Federal

Key Democrat’s Plan Would Boost Charter Schools

By David J. Hoff — March 13, 2008 4 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

A prominent Democrat in Congress is proposing an alternative to President Bush’s $300 million private-school-choice plan that would instead supplement the budgets of the nation’s charter schools.

Rep. Rahm Emanuel of Illinois is developing a plan that would allow parents of children attending low-performing schools to enroll their children in a charter school—or any other public school—and the federal government would supplement the budget of that school.

The proposal would give Democrats an alternative to voting for a private-school-choice plan and would provide the growing charter school movement a boost, according to political and policy analysts.

Charter schools currently receive about 78 percent of the per-pupil funding that regular public schools receive, and charters struggle to raise money for capital expenses, said Todd M. Ziebarth, the vice president for policy at the National Alliance of Public Charter Schools, a Washington-based group.

“Because of the current funding situation, … this kind of federal support would be enormously helpful,” Mr. Ziebarth said. “It synchs up nicely with a lot of individuals and organizations that have gotten involved in the charter movement with the sole purpose of closing the achievement gap.”

BRIC ARCHIVE

But school choice advocates suggest Rep. Emanuel’s plan is inadequate because it wouldn’t add any new schools to the options available to students.

“It’s a stimulus package for charter schools,” said Sister Dale McDonald, the director of public policy for the National Catholic Educational Association, a Washington-based group representing some 7,000 Roman Catholic schools in the United States. “If choice is good, then choice should be full and fair. … Options should include public, charter, independent, and religious schools.”

Choice Alternative

When President Bush announced his Pell Grants for Kids proposal in his State of the Union address in January, Democrats immediately announced their opposition, saying that they wouldn’t support efforts to direct federal money to private schools. (“Bush’s Latest ‘Voucher’ Idea May Face Same Fate as Others,” Feb. 6, 2008.)

Last month, though, Rep. Emanuel said that he would introduce a charter school alternative to the president’s proposal.

“When it comes to education, parents and students deserve to have a choice. Instead of taking money out of the public schools, we need to expand school choice options within public schools,” he said in a Feb. 21 press release.

Mr. Emanuel, who was a White House adviser during the Clinton administration, would target the $300 million under the proposed program to the same students as President Bush would. To have access to money under the program, children would need to attend a school with a high dropout rate or one that was being restructured under the No Child Left Behind Act. Schools in the restructuring phase have missed their annual achievement targets for five years.

Although Rep. Emanuel hasn’t introduced a bill to implement his idea, his proposal is likely to be taken seriously. The Chicago congressman is the chairman of the House Democratic Caucus—the fourth-highest position in the House’s Democratic hierarchy—and is credited with developing the political strategy that helped Democrats win the majority in the House in the 2006 elections.

Rep. Emanuel’s proposal is good political strategy, because it gives Democrats an alternative to the president’s plan, said Andrew J. Rotherham, a co-director of Education Sector, a Washington think tank.

“Democrats lose the choice debate if the debate is choice versus no choice,” said Mr. Rotherham, who worked with Rep. Emanuel on President Clinton staff. “If there is a debate about [choice], this is a smart way to get at it.”

But one supporter of both charter schools and private school choice said the proposal is too narrowly targeted. The federal government already provides money for charter schools, but it doesn’t assist private schools that are struggling to survive, said Jeanne Allen, the president of the Center for Education Reform, a Washington-based group that advocates for alternatives to regular public schools.

“This issue is about having a wide variety of choices for kids,” Ms. Allen said. “It shouldn’t be an either-or with charters and private schools.”

Vouchers for Charters?

It is clear that Rep. Emanuel and other Democrats won’t support a federal effort to underwrite tuition for private schools. But it’s unclear exactly how his proposal to support charter schools would work.

Rep. Emanuel’s press release said that families “could use the funding to attend a nearby charter school.” That implies a per-pupil allocation that would follow a child to the charter school and supplement the school’s budget.

That extra money could give a charter school the incentive to expand its existing school or to open a new one, Mr. Ziebarth said.

Charter schools need access to new forms of federal money, he added, because the largest federal charter school program, which provides $211 million to launch new schools, is inadequate.

But the plan wouldn’t address the critical needs of Roman Catholic schools in central cities, which are struggling to survive amid growing competition from charter schools. (“Catholic Closures Linked to Growth of City Charters,” Feb. 13, 2008.)

President Bush is convening a White House meeting on April 24 to discuss the declining numbers of parochial and other private schools schools in urban areas.

“The burden is on us to make the differences clear between our schools and charter schools, so parents can make an informed choice,” said Sister McDonald of the NCEA.

A version of this article appeared in the March 19, 2008 edition of Education Week as Democrat’s Plan Would Boost Charter Schools

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Assessment Webinar
Reflections on Evidence-Based Grading Practices: What We Learned for Next Year
Get real insights on evidence-based grading from K-12 leaders.
Content provided by Otus
Federal Webinar Navigating the Rapid Pace of Education Policy Change: Your Questions, Answered
Join this free webinar to gain an understanding of key education policy developments affecting K-12 schools.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Professional Development Webinar
Evidence & Impact: Maximizing ROI in Professional Learning
  Is your professional learning driving real impact? Learn data-driven strategies to design effective PL.
Content provided by New Teacher Center

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Federal How Trump Has Changed Schools in His First 100 Days: A Timeline
Schools have experienced an unprecedented quantity and velocity of K-12 policy shifts in President Donald Trump’s first 100 days.
1 min read
Image of the White House, Capitol, the Supreme Court building, and a school.
Laura Baker/Education Week via Canva.
Federal Trump Wades Into DEI Fight Over Native American Mascots in Schools
Scholars and Native American activists have long pushed back on schools’ use of such images.
6 min read
Chiefs signs and logos are at Massapequa High School in Massapequa, N.Y., on April 25, 2025.
Chiefs signs and logos are at Massapequa High School in Massapequa, N.Y., on April 25, 2025.
Ted Shaffrey/AP
Federal Trump to Schools: Banish 'Equity Ideology' in Discipline
Trump’s latest action continues to take aim at diversity, equity, and inclusion practices.
8 min read
President Donald Trump signs an executive order regarding education in the Oval Office of the White House, Wednesday, April 23, 2025, in Washington, as Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer, and Education Secretary Linda McMahon watch.
President Donald Trump signs an executive order regarding education in the Oval Office of the White House, Wednesday, April 23, 2025, in Washington, as Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer, and Education Secretary Linda McMahon watch.
Alex Brandon/AP
Federal Viral AI Gaffe and Ed. Dept. Cuts: How Educators View Linda McMahon So Far
Here's what educators think about the education secretary's performance so far.
6 min read
Secretary of Education Linda McMahon speaks at the ASU+GSV Summit at the Grand Hyatt in downtown San Diego on April 8, 2025.
Secretary of Education Linda McMahon speaks at the ASU+GSV Summit at the Grand Hyatt in downtown San Diego on April 8, 2025.
Ariana Drehsler for Education Week