Governor Dan Malloy’s insistence to fund two new charter schools, including one in Bridgeport, could be a stumbling block to closing a budget deal in the final days of the General Assembly. Charter schools receive public funds but operate independent of traditional school districts.
“I understand that the governor wants charters. I want what my constituents want. We are being disrespected by the state Board of Education,” Sen. Edwin Gomes, D-Bridgeport, said of the panel appointed by the governor that approved a new charter school for Gomes’s district before the legislature agreed to provide the funding. “I got elected by people, and they are not supportive. I have been hearing people have threatened to vote against the budget. I don’t know what I am going to do yet.”
More on this from CT Mirror here.
I spoke with three legislators from the Bridgeport delegation. I don’t know about the senate, however I was told they have the votes in the House of Representatives to block a budget with funding for new charter schools.
I understand Malloy has “drawn a line in the sand” because he made “promises” to fund charter schools.
I believe five members of the delegation have been firmly opposed to funding more charter schools. Stallworth is openly supporting the funding of the new charter school in Bridgeport.
I just spoke with two members of our delegation who stated the funding for both charter schools is back in the budget. Both stated they are going to vote for the budget because they wiwho helped him get re-elected.
Malloy needs Bridgeport to win an election. Instead of standing together and leveraging Bridgeport’s voting block Malloy will need to be re-elected, they crumple like a cheap suit.
Several of us have been discussing members of the delegation who will be challenged in 2016. Looks like those discussions will have to move forward right after the November election.
Oops! Working from my phone. The two members of the Bridgeport delegation who said they were going to vote for this said they could not afford to become a Malloy target and they were concerned about losing funding for their pet projects. It’s good to know they are more concerned about Malloy and their pet projects, not the 22,000 BPS students who attend the severely underfunded BPS. Both had committed they would not support any funding of these two new charter schools.
Is there a single elected official who represents Bridgeport whose word means something?
You spoke to three legislators and two members of the delegation. Care to give specific names?
Maria, I know you are very knowledgeable about this subject and I am not. If the State is picking up the tab for charters then why aren’t they wanted? If their test scores are better than most BBOE schools then why aren’t they wanted?
I am personally involved with Classical Studies, which was a chapter that went to a Magnet this year. Their test scores are good compared to other BBOE schools, 93% of the students are black and Hispanic and 96% are eligible for free lunch. Aren’t these the children we should try to reach?
As you see I don’t know much about the debate, that’s why I’m asking you. I’ve talked to a lot of black folks and like me we don’t understand the down side. What are we missing in this equation?
Donald,
There are a myriad of reasons why Maria and I are against charter schools. Here are a few reasons I am against them.
1) They cherry pick their student population. Yes, it’s lottery based, however their student population does not reflect that of their host community. BPS must educate every child regardless of the support or lack thereof a child has. When a child with special needs goes to a charter school, BPS is responsible for services to that child.
2) Private citizens are reaping huge returns on investment for investing in charter schools. This is more commonly known as a transfer of wealth. The rich get rich, and sadly on the backs of one of the most vulnerable segments of our population. This money is mostly tax free.
www .washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2014/06/04/why-hedge-funds-love-charter-schools/
3) Charter schools pull resources from their host community. The state does not pay the full freight for transportation costs, etc. These extra dollars could go to the local BOE.
4) These schools are privately managed. There’s little oversight into their operations, yet they receive public funds to operate. Just look at Jumoke Academy.
I was the PAC President at Classical Studies when we championed the school to become K-8. Following my vision, the next president brought home the magnet designation. It was parent involvement that made the superintendent and BOE recognize what type of school CSMA was. Our neighborhood schools can flourish with good parent leaders, administration, and proper funding.
Just to clarify, Classical Studies was always a Bridgeport Public School. Prior to becoming a magnet school, it was considered a “theme” school focusing on the Paideia method of teaching. Roosevelt will be a “theme” school focusing on music and arts.
I totally understand why so many are against charter schools. I just returned from Manhattan. The limousine driver told us his kids go to charter schools and they are really blossoming. I am not doing a commercial for charter schools. I do not have children in the Bridgeport public schools. If I were Senator Gomes, I would certainly speak to my constituents. You will be surprised to find many families want a choice. Who are we to demand families living in the city subject their children to an education they do not believe in? I totally feel Maria P’s passion against the charter schools. My position supporting it is not as passionate as hers being against. I do believe parents have a right to decide whether or not their child is entitled to an alternative education. I am not interested in the personal wealth of those involved. I am not interested in the stories of those who found religion. I believe if you live in Bridgeport, you should have a choice and not allow any individuals to take your choice away. Mr. Gomes, your constituents would benefit as little Janaya in the propaganda clip. Don’t be so quick to deprive youth of a quality education because you just do not have a horse in the race. Many parents support this!
Steve, so few parents support this, the billionaire and millionaire pro-charter school organizations claimed “thousands” would attend the Hartford rally earlier this month. In the end, even their own estimates were only 1,500 attendees. They spent $87,000 busing charter school students and adults from MA and NY to the rally. There are millions of CT residents, yet they had to bus residents from other states, and they still didn’t hit the mark of “thousands.” The Hartford Courant put the estimate at “hundreds.” They held a rally in Bridgeport just days before the Hartford rally and on a beautiful day, and just nine adults and two children attended.
Steve, you also know Ed ran against Kenneth Moales Jr., the most vocal charter school supporter in Bridgeport. Kenneth Moales was absolutely trounced. The majority of charter schools in Bridgeport are in Ed’s district, therefore your assertion about the number of parents who want charter schools in Bridgeport is not grounded in reality.
By the way, both in CT and NY, polls were conducted about education issues. When participants were polled on what was the most important issue in education, “school choice” ranked dead last.
Maria, to the best of your knowledge, which members of the Bpt delegation are going to vote with Malloy on charter school funding and which members are going to vote against the funding?
John, specifically I spoke with Jack Hennessy and Ezequiel Santiago, and both stated they will vote for the budget even with the new funding for charter schools in the budget. Both Jack Hennessy and Chris Rosario specifically stated in the CT Mirror they are going to vote for the budget, therefore it is public information. The last legislator I personally spoke with told me they had slept just 5 hours in two days and did not know what they were going to do. They were very upset with Malloy.
I would call Malloy’s bluff. Let him veto a $40 billion budget because of his two precious charter schools. Every CT media outlet would report on it, and he would take a beating in the press.
Every member of the delegation, except Stallworth, committed to NOT supporting any new charter school funding in this budget. If they vote for this budget, they will demonstrate their word means nothing.
Let’s see what happens on Monday.
Maria, I think it is a poor assumption to believe Moales was trounced because he supported charter schools. I think it had more to do with everything else under the sun.
Steve, if there were so many parents who wanted charter schools in Bridgeport, wouldn’t the pro-charter school parents have come out in droves to vote for Moales? He was defeated in a landslide. It wasn’t even close.
I think most parents who want charter schools will vote for a Mayor who supports them. Maria, your favorite issues are Board of Ed issues. Most parents do not follow the politics of the Board of Ed. In fact most intelligent voters in our city are clueless about Board of Ed. issues. Very sad but extremely true. I’d bet most parents could not give me the names of two members of the board.
Steve, you are probably right about what parents know, however claiming “most intelligent voters” are “clueless” about education issues is a pretty insulting comment about our electorate.
I know I have really worked to educate the voters in my neighborhood.
I am against the use of any funds designated to be for education to go anywhere but towards public school education, while I wouldn’t mind them actually teaching a bit more of the TRUTH!
Donald,
Long and short of it, Finch and Malloy have no intentions of trying to fund or fix Bridgepprt Public Schools. So they open up some charters, claim they are offering something better than BPS, tell the parents to enter a lottery and if they get lucky they might get a school as good as a Bridgeport Magnet school.
They are saying a good education is not a fundamental right that should be guaranteed to every Connecticut child but really a matter of luck.
And as far as the other 20,000 students stuck in BPS, too bad. We are never going to fix that mess. It costs too much and you are simply not lucky.
Eric, great article and can I assume your problems with charters is big money has found a way to make charters a money-making endeavor? Why is that a problem if they can take the $14,000 a year that is allocated by the State for each student and make a profit? As long as the student gets a quality education with quality teachers then what’s the problem if they can turn a profit? The article also alluded to those same individuals getting exorbitant tax breaks for using their money for charters, so I assume that too is a problem with you? Again, if they are using their money and the children are getting a quality education then what’s the problem?
Bobby, are you saying charters don’t offer Bridgeport children a better education than BPS? Or are you saying because of the utilization of a lottery to choose and all 20,000 BPS children can’t get a charter education, then none should be afforded the advantage of a charter education?
I can see the inherent problem with offering a quality education to some children but not all children, but what alternatives does a parent have who wants and expects that for their children? I know my daughter went through the lottery for numerous magnet and charter schools and was lucky my grandson got into Classical Studies, but we all have to make a sacrifice by volunteering time for him to attend. I know this isn’t required of BPS students and could that be the primary reason charters outperform BPS because it takes a village to raise a child? Does the end justify the means? It does for my grandson, but not for little Billy who didn’t get accepted in a charter or a magnet.
Eric and Bobby,
Thank you for your responses. I am a little more knowledgeable about charters with respect to BPS. It’s like that old saying, everybody wants to go to heaven but no one wants to die. Everyone wants better schools for our children, but no one wants the additional taxes to pay for them and I certainly understand that.
If the state, the cities or the federal governments doesn’t adequately finance our children’s education and people are already being taxed to death, what are the alternatives for educating our youth?
Donald,
The issue with people making money off public education is public education is supposed to be for the good of all people. If charters were all that good then you would see them in towns like Fairfield and Westport.
Public education is a societal right, once the pathway of determining who is a “have” and who is a “have not” gets worn in we all lose.
How do you fix it???
A true leader in the mayor’s office.
True funding for public schools.
Parents stepping up and being accountable for their children.
Yes, the citizens of Bridgeport are taxed to death, but where is the value in the taxes being paid? This city has more non-taxed property than any other in Fairfield county. When there is development happening the city gives away the farm in tax breaks, taxing districts, etc.
Eric,
I see your point and it doesn’t look good for the children of Bridgeport. Let me ask you a question and correct me if I’m wrong. I remember reading HPS has nearly the same number of children as the BPS and receives 90 million dollars more than BPS from the state. This can’t be correct and if it is why is this allowed to happen?
Two big reasons; funding formulas based on taxable property and school regionalization/interdistrict schools. Hartford and New Haven have more commercial property than Bridgeport. Almost all of New Haven’s schools are interdistrict. Interdistrict schools get funding from donor towns and the state.