thurmond said. “I wish there were a way to have everyone in the state involved in the group, but at the end of the day, we also want to find a balance, to have a workable group.”
Just six weeks ago Gov. Newsom signed a bill requiring greater transparency in charter school operations. Asked why the task force shouldn’t be similarly “transparent,” CONTINUE READING: Recommendations to reform California's charter school law
Thurmond said that he is working on ways for the public to provide input. That includes setting up an email account that people can send information to (chartertaskforce@cde.ca.gov). He said he has also been in touch with parent groups and hopes to figure out a way for students to provide input.
