New Haven Independent

posted by: robn on February 22, 2012  10:47am

Why wouldn’t Ms Toll love the Charter Schools she runs as CEO. If I were making a half million dollars per year, I would too.

http://www.edwize.org/will-governor-cuomo-take-on-outrageous-charter-superintendent-pay-too

posted by: CaroleB on February 22, 2012  1:26pm

@Robn: Achievement First’s federal 990 tax form for 2009 shows Toll’s compensation at around $161K. Her co-CEO, Doug McCurry, reported making about $166K.

http://www2.guidestar.org/FinDocuments/2010/651/203/2010-651203744-07397a3e-9.pdf

posted by: SheilaMc7 on February 22, 2012  2:09pm

“Charter Schools Are Public Schools”—I don’t understand this slogan. Are Charter Schools accountable to the public? Do they hold their Board of Directors meetings in accordance with CT state Freedom of Information statute? Are these public meetings that anyone can attend? What is the meaning of the word “Public” if not that the schools are open to public scrutiny? I’ve always thought: “Charter Schools Are Private Schools”—what am I missing here with this new slogan?

posted by: robn on February 22, 2012  2:36pm

CAROLB,

Thanks; I checked back to the 2008 990s and they’re similar. So unless there’s some kind of compensation I’m missing, I stand corrected. I wonder how the site EDWISE so radically misinterpreted the 990?

posted by: Brutus2011 on February 22, 2012  3:40pm

This really is a bombshell week in Ct.
The governor has taken a stance re: teachers that I as a teacher find to be downright insulting and misleading if not dishonest. But then, he and his people have most likely chosen this path as the most likely to succeed. And that means that they have figured that a significant number of voters will either agree with them or won’t care one way or another.
This charter school debate is really simple: charter schools are not public schools and to characterize them as such is just more fiction.
Why? Because charter schools do not have to teach everybody and they circumvent CT teacher certification requirements with technicalities.
Look, I have taught AP classes, regular classes, remedial classes, and in tough alternate schools. The AP and/or honors classes are an absolute joy to teach with no stress. The regular classes are not as much fun with a rising stress level, the remedial classes are even less fun with more stress, and the alternate schools are like teaching in Syria but I found myself loving teaching there. (Maybe I contracted some bizarre form of Stockholm Syndrome)

Anyway, my point to all of you who have not yawned and moved on is that charter schools are in business and a business has as its bottom line, revenue. Of course, a business wants to receive public funds. Look at how Wall Street cashed out knowing that the taxpayers would have to foot the bill.
I have said all this to say that I hope our legislators say “No” to this bill and that they draft and pass legislation that mandates a strict evaluation of how municipal and state public funds are allocated. With this hopefully honest accounting of where the money actually goes, we can have a more accurate picture of what we are really facing to improve our kid’s educations.
And to charter school managers I say this: I have no problem with you doing your thing and I hope you succeed—but not with my tax dollars.

posted by: Threefifths on February 22, 2012  4:21pm

posted by: CaroleB on February 22, 2012 12:26pm

@Robn: Achievement First’s federal 990 tax form for 2009 shows Toll’s compensation at around $161K. Her co-CEO, Doug McCurry, reported making about $166K.

EDWISE said thisData for charter school leaders’ salaries and benefits is taken from their organizations’ 2008 990s. Student enrollment for each network’s schools in 2010-11 is taken from the SUNY-Charter School Institute website. Chart likely underestimates cost per student for charter schools, since enrollment for each network was smaller in 2008 and leaders’ compensation is probably higher in 2010-11. Compensation listed for NYC DOE Chancellor assumes $50,000 in annual benefits.So they got there information from the 2010-2011 SUNY-Charter School Institute report.But we can always ask her.

posted by: SheilaMc7 on February 22, 2012  4:47pm

I don’t know much about reading 990 forms, but I’ll point out two things: the EdWize article lists “total compensation” and appears to take into account the cost of benefits, as well as salaries (according to the text under the table there). The “cost” of benefits are not typically reflected on anyone’s W2 of course, so it makes sense that the number in EdWize might be higher than what is reported on the 990 which is taken from W2s), maybe?

Second, let’s adjust the numbers anyway to reflect only what is on the 990 linked here: that would mean that these two administrators are paid $104 per student (rather than the $161 per student reported in EdWize). Still kind of high perhaps?

posted by: robn on February 22, 2012  5:27pm

SMC7 and 3/5,

Nope. To be fair to Ms Toll, the 2008 990 list her compensation as 154,329 and benefits as 6,894. That compensation and the compensation of two other individuals,(her CFO and Co-CEO) total @ $461,000. (less than what the Edwise site implied was for one or two persons.) If I were Achievement First I’d write to that site author and get a correction…that article is showing at the top of Google searches on this issue.

posted by: Threefifths on February 22, 2012  7:37pm

If it is wrong.It will not be for Long.Read this.

http://jonpelto.wordpress.com/2012/02/22/oops-and-here-i-thought-it-was-an-annual-meeting-and-not-a-gala-dinner/

posted by: Beth1 on February 27, 2012  4:51pm

@SheilaMc7: I’d guess they adopted that slogan because people like Brutus2011 continue to insist they’re NOT public schools. They are: They must follow certification and other rules and have much less flexibility than charters in other states. I checked a few charter websites: They have public notices of meetings and minutes posted. To Brutus2011: You seem to care about kids, yet you are spreading misinformation which hurts KIDS, not adults. They are public schools—I think every single one in CT is run by a nonprofit, which means their books are audited and scrutinized by others (including public officials). This is the only chance at a good education some of these kids will get since their district schools have failed them; please don’t contribute to the dialogue with bad info.

posted by: Brutus2011 on February 27, 2012  5:35pm

Ct. charter schools are required to have only 50% or one-half of their teachers to have standard certification.
Please understand that I am not at all interested in having any child not have an opportunity to learn.
I just feel as though education managers, both public and private, are less interested in students and more interested in their own bottom lines. 
I also feel as though a private business should not use our tax dollars to add to their revenue.
Finally, all this debate about reform and charters and teacher accountability neatly deflects the conversation from where it should be:
Why are not those education managers whose well-paying job it is not being held accountable for the failure that everyone seems to agree should be hung around the necks of teachers?

posted by: Beth1 on February 27, 2012  6:40pm

“...a private business should not use our tax dollars to add to their revenue.”: But if the revenue is being used to run the school, what’s the problem? If we’re going to grouse about high salaries, just look at those of Stamford principals—there is plenty of blame to go around. When the market demands those salaries, nonprofit educational providers are forced to offer comparable compensation or get crappy leaders. I get it when the situation is a for-profit company; when White Hat (from Ohio) tries to come here, then you can use the public-revenue-in-your-fat-cat pocket line all you want, and I’ll stand by you shouting just as loudly.

Can’t we all agree that “the conversation” should be squarely on “are children learning what they need to know to be productive members of our society”? If that is the yardstick (and I know defining the yardstick is not simple), won’t we always end up focused on measuring things that matter to educational attainment?