This week, The Charter Blog will feature guest posts from state charter support organizations capturing their reaction to their state's ranking on the 20 essential components from the NAPCS model law.
Massachusetts has enjoyed a period of unprecedented expansion of charter public schools as a result of a 2010 education reform law that allowed charters to double the number of seats they can offer children in the state's lowest performing districts. So you would think its ranking against other states would have risen in the latest NAPCS survey of how state laws support charters. But several states leap-frogged past Massachusetts making more aggressive changes to their laws promoting charter expansion and providing financial support.
Massachusetts' ranking fell from 5th to 11th. The 2010 law approved a "limited" cap lift and the new seats were quickly taken up. Right now, more than half of the 29 districts that rank in the bottom 10 percent academically are either at the cap or have room for only one more charter school. These include large cities and towns like Boston, Holyoke, Lawrence, Lowell, Chelsea, and Randolph, and several smaller communities in Central and Western Massachusetts. Meanwhile charter wait lists have grown to 45,000 students.
The study points out potential room for improvement in state law, including removing the state’s caps on charter school growth and ensuring equitable operational funding and equitable access to capital funding and facilities. These two issues are the focus of a legislative campaign launched by charter public school advocates, local business leaders and legislators. The legislation would eliminate all charter caps in underperforming districts and create more room to open new charters all across the state. The bill would also address underfunding of charter facilities by requiring cities and towns to offer charter school operators the opportunity to purchase or lease unused municipal buildings. The coalition is also seeking increased state support for charters facilities in the state budget. This legislation is part of a comprehensive effort to build on the state’s two-decade-old education reform effort raising academic standards, strengthening accountability and increasing parental choice.
Charter public schools are among the highest performing schools in Massachusetts, and have been successful at narrowing race and income-based achievement gaps. The vast majority of charters post higher standardized MCAS test scores compared to their district counterparts, and many urban charters, which educate mostly minority and/or low-income students, outscore even affluent suburban schools. In fact, twenty-four charters ranked #1 in the state on various MCAS and academic improvement rankings.
For the past twenty years, charter schools have proven that they are a high-quality, valuable option for families across the state. If the legislature fails to act on this bill, families from many of the state's neediest communities will be frozen out. It’s time to lift the cap and give these children the academic opportunities they need to successfully prepare for their futures.
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