What happens when a charter school fails?

12-13-2010

By Bertha Rodríguez Santos/New America Media

California leads the nation in charter school growth this year, according to a report released last month by The Center for Education Reform. With 912 charter schools in the state, up 114 from the 2009-2010 academic year, charter administrators are being praised for developing what many believe is one of the most effective models for educating low-income students. But far less attention has been paid to the closure rate of charter schools. According to the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, over the past two academic years, 281 charter schools, or about 6 percent of the total open in 2008-09, closed nationwide. In California, there have been 150 closures since in 1992, when the state’s charter school law was enacted, and 72 in just the past three years. What happens to kids when a charter school fails? Thalía Saavedra, 17, has a sweet and mild demeanor, but she grows angry when discussing the unexpected closure of her school, Animo Justice Charter High School, earlier this year. “They didn’t even give up the opportunity to share our opinions,” said Thalia.“They never gave us a voice, they never notified us in advance. They just told us, ‘It’s closing,’ and that’s it.” (more…)

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