Parents, teachers rally in support of charter schools

Listen to the full audio story

Download the MP3

The streets outside LAUSD's main offices overflowed with parents, students and teachers this morning — all to protest a recent proposal that would increase the level of control the district has over charter schools.

LAUSD was set to discuss the recommendation this afternoon.

Sara Erickson is the assistant principal of Gabriella Charter School in Echo Park.

She wasn't joining the rally, but was instead waiting to attend today's board meeting. Her school's charter is up for renewal.

Erikson acknowledges charter schools are a not viable option for every student. But, she admits the charter model can be an example for district-wide reform.

"We need to look at what's working in all schools. We need to find out how to spread those best practices around," she says. "Charter schools, the jury is still out on whether or not they're doing that. But, for now, the model provides them the flexibility to try different things and to see if we can try to make things work."

Nationwide, enrollment in charter schools is growing. Los Angeles has the highest number of charter students in the country. But many residents, like former LAUSD teacher Lenny Isenberg, find fault with the city's rapidly expanding charter system.

"The purpose of a charter is to privatize public education," Isenberg notes. "Now, that would make sense if charters did better, but only 17% of charters do better, 37% do the same, and 36% do worse."

Isenberg runs P-E-R Daily — a blog dedicated to exposing the problems plaguing the district. He believes LAUSD's influence over charters sets the schools up for failure.

"Allowing LAUSD to be the oversight for virtually all the charters in Los Angeles County is like letting the fox guard the chicken coop," he quips. "You can't become a charter unless you have a SELPA.

Isenberg continues: "A SELPA is an insurance policy and LAUSD is big enough to be it's own SELPA. So in order to let you into their SELPA, they're going to require that you make changes to your charter that they want you to make. Those changes are going to compromise the independence that that charter has."

The proposal, written by board member Steve Zimmer, calls for an oversight committee to monitor the operation of the city's 229 charter schools. It also places a hold on any new charter applications.

For Corri Ravare, executive director of Families That Can, the proposal offers an opportunity for charter supporters to send a clear message to the district: "I know we've got lots and lots of schools here today, and this is what it means to be a community," she decreed. "We're representing schools from all over the city, and that's very important to show to our elected officials. It's about a community of charter families who care."

Charter supporters now wait to see if the district also cares about the future of their educational community.

Photo courtesy of Clotee Pridgen Allochuku, via Flickr