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Schools

School must get charter, state says

The reversal of the Hillsborough district's decision underscores a growing tension.

By JEFFREY S. SOLOCHEK
Published March 16, 2005

MIAMI - The Hillsborough school district thinks the Life Skills Center charter school is in no shape to open, not with a $500,000 deficit looming before the first student enrolls.

The Florida Board of Education said it was wrong Tuesday, in a decision that highlights the increasing tensions between school districts, charter schools and the state.

By a 6-1 vote, the state board ordered Hillsborough educators to give the school a charter despite their concerns about its financial viability. It was nothing new; the board overrides a district's decision to deny a charter application about half the time.

And there's the rub.

Many school districts resent that the state has made them responsible for charter schools while giving them little authority to control them.

Is the state saying it's okay to operate a school in the red, asked Donnie Evans, Hillsborough's chief academic officer, who said Life Skills is expected to open $500,000 in the hole.

It's not an idle question: A recent state audit showed that nearly 30 percent of Florida's charter schools ended the 2003 fiscal year in debt. About 25 percent had problems managing staff.

"Once we issue the charter, the (schools) operate pretty autonomously," said Larry Hughes, chairman of the Brevard County School Board. "We have no power to direct them to change anything."

By law, charter schools can operate free of many restrictions placed on district schools, which is a major reason for their popularity. Since the Legislature authorized their creation in 1996 - in part to compete with district schools - their numbers have grown steadily. There are 345 charter schools now operating in Florida, serving more than 83,000 students.

In the case of Life Skills, the Board of Education said Hillsborough had "no basis in law" to deny it a charter.

Florida is a "choice-friendly" state, said board chairman Phil Handy, who sees no reason to change the way charters are regulated.

"It works," Handy said. "The school districts and the charter schools are inevitably partners."

Some school districts are growing tired of the forced marriage, and are throwing their weight behind legislation that would repeal the state board's power to override local decisions. Some also support a bill that would put charter schools under a separate, statewide district.

"If we are given the authority to open and close charters, then let us do that and leave us alone," said Jennifer Faliero, a Hillsborough School Board member.

Such frustrations are mounting across the state, said Christy Noe, director of the Florida Charter School Resource Center at the University of South Florida.

Many cash-strapped districts are forced to assign charter school oversight to staff members with other responsibilities, she said. That limits their ability to monitor charter operations.

Under the gun of accountability, Noe said, districts are setting financial and academic standards that charter schools consider overly restrictive. Bad will grows on both sides as they struggle for resolution.

Kathleen Schoenberg, a lawyer who represents charter schools in several counties, said much of the tension has to do with growing pains. Florida has the third most charter schools in the nation, and 79 more are approved to open in the fall.

Schoenberg said district officials and employees need better training in charter school law. Board of Education members agreed Tuesday, saying appeals often arise because local boards do not follow state regulations when denying a charter.

"Repeatedly, we have districts that refuse to follow the rules," said T. Willard Fair, the board's vice chairman.

Six charter schools in Hillsborough are now under threat of closure, and the School Board has instructed staff to stop giving all charters certain perks, including permission to participate in the district's job fair.

Charter parents and principals have responded angrily.

"Enough is enough," Terrace Community charter school principal Gary Hocevar wrote in a letter to the board. He suggested the board doesn't understand how charter schools work.

The Tampa United Methodist Centers charter school recently announced it would close this summer because of financial problems. Its executive director blasted the board for making it difficult to succeed.

Wilbesan Charter School, meanwhile, has sent lawyers to board meetings to accuse district staff of lying about its record. And the Pepin Academy charter school, which owes the district thousands of dollars, has indicated it will not pay even as it asks the board to approve another charter contract.

Things have gotten so bad that Evans and district chief of staff Jim Hamilton sent a memo to top school officials telling them to put nothing about charter schools in writing except the most formal communications.

The state board's overturning of the Life Skills charter denial did nothing to mend the wounds.

"If the charter has the opportunity to appeal to a higher power," Faliero asks, "why don't you just take all the authority? Because it makes what we do meaningless."

Jeffrey S. Solochek can be reached at 813 269-5304 or solochek@sptimes.com

[Last modified March 16, 2005, 04:27:34]