Innovation Ohio has taken a close look at the public education implications of the budget bill making its way through the legislature
In particular, we find that HB 59:
- sends more money to charters, regardless of performance
- lowers standards for charter schools, exempting them from accountability expected of Ohio’s traditional public schools
- continues the push to privatize our public schools by union-busting and outsourcing
- sends more taxpayer money to fund private schools, and
- forces traditional schools to do more with less
They further found that the senate budget
- Cut 3 in 4 school districts compared to 2010-2011 funding levels, to the tune of $532.7 million.
- Cut 1 in 4 school districts compared to 2012-2013 funding levels.
- Continued the need for an unprecedented $1.3 billion in new school levies for operations that have appeared on local ballots since Kasich took office, and causing 82 percent of school districts to cut staff positions last year.
You can download their report, here.
Why such inequity? Some reason it is because for-profit charter school operators such as David Brennan and William Lager are such huge contributors to the very politicians making these inequitable decisions
Brennan and Lager are the top individual contributors to the Republican leadership in the House and Senate (or close to it) . And they're no slouches when it comes to Gov. John Kasich either. They've given nearly $1 million to politicians since 2008.
It should come as little surprise then, that even though Brennan and Lager operate some of the worst charter schools in the state, they are receiving some of the largest increases in state spending - even more than some of their higher performing charter school peers.