1. Charter Schools as an Integral part of Public Education in South Carolina Wayne Brazell, Ph. D., Superintendent South Carolina Public Charter School District wbrazell@scharter.org 2013 Innovative Ideas Institute

2. Charter School History in the US  Developed by a Massachusetts professor named Ray Budde in the 1970s who advocated for a new type of public school that would be organized more by teachers and less by district administrators  In return, the schools would be required to adhere to an accountability program for student performance as outlined in a charter contract  Now 42 states and D. C. with charter schools

3. The National Picture: Quantitative  Currently 6,000 public charter schools in US  Equals almost 6% of all public schools  Half of all public charters are in urban settings  Over 2,500 of the 6,000 are elementary schools, and that area is growing quicker than other grade configurations  Only 8.7% of public charter schools are from a public school conversion method  87.7 % of public charter schools are non-union

4. The National Picture: Qualitative  Some extraordinary public charter schools with national reputations in Chicago, Denver, New York, and elsewhere, serving diverse student populations  US News and World Report says that two of the three best high schools in the nation are public charter schools (BASIS in Tucson, AZ and Gwinnett School of Math, Science, and Technology in Lawrenceville, GA)  Half dozen public charter schools in the top twenty nationally-recognized public schools

5. National Picture: Trends  Public charter schools are pioneering more innovations, such as different curriculum designs, effective school culture modifications, different teacher compensation plans, etc.  The majority of public charter schools are funded below traditional public education, making them cost-effective examples of public entities

6. Charter School History in SC  The South Carolina state legislature passed the charter school law in 1996  Since 2006, interest has increased significantly  Now fifty-three public charter schools in South Carolina with over 20,000 students, total  Over half of those students are attending one of the seventeen schools of the South Carolina Public Charter School District; other schools are authorized by local school districts

7. How They Open  Groups submit a charter application in the spring to open anywhere in the state  Charter School Advisory Council reviews applications  Boards of school districts vote on accepting applications or not for the next academic year  Schools apply for some minor federal funding; no state funding is available until July of the opening year

8. SCPCSD History  Alternative authorizer for the entire state  Created in 2007; first school year was 2008-2009  District quickly came to house the virtual learning schools, which now serve 8,000 students  District started with five schools in 2008; now over 11,000 students in seventeen schools

9. SCPCSD Status  Seven more schools approved to open in 2013  One of these is a virtual school, bringing the total number of virtuals in the state from six to seven  Six more brick and mortar schools will open  There is always the possibility of charter transfers (into or out of) the District at appropriate junctures in time  Many virtual learning students are not well- prepared for taking courses online, causing significant student churn

10. SCPCSD Funding  Lowest funded public school district in the entire state with virtual schools even lower  The district was the lowest funded public school district in the nation from 2008-2010  No local funding creates a financial challenge:  No access to facility funding  No bond options for renovations or construction  District office operates on 2% of state funding

11. Authorizing Mission of the SCPCSD As the authorizer, the district office:  Disperses money to schools as a pass-through  Reviews new charters applications annually  Monitors active schools for charter compliance  Supervises all student testing (live, state-wide)  Maintains student data base information  Contracts for district legal services  Meets state and federal reporting requirements

12. District Mission of the SCPCSD As the provider of services, the district office:  Handles personnel training and benefits  Provides daily IT Help Desk support to schools  Provides special contracted support services  Leads PR, media relations, and funding initiatives  Represents the schools to the SDE  Organizes special events, such as the teacher recognition banquet, science fair, CCS workshops, etc.  Leads district special education services – District is the LEA – Over 11% of the students in the district have special needs

13. Accountability in SC  Most public charter schools in the state are fairly new, so the results are still forming  So far, we see a mixture of results: – Greenville Tech Charter School is nationally known as a well-respected public school – A few other public charter schools in the state have not demonstrated solid results; some of them have closed and others might close – The rest of the schools fall between these two extreme conditions

14. Innovation Examples in SC  East Point Academy is a Chinese language immersion school showing impressive results  Palmetto Scholars Academy uses gifted and talented curriculum with high expectations  Calhoun Falls Charter School is taking the idea of tailoring individual student needs to a whole new level with great gains in student academics  CREECS in McClellanville is teaching through the local environment  GREEN is opening as a renewable energy school

15. How Public Charter Schools are Different  Public charter schools have their own governing boards  No transportation is provided by schools (and no transportation money is provided to schools)  Decision-making is not district-driven  Lower pay for almost all personnel  Some flexibility from non-health, safety, and equity issues  Lots (and lots) of parent involvement  At-will employee status is widespread

16. How They’re Similar with Traditional Public Education  State standardized testing applies  No for-profit entity can be granted a charter; charters are given to boards, like school district boards, and not to corporations  The vast majority of teachers are certified  Students pick the schools, but no school can pick the students  All safety and health regulations apply

17. Conclusion  Public charter schools have never claimed to be “the” answer but merely “one possible” answer  For the next few years, we’re going to see the quality level for new public charter schools in South Carolina continue to increase  A funding formula for the schools of the District needs to be established  Parents and students are seeking more options for public education

18. Questions  Many educators have questions and misconceptions about public charter schools  The district staff is always available to answer questions; what questions do you have now? http://f8s.co/18td