Reply to WaPo Editorial today on DCPS/charter collaboration

Forum Index » DC Public and Public Charter Schools

Reply to "WaPo Editorial today on DCPS/charter collaboration"

Subject:

Emoticons





More smilies

Text Color: Font: Close Marks

[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote]lso whoever said charters are not looking to rehab vacant/crumbling buildings - that's not true. Otherwise charters have to build a new site from scratch at $10-20 million at LEAST, or have to lease from a private facility which is generally not optimal (in terms of adequate space/design etc for student learning). If they can renovate a building, they are spending dramatically less - and a lot less than DCPS is spending on facilities rehab. [/quote]

Duke Ellington's renovation costs have ballooned to $178 million for a projected enrollment of 600 students, or $300,000 per student.  Even if you assume a useful life of 40 years in the renovation, that's an absurd per-pupil cost of over $7,000 per student.  A public charter school receives $3,000 per student for facilities costs, which is intended to cover lease + occupancy expenses.

So, there is an equity argument to be had (whether Public Charters produce similar or better outcomes with similar populations of students).  But the efficiency argument -- whether the government, or non-profit entities, do a better job of spending public dollars -- seems to be a non-starter.  Our public policy should be geared toward removing as many barriers to charter expansion as possible.[/quote]

There's also an equity problem with Duke Ellington vs. the DCPS buildings that have not been renovated yet.  It reeks of a huge political pull that pushed aside renovations of schools that haven't been touched since the '70s.[/quote]

Furthermore, the admissions process allows non-residents to be admitted while residents are rejected.

Has the Post done an exposé on Duke Ellington?[/quote]

Why should a performing arts school admit a kid with little or no talent simply because s/he is a DC resident. It defeats the purpose and mission of the school. [/quote]

Because it's a[b] DC PUBLIC SCHOOL[/b], not a private performing arts school.[/quote]

Options

	Disable HTML in this message
	Disable BB Code in this message
	Disable smilies in this message

Review message

Search Recent Topics Hottest Topics