Biden’s plan would decrease
education opportunities for students in areas with underperforming schools
BATON ROUGE, LA – Louisiana Attorney
General Jeff Landry has joined Oklahoma Attorney General John O’Connor and
14 other state attorneys general in opposing the Biden Administration’s new
regulatory proposal regarding federal grants for public charter
schools.
“The Charter School Program is intended to provide
an alternative to low-performing schools in order to improve education,
not merely to supplement offerings by traditional public
schools,” explained Attorney General Landry. “I will not sit by idly
while Joe Biden threatens to deprive Louisiana families of
better educational opportunities for their children.”
In a letter to the U.S. Department of
Education, Attorney General Landry and his colleagues argue two of
the proposed changes to the Charter School Program would decrease the
education opportunities for students in areas with underperforming
schools. Under a proposed community impact analysis
requirement, an applicant trying to open or expand a
charter school must demonstrate demand through over-enrollment in
local public schools, failing to consider evidence of demand for high quality
education due to poor performance rather than over-enrollment. Additionally, a proposed partnership
priority unfairly penalizes charter schools who compete with local
school districts and gives low-performing public schools a veto
over funding for local charter schools.
“Charter schools are publicly funded,
privately run schools which provide alternatives for families unhappy
with the existing local public schools,” said Attorney General
O’Connor. “Congress funded charter schools
to encourage better education throughout the country. Enacting
these proposed changes will defeat the very reason public charter schools
are allowed.”
The attorneys general argue changing the
preferences for funds will inevitably decrease the total funding awarded to
charter schools that compete with underperforming public
schools. The coalition sees no good reason for the
Biden Administration to discourage or give lower ranks
to charter school grant applications that would fund charter
schools to compete with local school districts and urges the
Department of Education not to adopt the proposed changes.