The public charter school movement will be a winner either way in today’s Presidential election.
Both President Obama and Governor Romney are long-time supporters of the innovative public schools that give parents options that traditional public schools do not. But they’re not the only ones on the ballot who are supporters of public charters. In North Carolina, gubernatorial candidate Pat McCrory promises to “address the thousands of families on waiting lists for charter schools in addition to the dozens of charter schools waiting to open.” And Rob McKenna, a candidate for governor in Washington state, supports “highly innovative public charter schools” and would draw from models that have been successful elsewhere. In Delaware, incumbent Jack Markell signed a bill last year to improve accountability for charter schools. And Missouri’s incumbent Jay Nixon supported a bill to strengthen accountability for charter schools and their authorizers. And voters and Georgia and Washington state will have the chance to have their voices heard about the future of charters in their states. In Washington, voters will have the chance to make the state the 42nd to have a charter school law – one that would create up to 40 schools in the next five years. In Georgia, voters have the chance to re-instate a state board to hear appeals from charter applicants that have been rejected by their local school board. (See more here and here.) In Georgia, voters have the chance to amend the state’s constitution. For more education news in the election, see Education Week’s voter guide and Whiteboard Adviser’s gubernatorial and legislativesummaries.
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