Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We get it...alot of anonymous posters are in support of perpetuating the "charter transparency" agenda. For those just popping in and out of these threads...be cautious as this is a part of a big unionize charter schools or charter schools are bad, etc. push. Feel what you like about it, but for those of us on the inside (yes, I am on the inside) it is clear that DCUM is being weaponized a bit on these boards.

A few facts that this little article misses:

1) DCPS is NOT subject to Open Meetings Laws...it applies only to public "bodies" as defined in DC law (find it all here- https://code.dccouncil.us/dc/council/code/sections/2-574.html). DCPS is an Agency, not a public board. Interestingly, neither are ANCs. Also, the non-profit act has annual meeting and notice provisions that charter schools must follow...so meetings are not entirely behind closed doors as some will maintain. At my school (and the one where my kids go) meetings are published and families are welcome to attend.

2) DC Charters are all 501(c)(3) organizations. This is a bit atypical in the national charter landscape. So, when we say our charters are "behind other states", we also need to understand that each state is different and in many states and locations, charter schools operate as a part of the local school system. These are "district charters" and, therefore, subject to governmental transparency laws because they operate under the same boards or authority as other public schools.

Please realize that most charter leaders are not against being transparent, but we are against having to respond to endless and pointless FOIA requests that will take our focus off doing work for kids. We don't need teachers searching years of emails or giving over copies of work/tests that have to be redacted. We don't have huge central office staff and a team of lawyers reviewing document requests. We are not against transparency, we are against having to waste time on things that won't help kids and we know there is a better way to satisfy people's desire to understand our work than requiring access via FOIA.

Also, PCSB requests hundreds of documents from schools each year. You can find many of them online at https://www.dcpcsb.org/data/dc-pcsb-transparency-quick-links. You can see budgets, audits, and other information about financials for every charter school. Charter board meeting minutes are collected by the PCSB, so are information about our buildings, how we meet nearly every law in the DC Code, and many other documents. Not enough, we submit monitoring documents to OSSE (again, available via FOIA) and teacher information. I would be shocked if what any person wanted to see was not already accessible by doing a FOIA to PCSB or OSSE. In fact, most other documents would be protected by some FOIA exemption or exception.

In short, I hope people are not getting sucked in to an anonymous poster's agenda points. Most of what you would want to know is out there...can we and PCSB do better, sure. However, DCPS is subject to FOIA and so is every other DC Agency and I fail to see this "tool" cleaning up and making everything transparent.

Translation: We'll tell you what we feel like telling you, and if you want to know what we're hiding, too bad!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We get it...alot of anonymous posters are in support of perpetuating the "charter transparency" agenda. For those just popping in and out of these threads...be cautious as this is a part of a big unionize charter schools or charter schools are bad, etc. push. Feel what you like about it, but for those of us on the inside (yes, I am on the inside) it is clear that DCUM is being weaponized a bit on these boards.

A few facts that this little article misses:

1) DCPS is NOT subject to Open Meetings Laws...it applies only to public "bodies" as defined in DC law (find it all here- https://code.dccouncil.us/dc/council/code/sections/2-574.html). DCPS is an Agency, not a public board. Interestingly, neither are ANCs. Also, the non-profit act has annual meeting and notice provisions that charter schools must follow...so meetings are not entirely behind closed doors as some will maintain. At my school (and the one where my kids go) meetings are published and families are welcome to attend.

2) DC Charters are all 501(c)(3) organizations. This is a bit atypical in the national charter landscape. So, when we say our charters are "behind other states", we also need to understand that each state is different and in many states and locations, charter schools operate as a part of the local school system. These are "district charters" and, therefore, subject to governmental transparency laws because they operate under the same boards or authority as other public schools.

Please realize that most charter leaders are not against being transparent, but we are against having to respond to endless and pointless FOIA requests that will take our focus off doing work for kids. We don't need teachers searching years of emails or giving over copies of work/tests that have to be redacted. We don't have huge central office staff and a team of lawyers reviewing document requests. We are not against transparency, we are against having to waste time on things that won't help kids and we know there is a better way to satisfy people's desire to understand our work than requiring access via FOIA.

Also, PCSB requests hundreds of documents from schools each year. You can find many of them online at https://www.dcpcsb.org/data/dc-pcsb-transparency-quick-links. You can see budgets, audits, and other information about financials for every charter school. Charter board meeting minutes are collected by the PCSB, so are information about our buildings, how we meet nearly every law in the DC Code, and many other documents. Not enough, we submit monitoring documents to OSSE (again, available via FOIA) and teacher information. I would be shocked if what any person wanted to see was not already accessible by doing a FOIA to PCSB or OSSE. In fact, most other documents would be protected by some FOIA exemption or exception.

In short, I hope people are not getting sucked in to an anonymous poster's agenda points. Most of what you would want to know is out there...can we and PCSB do better, sure. However, DCPS is subject to FOIA and so is every other DC Agency and I fail to see this "tool" cleaning up and making everything transparent.

Except that the charter board doesn't fulfill FOIA requests.

Anonymous wrote:We get it...alot of anonymous posters are in support of perpetuating the "charter transparency" agenda. For those just popping in and out of these threads...be cautious as this is a part of a big unionize charter schools or charter schools are bad, etc. push. Feel what you like about it, but for those of us on the inside (yes, I am on the inside) it is clear that DCUM is being weaponized a bit on these boards.

A few facts that this little article misses:

1) DCPS is NOT subject to Open Meetings Laws...it applies only to public "bodies" as defined in DC law (find it all here- https://code.dccouncil.us/dc/council/code/sections/2-574.html). DCPS is an Agency, not a public board. Interestingly, neither are ANCs. Also, the non-profit act has annual meeting and notice provisions that charter schools must follow...so meetings are not entirely behind closed doors as some will maintain. At my school (and the one where my kids go) meetings are published and families are welcome to attend.

2) DC Charters are all 501(c)(3) organizations. This is a bit atypical in the national charter landscape. So, when we say our charters are "behind other states", we also need to understand that each state is different and in many states and locations, charter schools operate as a part of the local school system. These are "district charters" and, therefore, subject to governmental transparency laws because they operate under the same boards or authority as other public schools.

Please realize that most charter leaders are not against being transparent, but we are against having to respond to endless and pointless FOIA requests that will take our focus off doing work for kids. We don't need teachers searching years of emails or giving over copies of work/tests that have to be redacted. We don't have huge central office staff and a team of lawyers reviewing document requests. We are not against transparency, we are against having to waste time on things that won't help kids and we know there is a better way to satisfy people's desire to understand our work than requiring access via FOIA.

Also, PCSB requests hundreds of documents from schools each year. You can find many of them online at https://www.dcpcsb.org/data/dc-pcsb-transparency-quick-links. You can see budgets, audits, and other information about financials for every charter school. Charter board meeting minutes are collected by the PCSB, so are information about our buildings, how we meet nearly every law in the DC Code, and many other documents. Not enough, we submit monitoring documents to OSSE (again, available via FOIA) and teacher information. I would be shocked if what any person wanted to see was not already accessible by doing a FOIA to PCSB or OSSE. In fact, most other documents would be protected by some FOIA exemption or exception.

In short, I hope people are not getting sucked in to an anonymous poster's agenda points. Most of what you would want to know is out there...can we and PCSB do better, sure. However, DCPS is subject to FOIA and so is every other DC Agency and I fail to see this "tool" cleaning up and making everything transparent.

Anonymous wrote:We get it...alot of anonymous posters are in support of perpetuating the "charter transparency" agenda. For those just popping in and out of these threads...be cautious as this is a part of a big unionize charter schools or charter schools are bad, etc. push. Feel what you like about it, but for those of us on the inside (yes, I am on the inside) it is clear that DCUM is being weaponized a bit on these boards.

A few facts that this little article misses:

1) DCPS is NOT subject to Open Meetings Laws...it applies only to public "bodies" as defined in DC law (find it all here- https://code.dccouncil.us/dc/council/code/sections/2-574.html). DCPS is an Agency, not a public board. Interestingly, neither are ANCs. Also, the non-profit act has annual meeting and notice provisions that charter schools must follow...so meetings are not entirely behind closed doors as some will maintain. At my school (and the one where my kids go) meetings are published and families are welcome to attend.

2) DC Charters are all 501(c)(3) organizations. This is a bit atypical in the national charter landscape. So, when we say our charters are "behind other states", we also need to understand that each state is different and in many states and locations, charter schools operate as a part of the local school system. These are "district charters" and, therefore, subject to governmental transparency laws because they operate under the same boards or authority as other public schools.

Please realize that most charter leaders are not against being transparent, but we are against having to respond to endless and pointless FOIA requests that will take our focus off doing work for kids. We don't need teachers searching years of emails or giving over copies of work/tests that have to be redacted. We don't have huge central office staff and a team of lawyers reviewing document requests. We are not against transparency, we are against having to waste time on things that won't help kids and we know there is a better way to satisfy people's desire to understand our work than requiring access via FOIA.

Also, PCSB requests hundreds of documents from schools each year. You can find many of them online at https://www.dcpcsb.org/data/dc-pcsb-transparency-quick-links. You can see budgets, audits, and other information about financials for every charter school. Charter board meeting minutes are collected by the PCSB, so are information about our buildings, how we meet nearly every law in the DC Code, and many other documents. Not enough, we submit monitoring documents to OSSE (again, available via FOIA) and teacher information. I would be shocked if what any person wanted to see was not already accessible by doing a FOIA to PCSB or OSSE. In fact, most other documents would be protected by some FOIA exemption or exception.

In short, I hope people are not getting sucked in to an anonymous poster's agenda points. Most of what you would want to know is out there...can we and PCSB do better, sure. However, DCPS is subject to FOIA and so is every other DC Agency and I fail to see this "tool" cleaning up and making everything transparent.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Worth a read if, whether you in the charter system or not, it seems like everyone would benefit from these changes.

"D.C.’s charter school transparency policies fall short of nationwide state-level standards:Thirty nine states require charter school operators or schools to comply with open meetings and public records laws. D.C. doesn’t."

https://medium.com/in-the-public-interest/d-c-s-charter-school-transparency-policies-fall-short-of-nationwide-state-level-standards-1291c02e7160

Rough guess -- at least 75% of DC charter schools have no concerns about increased transparency. I say that from having spent 9 years in a senior position at a DC charter school and interacting with peers across the city. The opposers are small in number but vocal. Pressure PCSB. Increased transparency serves everyone, the schools included.

Pressure the Council too. PCSB just put our some new transparency regs -- and went back to the drawing board because of feedback that didn't think they went far enough. I think the comments are open on the new ones; so far open meetings are not required.

It takes Council action to make FOIA applicable to charters - the PCSB can't mandate that one

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Worth a read if, whether you in the charter system or not, it seems like everyone would benefit from these changes.

"D.C.’s charter school transparency policies fall short of nationwide state-level standards:Thirty nine states require charter school operators or schools to comply with open meetings and public records laws. D.C. doesn’t."

https://medium.com/in-the-public-interest/d-c-s-charter-school-transparency-policies-fall-short-of-nationwide-state-level-standards-1291c02e7160

Rough guess -- at least 75% of DC charter schools have no concerns about increased transparency. I say that from having spent 9 years in a senior position at a DC charter school and interacting with peers across the city. The opposers are small in number but vocal. Pressure PCSB. Increased transparency serves everyone, the schools included.

Anonymous wrote:Worth a read if, whether you in the charter system or not, it seems like everyone would benefit from these changes.

"D.C.’s charter school transparency policies fall short of nationwide state-level standards:Thirty nine states require charter school operators or schools to comply with open meetings and public records laws. D.C. doesn’t."

https://medium.com/in-the-public-interest/d-c-s-charter-school-transparency-policies-fall-short-of-nationwide-state-level-standards-1291c02e7160

Anonymous wrote:Worth a read if, whether you in the charter system or not, it seems like everyone would benefit from these changes.

"D.C.’s charter school transparency policies fall short of nationwide state-level standards:Thirty nine states require charter school operators or schools to comply with open meetings and public records laws. D.C. doesn’t."

https://medium.com/in-the-public-interest/d-c-s-charter-school-transparency-policies-fall-short-of-nationwide-state-level-standards-1291c02e7160