By Bill Wilson & Joe Nathan

After working in urban communities for a combination of more than 80 years, one of us serving as Minnesota’s State Commissioner of Human Rights and being elected first African American to serve as St. Paul’s City Council Chair, and helping produce major gains with low income and students of color, we vigorously disagree with a recent assertion on the Charter Notebook blog site that “…any achievement” by a group of students at a charter school that is predominantly of one race is “hollow.”  (Rachel Scott, "Independent Charter Schools and Diversity, Part One: The Problem of "Resegregation," January 18, 2012)

Imposed separation because of or on the basis of race or color is the classic definition of segregation. People choosing of their own free will to attend a public school is the exercise of liberty. The right to assemble and exercising freedom of choice is guaranteed in the Bill of Rights. How then is choosing which charter school to attend not consistent with the right of assembly? Unlike imposed segregation, charter schools include all who apply or wish to come. Unlike segregated schools of the 1950’s and 1960’s, these schools most certainly do not exclude anyone because of their race or color of skin.

One of us (Wilson) responded several years ago at the Minnesota legislature to the charge that charter schools such as the one he founded were “segregated.” He differentiated between schools like his (Higher Ground Academy) and the segregated public school he was forced to attend in Indiana: “We had no choice,” he recalled. “I was forced to attend an inferior school, farther from home than nearby, better-funded ‘whites-only’ schools. Higher Ground is open to all. No one is forced to attend. Quite a difference.”

Minnesota’s largest daily newspaper, the Star Tribune has found for the last two years that the vast majority of Minneapolis-St Paul area public schools that are “beating the odds” are charter public schools. In September, 2011, a graphic appeared in the Star Tribune listing the 10 public schools in reading and math with high percentages of low income students that had the highest percentage of students proficient in reading or math on the official statewide examinations. See: www.startribune.com/newsgraphics/129810153.html.

The top eight of the ten schools listed in math were charter public schools, and the top nine of ten schools listed in reading were charter public schools. These were schools that “showed the highest percentage of students scoring at grade level or better, despite having a high number of students living in poverty.” To be eligible to be on the list, a school had to enroll at least 85% students from low-income families.

The vast majority of these high-ranking charter public schools enrolled 80% or more students of color. Many of the “beat the odds” schools enrolled 90% or more from one race. Bill Wilson, co-author of this blog post (and former Commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Human Rights) founded and is director of one of these schools. US News and World Report also has listed the school Wilson helped start, Higher Ground Academy, as one of the nation’s finest high schools.

Denying the value of these schools, as Scott does in her recent blog post, reminds us of what Ralph Ellison wrote about in the civil rights classic, Invisible Man. Ellison wrote, in part, “I am invisible, understand, simply because people refuse to see me."

It is a well-known historical fact that slavery and segregation excluded black people from attending schools and colleges. Even so, abolitionists and other people of good will set forth a process for the building of educational institutions that would provide education to blacks as was being provided to the white population. Over time, many start-up institutions built a rich tradition and evolved into what is now known today as historically black colleges and universities. Today, by choice, many black and white students alike attend and graduate from these institutions. The valuable contributions historically black colleges and universities have and continue to make to the education of young men and women in America is unquestionable. Without these great educational institutions, generations of black and other persons of color will have gone without a meaningful education. Likewise, public charter schools of choice are at the beginning stages of serving as a viable conduit and pathway through which children of different backgrounds are able to access high quality education.

Higher Ground Academy as well as some other public charter schools are doing an exceptional job of educating children of color. The success of these charter schools can be attributed to setting high student expectations and also holding teachers accountability. At the end of the day, public charter schools will ultimately serve to raise the bar for America's K - 12 education system by demonstrating that all children, regardless of race or color, can and will learn.

Some charters on the Star Tribune “Beat the Odds” list enroll a variety of students. The Concordia Creative Learning Academy has a diverse student body, including African American, Hmong, Hispanic and white students. We think that freely selected, racially diverse schools certainly should be available as options for families.

The charter public school movement, in part, is about the expansion of opportunity and justice in American education (Nathan). The fact that civil rights hero Rosa Parks devoted part of the last decade of her life to the creation of charter schools is one more reminder of this heritage (Abdullah).

While far from perfect, many charter public schools that have attracted predominantly students of one race are accomplishing much more than Scott’s blog asserted. As Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton, a Democrat, has noted, if we are to make considerable progress in reducing achievement gaps and increasing overall achievement, we need to learn from and apply lessons from the nation’s most effective public schools, whether they are charter or district. But readers would not know, given the blogger’s bias, that some of Minnesota’s (and others around the country) most effective public schools are the ones she is criticizing.

We agree that all charters are not effective. Ineffective charters should be closed. Part of the rationale for chartering public schools comes from a remarkable 1968 Harvard Education Review article, “Alternative Public School Systems,” by African American psychologist Kenneth Clark. Professor Clark’s famous “doll study” was cited by the US Supreme Court in “Brown v. Board of Education.” Clark described “obstacles...to effective education” including “such fetishes as the inviolability of the neighborhood school concept.” Clark urged “Alternative Public School Systems... financed by states, operated outside traditional districts, that are created by colleges, universities, labor unions, business, industry....” (our emphasis). Sound familiar?  Such groups have started some of the most effective charter public schools in the country.

Enrollment in Minnesota charter public schools continues to grow – from less than 10,000 ten years ago to about 39,000 this year. This growth has occurred as enrollment in district public schools has declined. And charters in Minneapolis and Minnesota enroll a higher percentage of low income, limited English speaking and students of color than the average district public schools.

Some families found their youngsters excelled in district public schools. District public schools remain an important option, as they were for our families. Making progress requires, in part, identifying and learning from outstanding public schools. Describing achievement in places like Harvest Prep and Higher Ground Academy as “hollow”  hurts, rather than helps work for greater justice in this country.

The views expressed in Charter Notebook blogs represent the views of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of the Center for Educational Innovation-Public Education Association or the U.S. Department of Education.

NOTES:

Abdullah, Halimah, “Rights Hero Seeks to Open School in Detroit: Rosa Parks joins the growing charter school movement,” The New York Times, June 30, 1997, p. A12. 

Clark, Kenneth B. “Alternative public school systems.” Harvard Educational Review 32, no. 1 (Winter, 1968): 100–113.

Nathan, Joe. Charter Schools: Creating Hope and Opportunity in American Education. San Francisco: Jossey Bass, 1997.

By Rachel Scott, The Finance Project

Connectedness to the learning community, excitement about what each new school day can bring, positive relationships with role models, consistent performance, a commitment to come back next year... these are some of the outcomes independent charter schools hope to elicit for kids in their schools. With a rate of 25% teacher turnover (compared to 14% at public schools) in one study, charter school leaders must also think about how to bring about those sorts of outcomes for their teachers. While schools’ charters often give administrators the flexibility to ensure that the teachers they employ have the right skills and the right "fit" with a school, the majority of turnover can still be attributed to voluntary choice by the teachers.

Beyond the obvious costs of frequently searching for, hiring, and orienting new teachers to charter schools, teacher attrition has other costs that are harder to quantify.  David Stuit and Thomas M. Smith at Vanderbilt University (2009) recap the findings of several researchers who find that teachers with the strongest academic achievement themselves are the ones most likely to leave charter schools (and the teaching profession altogether) -- a move that pulls some of the most qualified teachers out of charter schools. Perhaps just as costly, when teachers don't return, the critical network of adults at any given charter school who know the children well and are invested in their success as they grow erodes.

Causes for Teacher Attrition
Discovering the reasons why good teachers leave is essential to knowing what leaders of independent charter schools can do to keep them.  Research on the subject is readily available. It is worth noting, however, that the examination of teacher attrition in charter schools is often connected to other political or ideological 'baggage." Charter school leaders must understand that teacher retention is, to a large degree, linked to other sensitive issues like unionization of charter school teachers and comparative assessments of student achievement between independent charter schools, managed multi-site charters, and public schools.

Several studies point to the relatively young age of charter school teachers (compared to public school teachers) as the strongest predictor of turnover, as it is with teachers in any setting. Other factors correlated with teacher attrition in charter schools include: low number of years at the school, non-certified teachers or teachers teaching outside their certification areas, and "teachers' relative satisfaction/dissatisfaction with the school's: 1) mission, 2) perceived ability to attain the mission, and 3) administration and governance" (Miron and Applegate; Western Michigan University, 2007).)  One study of teacher attrition in charter schools in Wisconsin that controls for many of these factors concludes that "high turnover rates in Wisconsin charter schools appear to be a disadvantaged school problem rather than a charter school problem per se"-- pointing perhaps to increased needs for more wraparound services for students and families, as well as teacher support and training in cultural competence.

Others posit that teachers are less likely to want to stay in charter schools where they tend to be paid less than in public schools and are more likely to be without union protection. In fact, the Century Foundation suggests that 90% of charter schools are non-unionized environments, and many teachers cite job security and protection of wages and benefits as primary factors as they select jobs.

What Indie Charter School Leaders Can Do to Keep Good Teachers

• Maximize wages and benefits to attract qualified teachers as you develop your school budget. Look at what district teachers and other charter school teachers are being paid in your region, and ensure your salary and benefits packages are competitive. Within the range of salaries you can offer, ideally you should be able to hire a mix of seasoned and new teachers. Low-balling salaries makes it far more likely that your school would not be the employer of choice for qualified candidates and it reduces the number of experienced teachers in a school who can serve as mentors for younger teachers. Using the Cost Estimation Tool and Revenue Planning Tools developed by the National Resource Center on Charter Schools can help you realistically estimate costs and plan for ways to beef up your funding. 
• Give teachers a voice in developing school policies and curricula. For many charter school teachers, the autonomy and opportunity to be creative in their work is what draws them to their jobs in the first place!  So, ask teachers about the ways they would like to be involved in decision making. Solicit their input frequently and openly as you make decisions. Consider using an outside facilitator to help you get their input for very critical decisions. Let teachers know you value their input and how you plan to use it; if you ultimately make a decision that contradicts their input, let them know in a respectful way why you decided that way. Ensure that teachers' voices are directly and regularly heard by your governance body.
• Make teacher buy-in and integral aspect of the mission of your school and give teachers the support they need to execute that mission. Find interesting and innovative ways to connect meetings and professional development opportunities to the school's mission in order to keep teachers excited about what you're accomplishing together. Resist the urge to do most of the talking when you convene staff. Build a strengths-based and transparent system to support teachers who need help. Visit classrooms often. Recognize teachers who are executing the mission in creative, effective and fun ways.
•  Leverage available supports for high-need or vulnerable students and their families. Teachers in charter schools often put in longer hours for less pay than their district counterparts.  Their jobs can be overwhelming -- especially for young and inexperienced teachers. Rarely are teachers also trained social workers. So, ensure that your school offers adequate resources to meet the needs of English language learners and special education students. If there are other basic unmet needs for students and families, such as health and mental health care, child care, food supports, or housing, look for community nonprofits or community action agency partners who can help meet these needs. In some cases, the school itself can access federal, state or local funds to meet these needs. Check out issue-specific funding guides, like LEARNING TO READ: A Guide to Federal Funding for Grade-Level Reading Proficiency, for ideas on how to bring in resources for students and families with specific needs.

Human resource management may or may not be your leadership strong suit. But knowledge of the research that exists on teacher attrition in charter schools along with careful planning to avoid it can help keep great teachers at your school, enrich your organizational culture, and ensure that students at your charter school benefit from having the best available teachers in their classrooms.  

The views expressed in Charter Notebook blogs represent the views of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of the Center for Educational Innovation-Public Education Association or the U.S. Department of Education.

By Rachel Scott, The Finance Project

Launching an independent charter school can be very much like walking a tightrope without a net. Charter school operators are often easily pulled from side to side as they navigate the school year to meet the needs of kids, manage the expectations of parents, balance complex financial and human resources issues, and, perhaps just as likely, unplugging sinks in their spare time!

Whether chaos brings out your best or your worst, as the leader of an independent charter school you have the responsibility to hold the unique pedagogical vision of your school and ensure the organization learns from its wobbles across the tightrope. At the heart of every charter school is an idea so exciting it kept someone awake at night to bring it into fruition. How does a charter school operator keep that vision vibrant and moving forward in the face of innumerable crises and competing demands on time that might pull you off balance?

Rarely can an independent charter school be successful without at least some form or combination of three types of planning:

• Strategic planning
• Governance planning
• Sustainability planning

Strategic planning focuses on where you are as an organization and spells out the overarching strategies and primary action steps that get you where you want to be within a certain planning period, such as three years. A strategic plan is not the same thing as an action plan or a workplan; it’s a high-level, goal-oriented plan that includes meaningful progress measures or milestones and is most successfully undertaken by a diverse group of people (even students and family members!) dedicated to the success of the school. For instance, adding grade levels to your school over time is too important and complex for someone’s ‘to-do” list; the process takes research, time, collaboration and buy-in, as well as coordination with the other goals of the charter school. Ideally, staff and the board check in on the plan’s progress at least quarterly.

Governance planning ensures that you have the board you need to effectively support the school in accomplishing goals and can help school leaders keep abreast of new issues that impact its success.  Using the strategic plan as its guide, the board for an independent charter school can start with an honest self-assessment of their strengths and areas for improvement. A good governance plan maximizes the ability of the board to advance the school through strategic relationship building, strong fiscal management, and enhanced capacities identified in the strategic plan (such as fundraising or media training or better community outreach). Governance plans can include board training, member recruitment, and succession planning; as well as the development of necessary policies and procedures. Ideally, the plan helps your Board to stay out of “the weeds” of endless bylaws discussion or other details; instead, it should help the Board help you at the highest level to maintain and execute the vision for the school. See Brian Carpenter’s article, Why Most Charter School Boards are Ineffective—And What to Do About It for a provocative take on this subject.

Sustainability planning marries your long-term programmatic plans with strategic financing. Thoughtful cross-walking of your independent charter school’s current operations and future strategic goals with realistic projections of what it will costs to implement those goals yields you a longer term projection of how much funding you will need to support what specific activities. Looking at short- and long-term gaps in funding, you can develop a specialized plan for grantseeking, fundraising, or partnering that meet the school’s needs for monetary and non-monetary resources long after the current school year has come and gone. More and more sustainability planning tools are being developed for charter schools, like The Finance Project’s Revenue Planning Tool for Charter School Operators and consultant Holly Hart’s Overview of Sustainable Charter Schools.

Specific Planning Tips for Indie Charters

• Keep your planning streamlined and balanced with implementation. We all know people and systems that plan everything to death. Don’t let protracted or overly complicated planning get in the way of ‘doing.’ However, indie charter schools have a lot on the line to just “wing it.” Design a balanced process and engage a team balanced with ‘planners’ and ‘doers.’

• Recognize that you are in very different positions from planning leaders in public school systems and multi-site charter school operators (as if it weren’t obvious enough!). A poorly planned public school will still function because the system will pull it along. This difference means you have fewer resources with which to plan and smaller margins of error; however, you also have a smaller “universe” you are working to impact. In fact, visionary planning for change can be far more impactful within an independent charter school than is planning for a monolithic or “replicated” system.
• Ensure that any planning effort is responsive enough to where your school is in its development. Brand new schools, for instance, need planning that is sensitive to monthly cash flow and can quickly identify future shortfalls; Boards for those schools can’t afford to postpone fiscal training for members to another year. A school further down the path can begin to look outside the walls of the school for more partnering opportunities from a stronger position of power than can a school still figuring out its internal systems.

This blog post is part of the Charter Notebook, sponsored by the Network of Independent Charter Schools, a project of the Center for Educational Innovation - Public Education Association.

The views expressed in Charter Notebook blogs represent the views of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of the Center for Educational Innovation-Public Education Association or the U.S. Department of Education.