Charter Rally Decries State Budget Cuts

These white folks running Achievement First are absolutely shameless in using minority students as props. How about this, AF, cap your salaries at $150k and you'd have more than enough money to cover your "shortfall."

It would be a slap in the face to public schools if the state funds more charters. How can public schools compete with the charter lobby? ConnCAN alone is a 24/7 lobby for them. PLEASE - you already did the right thing legislators. You didn't fund the two new charters.

Any money the state has for education should be put into improving our public schools; smaller classes; more paraprofessionals in the classrooms; less charter schools in CT. This is commonsense and fairness.

CT legislators and parents need to work with the NHPS district and all of the public schools districts in CT's urban areas to improve the academic quality of all public schools. CT should NOT be funding new charters; they specifically should not be funding Achievement First. The money that AF is spending on television commercials to denigrate regular public schools should be put into their budget to run their privately administered schools.
AF is an arrogant, self-righteous, name-calling organization. NHPS, like all real publicly run schools, cannot turn away students they consider challenging; they must educate them. AF charters take the cream of the crop, use our money to run a private system, and claim outstanding success! It's not a level playing field; they do not accept children with learning disabilities; children who cannot keep up are pushed out in Nov. of every year after AF collects money from the state for those children. It is a dishonest scheme.
Mr. Looney SHOULD NOT SUPPORT AF OR OTHER CHARTERS; nor should the Governor. The State should not be cutting funds for children in trouble and providing more money for charters. The State of CT should be putting more money into smaller classrooms in NHPS, Waterbury, Bpt, Danbury, New London and everywhere that regular public schools are over burdened. Put more resources into our regular public schools. AF is funding their schools on the backs of the poor as they spend their money bashing our public schools. NO MORE CHARTERS!

Charters in New Haven are PUBLIC, WITH PUBLIC SCHOOL STUDENTS FROM THE LOTTERY. NOT CREAM OF CROP. But you are correct in one thing and that is NHPS needs to be improved. They have been failing our children for years. They keep doing the same old things and expecting a different result. Now parent choice says we want more for our children. There would have been no need for charters if our leaders really were our voice. No parent wants to send their children to a failing or low performing school where some teachers that do not teach, where some food is not edible, and where their children are bullied everyday. These issues arise all the time and are not addressed. No school in CT is perfect I will take the one with the least amount of issues to ensure my child's success. Parents are never at the table regarding their children but we will be making more strides in the near future to push for more accountability and responsibility with strong academics. The leaders will have to lead or step aside. We are in the game no longer on the side lines. GAME ON!!!!!

@muhammad.Sorry Charter Schools are not public.They are school that receives public funding but operates independently of the established public school system in which it is located.If they were public,How come the teachers in Charter Schools are not in the Teachers pension plan?Also public school teachers usually hold a bachelor's degree and are state-certified or are working towards certification.Certification means that a teacher has gone through the training required by the state, which includes student teaching and course work. Teachers who work at a charter school may fall under more flexible certification requirements than other public school teachers.Also the Courts have rule that Charter schools are not public schools.


Court Rules Charter Schools Are Not Public Schools


New York charter schools won a big victory Thursday when a judge ruled the state's top fiscal officer can't follow the money and look at their books.

Charter school crusader Eva Moskowitz filed suit to bar state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli from auditing her 22 schools, all of which are publicly funded but also receive private donations. On Thursday, Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Thomas Breslin ruled DiNapoli did not have the authority to audit any New York charter because the schools are not technically "units of the state."

http://perdidostreetschool.blogspot.com/2014/03/court-rules-charter-schools-are-not.html

Why judges say charters are not public schools— students and parents should be nervous

http://cloakinginequity.com/2013/01/02/why-judges-say-charters-are-not-public-schools-students-and-parents-should-be-nervous/

Are charter schools cherry-picking their students?

By: Jacqueline Rabe Thomas | March 5, 2012

http://ctmirror.org/2012/03/05/are-charter-schools-cherry-picking-their-students/

Also why do Charter Schools have a high Rate of this.

The link between charter school expansion and increasing segregation

One thing that proponents of the broad expansion of charter schools never talk about is the evidence of how charters are leading to increasing segregation by race, ethnicity and income. Here George Washington University Research Professor Iris C. Rotberg explores this connection.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2014/03/13/the-link-between-charter-school-expansion-and-increasing-segregation/

Charter School Segregation Target Of New Report.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/22/charter-school-education-segregation-equity-race-legislation_n_1295043.html

The general public needs to be better informed about charter schools. They are private entities funded by public and private money.
Charter school corporations are a big business in America. Across America hundreds of millions of tax dollars have been given to them because many people have concluded that the public schools are failing to educate our youth. Charters engage in campaigns to promote their schools and trash the public schools. They spend millions to campaign and lobby for more public funds. Connecticut is witnessing a slick and dishonest charter ad campaign to hoodwink the public into believing that the state wants to cut funding for good schools.
If Achievement First and others used their money for students and their schools instead of lobbying, bribing ministers and politicians, and campaigning and advertising for public support, their needs would be met and they would not need more funds from the state and cities like New Haven to expand their programs.
Charters are here. They provide some choices for people. Some do great work. But there must be some limits to their numbers. We are not going to fund a host of new charter schools. Forget about it!
Charters will never replace public schools. Our main focus must be to save our public schools. Our taxes should be expended to meet that goal.It is our duty as a democracy to do so because the vast majority of our kids will attend public schools. Our public education must never be privatized!
So the next time someone from Achievement First leads a rally surrounded by kids of color ask them: what is your advertising budget? what are your teachers' and administrators' salaries? why aren't your teachers required to hold state certification like public school teachers? who are your lobbyists? what are they paid? what promises and gifts did you make to ministers and politicians to gain their support? why do you seek alliances with the New Haven public schools with one hand and slander them with your tongue?

Ms. Muhammad--who told you this lie? AF? Your child will get to go to Amistad, to the detriment of other students. Don't speak about things you don't know, please. Only the expansion of two State Charter Schools who are not wanted by the cities that they are in will not be funded by the appropriations committee. Thank God. Your child is fine, and no children in present charter schools will be affected. Now if Achievement First told you different, you should ask them as to why they lied to you. Because they lie to everybody as they seek to enrich themselves at the expense of our democracy and the chance of an equal education for all. I wish you and your children the best.

Very sad to see parents parroting the lies of Achievement First. It's like FOX News and Karl Rove getting low-info people to parrot lies to other low-info folks.

@Mr. Tom Burns thank you. I was informed that the existing schools would be funded but only for the numbers they are at present. Problem is we have more students that matriculate into the 9th grade and less numbers in the 12th grade which means about 50 of our students will not be funded and may not be able to matriculate. Again, thank you Mr. Burns because my prayers have never gone unanswered, and I believe that my children will be fine. My words in the media was NOT out of fear but concern for not just my child but all of the children that are enrolled to start in August. My fight for a great education for all children is not against traditional public schools. It never has I fight for all schools to be great for all children. I am insulted that people keep missing up the fact that they may differ with the governing org's that run our schools but have not stood up for our traditional public schools to be great and that is why there are public charters that give parents options of choice. I pray this will change, I am willing to help whoever is willing to help make all public schools great no matter who runs them.

Thank you Ms. Muhammad--I feel your concern for your children--I have two school age daughters that I want the best for also--just so you can feel reassured--existing schools will get the funding for their needed expansion based on their student body--we would never want to deny your child or any child who likes their school not to continue--my issue is with the never ending expansion of Charter Schools, we have enough of them for now (when does it stop) --lets slow down and see how everything is working--and then five years from now we can revisit the issue--Your child will get to go to the school they so desire--that has been funded and rightfully so--I wish and your family the best--Tom