WASHINGTON, D.C. – The National Alliance for Public Charter Schools president and CEO Nina Rees today issued the following statement on the White Houses proposed budget for the 2014 fiscal year:
“We applaud the Obama Administration for recommending an increase in the funding of the Charter Schools Program and thank them for their continued support of high-quality public charter schools,” said Nina Rees, president and CEO of the National Alliance.
“While we support the proposed increase in funds for replicating and expanding public charter schools, there is an urgent need to also increase funding for starting new schools to meet the growing demand from parents and families nationwide unfortunately, the Administration’s budget proposal only does the former. By the start of the 2014 fiscal year, public charter schools in 26 of the 43 public charter school states and the District of Columbia will not have access to critical start-up funding for new schools. Given the important role that this funding has played in the growth of the public charter school sector, the lack of funds in so many states is a major issue that needs to be addressed by Congress as it works on the FY 2014 budget.
“We are also concerned about the Administration’s proposal to roll the Charter Schools Program into an Expanding Educational Options program that would support both public charter school and other autonomous public schools. This proposal has the potential to significantly decrease the support for the creation of new charters, which is especially problematic given that the growth in funding for the Charter Schools Program has failed to keep up with the growth in the sector over the past few years.
“We greatly appreciate the Administration’s support for public charters and look forward to working with Congress to make sure the FY 2014 budget for the Charter Schools Program is aligned to the current needs of the entire public charter school sector.”
About the National Alliance
The National Alliance for Public Charter Schools is the leading national nonprofit organization committed to advancing the charter school movement. Our mission is to lead public education to unprecedented levels of academic achievement by fostering a strong charter sector.
