Charter schools, unions call a truce in an epic battle as Newsom brokers a deal
https://www.elkgrovenews.net/2019/09/charter-schools-unions-call-truce-in.html
By Ricardo Cano,
CalMatters
Gov.
Gavin Newsom brokered an agreement Wednesday on a high-profile charter-school
regulation proposal at the center of this year’s contentious battle between
teachers unions and charter advocates, removing a key hurdle for its passage
this session.
The compromise
on Assembly Bill 1505 comes
after months of lobbying by the state’s two most influential education interest
groups and several impassioned hearings over sweeping proposed changes to how
the publicly funded, independently managed schools operate in California.
Initiated
in the early 1990s as a way to bring innovation into California’s K-12 school
system, charter schools have sharply grown over the years, primarily in the state’s urban school systems, and
have become a flashpoint for unions, who contend they draw enrollment away from
traditional public schools, depriving them of critical funding and resources.
In a joint statement Wednesday afternoon, Newsom and Senate and
Assembly leaders characterized the deal on AB 1505 as one that “significantly
reforms the Charter Schools Act to address long-standing challenges for both
school districts and charter schools.”
“This
agreement focuses on the needs of our students,” the statement from the
Governor’s Office read. “It increases accountability for all charter schools,
allows high-quality charter schools to thrive, and ensures that the fiscal and
community impacts of charter schools on school districts are carefully
considered.”
Under the
latest iteration of AB 1505, which lawmakers are expected to vote on in the two
weeks remaining before the end of the legislative session, local school boards
would have more discretion over approving new charter schools, including the
ability to factor in a new charter’s impact on a district’s
finances — a criterion that districts were not allowed to consider for prior
charters.
All
charter school teachers also would be required to hold some sort of state credential along
with a background check, though uncredentialed charter teachers leading
“non-core” classes would have five years to meet that requirement.
The state
would also impose a two-year moratorium on non-classroom based and online
charter schools under the proposal. But a pathway toward appeals to county and
state boards for charters denied by local school boards would remain in place
under the proposal.
Unions
representing teachers and classified school employees celebrated the agreement,
touting it as “significant progress on behalf of our students.” The California
Teachers Association, which backed Newsom during the election, spent $4.3 million this
year lobbying for more restrictions to charter schools.
“All along, our goals have included ensuring locally-elected
school board members have the discretion to make decisions to meet the needs of
local students … and holding all taxpayer-funded public schools to the same
high standards,” the CTA and a coalition of unions said in a joint statement.
The
California Charter Schools Association removed its opposition — formally
shifting to a “neutral” position — on AB 1505 after it said it secured
“significant protections” for charter schools, including some preservation of
appeals to counties and the state, as well as granting high-performing
charters a fast track toward renewal.
“For 25
years, California’s charter public school movement has relentlessly run towards
the greatest challenges in public education,” Myrna Castrejón, president and
CEO of the state’s charter association said in a statement.
“Far too
many of our most vulnerable students have been underserved by our current
public school system, which is exactly why we’ve engaged in thoughtful
conversations and shown a willingness to compromise on this important
legislation.”
News of
the agreement marked a striking departure from previous sessions in which
teachers unions and charter advocates bitterly fought the opposing sides’
proposals to a legislative stalemate.
But
Newsom, who won office amid heavy opposition from
deep-pocketed charter supporters, signified soon after he took office in
January that he planned to play an active role in mediating
California’s charter school debate.
One of
the first bills Newsom signed this year, Senate Bill 126, requires charters to
adhere to the same public-records and open-meeting laws as traditional district
schools — a proposal that had passed previously but was vetoed by Gov. Jerry
Brown. Legislators fast-tracked that bill partly in response to the
massive Los Angeles teachers’ strike in
January that amplified the debate over charter school restrictions.
“The goal
over the next few months is to work to address a number of these vexing issues
that frankly need to be addressed. It’s long overdue to have these
conversations,” Newsom told reporters in March after
signing SB 126.
The
original version of AB 1505 called for granting local school districts sole
power over authorizing charter schools in California, granting wide latitude to
school boards over charter approvals and removing appeals to the county and
state boards altogether.
The bill
was introduced as the centerpiece of a package of charter restriction bills by
Democratic legislators, and immediately set off an intense public debate.
Charter advocates, including the state charter association, decried the
original proposal as “poisonous” and an existential threat to charters in
California. Teachers unions and supporters of the legislation said the
accountability proposals were “common-sense” reforms that were long overdue.
AB 1505
gradually has been amended as it has cleared each successive legislative
hurdle, but it became clear it would become the vehicle for a consensus
revision after it cleared the Assembly in a narrow and dramatic floor vote. Another
charter regulation bill, AB 1507, that would prohibit
school districts from authorizing charters outside of their geographic boundaries remains
active, as well.
Democratic
Assemblyman Patrick O’Donnell, chair of the Assembly’s education panel and
author of AB 1505, acknowledged after that vote that it would take further
compromises to advance the bill to the governor’s desk.
In a
statement Wednesday evening, O’Donnell said the agreement “represents a step in
the right direction to reform our state’s outdated charter school laws that
have been in place since 1992.”
“This
bill is good for kids and for California taxpayers but there is more work to be
done to ensure bad actors are held accountable.”
CalMatters.org is a
nonprofit, nonpartisan media venture explaining California policies and
politics.
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