FEDERAL ROLE IN CHARTER SCHOOLS
Candace Crawford
Although charter schools have moved to a national forum as a
form of school reform, most of the work being done is at the state
and local level. The federal government has had a limited role in
the development of charter schools. The major connection between
charter schools and the federal government is the distribution of
Title 1 funds and the enforcement of laws concerning special
education and how that education is funded.
The major issue with Title 1 is if a charter school is
considered a legal autonomous body then it is like a school
district and the funding should be given directly to the school.
If the school is a part of the local school district then the funds
should be distributed through the district. The problem is that
the census data that is used to determine the amount of funding
given to a district by the state does not include charter schools.
The state has to figure out a way to survey charter schools. Most
states have not addressed this issued in their laws. For example
Hawaii's law states "Once accepted, the school is to receive state
funds equal to the statewide per pupil expenditure for average
daily attendance, in addition to applicable state and federal
programmatic funds." It does not mention if federal funds will be
distributed directly to the charter school from the state education
agency or whether it will be distributed through the local
district. In Minnesota the schools are considered legally
independent and receive funding as if they were a school district.
The other issue that faces states in relation to the federal
laws is who is responsible for meeting regulations concerning the
Individuals with Disabilities Act. Should the district who has
most of the fiscal responsibility or should the charter school who
is receiving funds from state and local sources? In Minnesota
responsibility depends on who placed the student in the charter
school. If the parent placed the child then the school is
responsible but if the district places the child in the school then
the district is responsible.
There is a section in the Improving America's Schools Act that
provides startup grants for charter schools. The Improving
America's Schools Act is the bill that re-authorized the Elementary
and Secondary Education Act of 1965. Unfortunately, with the
proposed cuts currently under review in the Senate, it is doubtful
if this provision in the IASA will get the necessary funding.
Charter schools are a state entity and the federal government
will have a limited role in their implementation. The main role
the federal government can have is clarifying the status of charter
schools or providing startup grants to charter schools. It may be
hard for the federal government to establish the status of charter
school since the state laws vary so much. It may be that each
state's law will have to be assessed on a case by case basis.
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