Charter proponents maintain that their schools do not financially impact nearby traditional public schools. The theory is that traditional schools no longer have to pay the cost of educating students who leave to attend charters. And, proponents say, taxpayers don't have to pay additional money because the state simply transfers the ADA to another campus.
But traditional schools do suffer financially when they lose students to charters, says Darrell Gifford, a research and finance consultant for CTA who has studied the impact of charters on school districts throughout the state. They have fewer students but the same expenses.
"If you have 100 students in the district and 10 of them leave to go to a charter school, you still have to run the same programs and maintain the same facilities at other sites -- but it is based on money that's generated from 90 students, not 100 students."
"Anything that reduces overall funding for existing schools is not good," says Gifford. "A district with charters ought to be looking at the fiscal impact of losing a substantial portion of ADA."
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Language is not a stumbling block for students Zuleyma Vasquez, Katie Shimizu and David Evangelista as they work together on a math problem in the bilingual program at Cali Calmecac. |
In addition, traditional schools still have to pay special education costs from their general funds, while charters tend to avoid paying these costs by discouraging parents from enrolling these students, he adds.
Sacramento is definitely losing money as a result of an influx of charter schools, says Sacramento City Teachers Association President Marcie Launey.
Sacramento High School has been converted to a for-profit charter run by St. Hope, despite a court ruling that the process was illegal. In addition, four small charter high schools have opened, all of them "dependent" charters that are part of the school district. The school board has also voted to approve a charter for an elementary school scheduled to open next fall.
When school board members were given a presentation by the district's chief financial officer about the possible impact on district finances, "they were told that each one of the new charter schools will take money from the district's general fund and that it will cost the district a lot of money," says Launey.
School board members, she adds, seem happy to approve charter petitions as long as they are not teacher-driven.
"Teachers at Kennedy High School have been trying to get a charter approved for several years. And teachers at Sacramento High School presented a sound charter petition that was rejected. Undoubtedly, there is a bias against teachers."
The funding picture for the different types of schools also shows inequities, she says. The new charter high schools could receive more funding than existing high schools.
Sacramento City is a "unified district" that gets revenue limit funding at a lower ADA rate than high school districts. Because the new high schools will not be part of the unified district, they are entitled to the higher funding rate. The new schools will receive a startup grant and ADA from the state based on the unified rate. SCUSD will have to transfer a portion of its local property taxes to the charter schools to make up the difference between the unified rate and the higher rate to which the charters are entitled.
Basic aid districts could also suffer under charter regulations.
Districts with high property values that rely on local property taxes to educate students are required, under SB 955, to assume all of the costs for charter school students in their districts, rather than having the state pay most of the costs.
The law could have a huge impact in the Sequoia Union High School District in Redwood City, says Mike Radoye, president of the Sequoia District Teachers Association.
The district has four charter schools within its boundaries, none of which were chartered by the district.
"They were chartered by other districts and the students reside within our attendance boundaries," says Radoye. "But under SB 955, basic aid districts are now obligated to pay the full revenue limit amount on each student who resides within their attendance area and attends a charter school."
He estimates that if his district were forced to pay the full amount today, it would cost approximately $2.25 million, or $5,600 for each of the 400 students.
The funding for the basic aid charter program is expected to be implemented gradually, and will likely be capped at 70 percent of cost.
"It's a big hit to take out of an existing, ongoing program," he says, noting that there are many poor and special-needs students from Redwood City and East Palo Alto in the district. But he says that other students who attend Summit High School, located in Redwood City, will benefit. "To me, it's quasi-voucher," says Radoye. "The Portola Valley group (parents and organizers) involved with Summit is very affluent. It's like attending private school using public money."
Chapters facing the prospect of a charter school starting up in their district should look very carefully at the financial impact and make sure the charter does not diminish the regular program.
