The U.S. House of Representatives today voted 360-45 to pass H.R. 10, Success and Opportunity through Quality Charter Schools Act, an excellent piece of legislation that would help expand high-quality charter school education around the country.
Business Roundtable urged both House and Senate passage in a letter earlier this week from BRT President John Engler. He noted that last year's BRT report, "Taking Action on Education and Workforce Preparedness," called for more public school options, including charter schools:
Our nation’s capacity to develop a skilled, prepared workforce is inextricably linked to the quality of our education system. Innovations, such as charter schools, play a critical role in efforts to improve our education system and help more of our nation’s children access the educational opportunities they deserve.
Some more details ...
Chief sponsor is Rep. John Kline (R-MN), who chairs the House Education and Workforce Committee, and co-sponsor is Rep. George Miller (D-CA), the committee's ranking Democrat. The Star-Tribune newspaper of Minneapolis gave a good summary of the bipartisan bill's provisions in an editorial endorsing passage.
Currently, the federal Department of Education operates two general grant programs for charter schools. Under the new bill, called the Success and Opportunity through Quality Charter Schools Act, those programs would be consolidated into one and refocused. The DOE would continue to award grants to high-quality charters and facilities assistance through the states.
However, a significant difference is that the bill would expand an existing DOE grant competition for charter management organizations. That would open up opportunities for charters in states that don’t win or compete for federal funding.
The measure also clarifies states’ ability to use “weighted lotteries,” which give preference to low-income students and other disadvantaged children in admissions. In addition, it would allow students who graduate from one charter school to continue in an affiliated school in higher grades without having to go back through a lottery.
And the federal department could more actively disseminate information about successful programs to help other public schools improve.
The revamped program would wisely offer incentives for states to help develop charters and make it easier for the successful ones to open more schools. Currently, charter operators can get federal grants to open new schools, but not to expand existing, successful models.
The legislation would also authorize about $300 million annually in federal support for charter schools, a $50 million increase.
(That Rep. Kline would sponsor the bill and The Star-Tribune would endorse it comes as no surprise. Minnesota was a pioneer in charter schools, in 1991 becoming the first state to pass legislation to create statutorily recognized charter schools. People have gained -- learned, so to speak -- from experience.)
A Senate version of the legislation (S. 2304) was introduced this week by U.S. Senators Mark Kirk (R-IL), Mary Landrieu (D-LA), Lamar Alexander (R-TN) and Michael Bennet (D-CO). As Sen. Alexander observed:
Charter schools enable teachers to use their firsthand knowledge, administrators to use their good judgment, and parents to choose better schools for their children. This bill would help states open new charter schools and replicate or expand their best existing ones, giving more students access to a good education and an opportunity to succeed.
Sen. Kirk has been tweeting out his support for the legislation and charter schools, commenting today, "Public charter schools like Perspectives in #Chicago lead the way in keeping students competitive in the workforce."
More opportunity for children to enroll in high-quality schools and a more competitive workforce? Business leaders certainly support those worthy goals and we hope Congress will act to make their achievement possible.