The 2008 legislative session was relatively quiet, yet successful as it relates to school choice issues.  Most notably, the quiet was not broken by legislative efforts to do damage to school choice options.  From a legislative perspective, this represents progress from years past where we battled numerous efforts to restrict school choice.  This is an indication that the school choice movement is gaining more political clout in the legislature and the charter school concept is becoming more acceptable. 

But we cannot let our guard down and must continue to educate lawmakers as many critics still exist (see below story).

These bills we passed by the legislature and signed by Gov. Otter:

School District Property Transfers (S 1405 by Sen. Burkett and Rep. Pasley-Stuart) – This bill adds charter schools to the list of approved entities that can take possession of excess school district property.  It allows charter schools an opportunity to obtain existing school district buildings for appraisal price as opposed to having to complete with developers in a bidding process.  Other non-profit and government entities have always had the “right of first refusal” on excess school district buildings or property.  This adds charter school to that list and makes the potential facilities price more affordable.  It is a small step to potentially address facility needs in some instances.  Boise’s ANSER Charter school intends to utilize this law to obtain an elementary school building from the Boise School District.

Charter School Petition Due Diligence (S 1403 by Sen. Goedde) – This bill requires school districts to make serious consideration of new charter school petitions before denying or forwarding the petition to the Charter Commission.  It also requires that a representative of the petitioner attend “new charter school” training as provided by the Department of Education.  Historically, some school districts have rejected petitions for new charter schools without serious consideration.  The sponsors of this bill want to have proof that those districts made serious consideration of the petitions and provide reasons for the rejection before passing them on to the Commission.  

Virtual School Definition (H 423 by the Charter School Commission) – This bill provides for more specific information and criteria in determining the definition of a “virtual” school.  This bill was in response to recommendations by the Office of Performance Evaluations following a broad study of Idaho’s virtual schools and addresses the concern that a more clear definition be developed.

Charter Schools across District Boundaries (H 502 by Rep. Bolz) – This bill allows for standards to be applied in the case that a charter school’s attendance zone falls into two different school district boundaries.  This issue came to light when a new charter school in Canyon County had to temporarily relocate.

Charter School Critics Continue Attacks, Highlights Need to Educate Lawmakers

Despite a relatively successful legislative session as it relates to Charter School issues, some legislators have continued to reveal their ignorance about, and hostility toward, the charter school concept.  Aided by an April 6 Twin Falls Times News report by Andrea Jackson, some legislators are claiming that money given to Idaho’s public virtual charter schools is going unaccounted for. Read the story here .

The Times News’ implication that millions of dollars have simply disappeared could not be further from the truth.  The Idaho Public Charter School Commission acts as the authorizer of all virtual charter schools.  The Commission demands strict fiscal accountability and annual audits of these schools – a stricter standard than that applied to traditional public schools.  The Commission knows how all of this money is used, and the virtual school audit results and individual school budgets are available to the public.  

In fact, the Charter Commission wrote a letter to the editor, taking the paper to task for its reporting. Read the response here . And, IDVA sent a news release refuting the assertions in the article. Read the release here .   Briana LeClaire, president of the coalition, also submitted a letter to the editor that we will distribute to you once it’s published.

Legislators and reporters alike should be aware of these public records, but this fact was ignored in this story.

Invite your legislators to visit your school

This story illustrates the continued need for Idaho’s charter schools to constantly maintain relationships with, and educate lawmakers about our schools. PLEASE take the opportunity to invite your local legislators to visit your school prior to the end of this school year.  Give them a tour of the school, show them how successful this innovative approach to learning can be and organize meetings with parents who can adequately express their satisfaction with their child’s education.

Personal relationships with your legislators are critically important.  A constant effort is required to remind lawmakers of the structure, function, and success of charter schools.  Many legislators – even those in support of school choice – do not clearly understand how charter schools work.  Our goal should be to help educate them on this matter, and develop a relationship so when a question arises they will seek clarification rather than simply assume our critics are correct.

Still seeking your stories

Our coalition wants to hear from you. Please send us your testimonial outlining why you have selected a public charter school – either a bricks-and-mortar school or a virtual school. We want to make sure that policymakers and others get a chance to see the faces of the students and families and hear the stories about our great public schools.  Send your testimonial to us at info@idchartercoalition.org. If we decided to post it on the web site, we will be sure to contact you first.