Charter Schools in DC

Charter schools in DC educate 36% of the students there and fill important gaps in a school system struggling to turn around years of benign neglect. Yet the education establishment, DC Public Schools (DCPS) and the teachers union all look at them as somehow antithetical to the mission of public education. DC's school age population has declined year after year, forcing authorities to close neighborhood schools that were severely under-utilized. Many charter schools popped up looking to take over the schools (or purchase them for reasonable prices), but the Mayor and DCPS decided to sell the buildings instead at market price--something few charters are prepared to do. Now the Mayor and DCPS are looking to change the formula for which charters are funded, a formula that would deal a blow to the desire of many charters to build capital accounts that would enable them to build or buy schools. It is time for the city to recognize its charters as vital parts of its public eduction mission and fund them accordingly.