Charter Schools Coming Soon to Kentucky

Secretary of Education Arne Duncan yesterday announced that $44 billion for states and schools is now available under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 and it's time for states to come to Jesus.

One of the provisions is likely to expand the charter school discussions in Kentucky into the historically resistant mainstream.

As Politics K-12 reports:

States must report whether they allow charter schools and whether there is a cap restricting the number of such schools, the number of charter schools currently operating in the state, and the number of charter schools closed within the last three years for academic reasons. (President Obama just called for states to lift caps on charter school capacity and expansion.)

The current answer to these financially rewarding questions in Kentucky is:
No;
Yes, Zero;
Zero (unless you count the two stealth semi-charters in Bowling Green and Louisville); and
Zero.

The White House Stimulus funding is intended to lay the foundation for a generation of education reform and help save hundreds of thousands of teaching jobs at risk of state and local budget cuts.

"Given our economic circumstances, it's critical that money go out quickly but
it's even more important that it be spent wisely," said Duncan.

The announcement includes the application and guidelines for $32.6 billion under the State Stabilization Fund, representing two-thirds of the total dollars in the Fund. This includes $26.6 billion to save jobs and improve K-12 and higher education and a separate $6 billion in a Government Services Fund to pay for education, public safety or other government services.

Funds in the first round will be released within two weeks of an application's approval. A second round of stabilization funds will be released later in the year. A third round of funding, the Race to the Top competitive grant program will reward states that have made the most progress on reforms.

In addition,

*States must collect data on the number and percentage of teachers and principals rated at each performance level in each district's teacher-evaluation system, and on the number and percentage of teacher and principal evaluation systems that require evidence of student-achievement outcomes. (A signal that the department is serious about boosting teacher effectiveness.)

*States must report the number and percentage of students by school who graduate high school and go on to complete at least one year’s worth of college credit (as applicable to a degree) within two years.

(Do all states have this capability?)