September 13, 2011
DFER APPLAUDS CONGRESS FOR BIPARTISAN PASSAGE OF H.R. 2218 - THE "EMPOWERING PARENTS THROUGH QUALITY CHARTER SCHOOLS ACT"
OVERWHELMING REJECTION OF KING AMENDMENT SENDS STRONG SIGNAL ON QUALITY AND GAP-CLOSING ACCOUNTABILITY
September 13, 2011
Democrats for Education Reform applauds the U.S. House of Representatives for its success today in advancing the "Empowering Parents Through Quality Charter Schools Act" (H.R. 2218).
The overwhelmingly bipartisan vote in favor of the bill - 365 to 54 - signifies a growing consensus that high-quality public charter schools can play a powerful role in helping ensure all students have the opportunities they need to achieve to the highest levels.
We hope Congress' work today is a harbinger of future Congressional efforts to enact other urgently needed education reforms as part of its long overdue re-write of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB).
In H.R. 2218, Congress has delicately balanced the role of the federal government as charter school investor, cheer-leader, and standard-setter. The bill enables public charter schools to serve more students; it encourages states to develop, replicate, and expand high-quality public charter schools; and it provides strong incentives to states to improve accountability and oversight.
We also would like to congratulate Congress for decisively defeating, by a vote of 374-43, Representative Steven King's (R-IA) amendment which would have removed a key provision within the legislation that defines a high-quality charter school as one that demonstrates achievement gains with historically disadvantaged groups of students, including low-income and minority students, English Language Learners, and students with disabilities. With this vote, Congress has sent a strong message that achievement-gap closing is a top federal education policy priority.
There are a few key elements in the bill that we hope Congress improves upon as the bill wends its way through the legislative process. In particular, we would like to see a specific and significant percentage of funding set aside for the direct replication and expansion of high-quality charter management organizations. Right now, states could satisfy the bill's replication and expansion provisions without investing a dime of funding in them.
We have seen the progress that can be made when we dedicate funding for high-quality replication and expansion. In just a year and a half since President Obama and Congess set aside $50 million for these purposes, 76,000 more students have been able to attend 127 new and 31 expanded charter schools.
We need to continue that momentum. As the bill moves through the legislative process, we urge Congress and the President to include a provision to set-aside a specific and significant percentage of funding in the law for this purpose.
We also remain concerned about the House's piecemeal approach to ESEA reauthorization. The provisions in the King amendment, which would have set a lower standard for what constitutes "high quality" for charter schools than now exists for traditional schools, is illustrative of the pitfalls of the multiple small-bill strategy being pursued by House Republicans. As the clock ticks, we hope both chambers can accelerate their efforts toward a comprehensive reauthorization of ESEA by the end of next year.