WGNO Coverage of 1/19 Press Conference
Group of community
leaders want to see changes in the way the State's charter school application
process
Coalition says process for charter school operators is flawed
Since Hurricane Katrina the number of charter schools in the city has increased significantly.
The Coalition for Community Leadership in Education said the current process for choosing charter operators favors national charter organizations.
“We have gone through the Louisiana charter school application process and have been rejected, and more than once,” said Dr. Norman Whitley, a member of the coalition.
They said community based groups that want a shot at operating a charter school are being shut out of the process.
"We've invested hundreds of hours of community members’ time, our own money and our own resources in the application process, yet we find ourselves stacked up against national and chain operators who have staff spread around the country and thousands of dollars at their disposal to use to navigate the process,” said Michael Pizzolato, another member of the coalition.
The coalition does not trust the national board involved in the selection of charter operators.
"[The] State of Louisiana has contracted with the National Association of Charter School Authorizers, NACSA to review applications…we are suspicious of this group,” continued Whitley.
But the new superintendent of the city’s Recovery School District defends the current process.
"Of all of the charter applications approved this year, half of them were from local charters that were started in New Orleans with proven track records in raising student achievement. The primary focus of using an independent national review board is to effectively evaluate applicants' ability to improve student achievement and have an organizational and financial plan to support those goals,” said RSD Superintendent Patrick Dobard.
And the Louisiana Association of Public Charter Schools also takes issue with the coalition’s stance on the approval process.
"The launch of a charter school is a very difficult undertaking and NACSA has just a huge track record of success, not only here in Louisiana, but nationwide,” said Sarah Baird, of the Louisiana Association of Public Charter Schools.
PRESS ALERT
Date: 1/18/2012
Contact: Dr. Norman Whitley, (504)324-4752 or Mr. Alvin Jones, (225)279-5558
Coalition of Community Leaders Calls for Equity,
Transparency & Consistency in the BESE Charter Application Process
NEW ORLEANS, La.- The Coalition for Community Leadership in Education will hold a press conference to announce their efforts to halt and revamp Louisiana’s charter application process, tomorrow, January 19th at the New Orleans Healing Center, 2372 St. Claude Avenue, at 2:30pm. The group cites that the charter application process is flawed and highly subjective, as it disadvantages community groups, lacks transparency, and is inconsistently applied.
The Coalition for Community Leadership in Education, a consortium of community advocates, public school alumni groups, educators, parents and professionals, represent a growing number of concerned residents of New Orleans desiring greater community ownership of New Orleans’ public schools. Among these groups are Algiers Primary Cooperative Charter School, Dr. George Washington Carver Charter School Association, Educated Change Foundation, Family Center of Hope, New Orleans East Charter Academies, Inc. (Reed HS), New Orleans Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics Academy, Inc., The Plessy School, and Total Learning Community, Inc. (Banneker).
The Coalition will release a statement at the press conference highlighting their major concerns and their recommendations for improvements to the charter application process. To learn more about the groups’ concerns and demands, attend the press conference tomorrow at 2:30pm and check their website http://cclenola.yolasite.com/ for a full copy of the statement.
