CER and Education Reform In The News

CHARTER SCHOOLS LIKELY TO RESURFACE: With Washington ballot initiative apparently failing, supporters may look to Legislature with revised measure
By Rebekah Denn
Seattle Post-Intelligencer, November 10, 2000

        Charter school supporters and even some opponents say that the issue won't die in Washington, even if Tuesday's initiative fails.

        It's still mathematically possible for Initiative 729 to pass, but it is doubtful. Early absentee ballot counts weren't bringing the boost it would need to surpass 50 percent, and the "yes" vote remained at 48 percent last night.

        In Eastern Washington, where the initiative was failing by wide margins, regional PTA leader Katy Leach said many people had been unfamiliar with I-729, and she wasn't sure what fueled the opposition. One possibility: "People on this side of the state are fairly happy with the way schools are run and the way they are," Leach said.

        The measure was only leading in six of the state's 39 counties: Pierce, Snohomish, Kitsap, Island, Jefferson and Whatcom. It was behind in King County by less than 5,000 out of roughly a half-million votes counted.

        I-729 would have made Washington the 37th state to authorize the independent public schools, which are allowed greater flexibility and autonomy from state laws in exchange for increased accountability.

        Jeanne Allen, head of the nonprofit Center for Education Reform in Washington, D.C., which tracks and supports charter schools, said no state has approved charter schools through initiatives, possibly because the issue is so complex.

        David Schaefer, a spokesman for the I-729 campaign, said focus groups and polls showed that voters who opposed charter schools were chiefly afraid that they would diminish traditional public schools by draining away the best students and the most-involved parents.

        "I don't think the evidence supports that, but that was people's fear," he said.

        The measure's support by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen could have backfired as well. The billionaire was the chief donor to the I-729 campaign, contributing more than $3 million. Allen owns a stake in a for-profit company that runs charter schools in other states.

        "It wasn't any kind of thing where he thought he was going to profit from it, but I do think the opposition attempted to make that an issue," said Judith Billings, a campaign co-chairwoman and former state superintendent of public instruction.

        With Allen's deep pockets, some observers said, others who might have committed time and money to the campaign used it on other causes instead. Meanwhile, the Washington State PTA -- which opposed I-729 -- supported other school-related initiatives and worked hard to get its membership out to vote.

        While I-729 had support from an array of educational leaders, the lack of similarly dedicated ground troops seemed like a missing piece in the campaign, said Jeanne Allen, adding that education issues rely particularly on parents and neighbors trading information and support.

        Supporters promised to bring the charter schools issue back to the Legislature if I-729 fails. Some opponents said they might do the same; their problem was with the specifics of I-729, and not with charter schools per se. Others said there was no point in raising the issue again.

        "I think it's pretty obvious that the people have spoken," said state Sen. Rosemary McAuliffe, D-Bothell, who chairs the Senate's Education Committee and has opposed past charter school bills.

        McAuliffe said charter schools never had significant grass-roots support and saw the vote as further evidence that they aren't needed or wanted here.

        I-729 did have broader backing than a previous initiative, though, including support from Democratic Gov. Gary Locke and from John Carlson, his Republican opponent in the election. Other opponents included the Washington Association of School Administrators.

        Billings said she wouldn't read the vote as an overall rejection of charter schools. If I-729 does fail, she said, the next step will be to return to the Legislature, which has worked unsuccessfully on charter school bills for the past few years.

        And she might have company.

        The Washington State PTA doesn't oppose all charter schools, but said I-729 missed three points in their 17-point criteria for good charter schools: It waived state laws governing education without requiring schools to make a detailed case for the waivers; it allowed entities other than school boards to approve charters; and it allowed charter schools to contract out services to for-profit companies.

        State PTA Executive Director Jean Carpenter said the organization might approach the Legislature to create a charter schools bill that fits the PTA's criteria for success.

        "It's just that this particular proposal was flawed like this," she said.

        State Rep. Gigi Talcott, R-Lakewood, who co-chairs the House Education Committee, said she would pay attention to the voters' message. But she thought legislation might be possible that would allow charter schools only in areas that supported them.

###

Links to Related Articles: 

CER Home Page Charter Schools In the News  E-Mail CER