The Education Gadfly Weekly

The National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance
May 2009

While there have been many studies describing how to collect and manage data, the education sector has largely ignored the difficult issue of gathering and storing data in such a way that it is available in a centralized manner. This analysis finds that the Northeast and Islands region (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, and the Virgin Islands) manages its data in four ways: 1) centralizing information into one data system or warehouse, 2) developing tools for further data analysis and reporting, 3) training educators on the data system or warehouse, and 4) continuing to educate professionals concerning the collected information. However, these states have encountered limits to collecting data, namely, lack of staff, expertise, and funding. The lack of staff and expertise is side-stepped by using vendors who assemble and maintain the data as well as instruct educators on how to use the data. While costly, all the states and the Virgin Islands hired outside vendors, a number of which were partially funded by federal grants. The analysis allows education leaders in Ohio to take a more in-depth look at its teacher-student data and see how other states handle the task. For the report, see here.

Erin Dillon
May 2009

Opening supply and demand is the first step in creating great schools, but having the educational market open is just not enough, argues Erin Dillon from Ed Sector. Using examples of how retail grocery stores and banks expand into low-income neighborhoods, this paper explores the more nuanced understandings of supply and demand and how to build a high-quality, school-choice market. To build the supply of good schools, for example, school reformers need to analyze community needs and assets and map the educational marketplace to know what kind of school a community needs. Also, school reformers need to establish strong community connections through advertising and by gaining public support during the planning stages for the school. Equally important, Dillon argues, that, on the demand side, parents need accurate information to identify and select good options. A lack of knowledge can lead to poor school choices. In Ohio, organizations, such as the Ohio Black Alliance for Educational Options and School Choice Ohio, provide critical services for families needing to learn about school-choice options. Because the paper details the possibilities and recommendations for improvements in school supply and demand, it makes for an interesting read and can be found here.

We've heard much about "zombie banks," institutions that are fundamentally insolvent but stay open because they are propped up by government intervention. But finance isn't the only field trod by the walking dead. In Dayton, and indeed across Ohio, we are also witnessing zombie schools. Many are operated by public school systems. To the great embarrassment of those who have supported charter schools, more than a few also exist within the charter sector. These are schools that remain open even though they no longer have any real hope of successfully educating children or even paying their bills.

Zombie charters are characterized by low enrollments, persistently weak academic achievement, and sorely troubled finances. In Ohio, 53 charter schools are rated in Academic Emergency or have fewer than 150 students, certainly meeting the zombie definition. Most have shown these failings since birth, which, for many, occurred during Ohio's mad rush by irresponsible sponsors in 2003-04 to open as many charter schools as possible as fast as possible. Sponsors, of which our sister organization, the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation, is one (we sponsor two schools in Dayton and four elsewhere in the state), are responsible for "licensing" charter schools to operate, holding them accountable for results, and intervening when they struggle. Regrettably, too many Ohio sponsors have not done their jobs well, and as a result we are stuck with too many zombie charter schools.

The Dayton Daily News has reported on three of them. The New City School, Arise Academy and Nu Bethel Center of Excellence all display zombie-like symptoms (see here). All were launched in 2003-04. All have enrollments under 150 students (two are actually below 100), and all have struggled academically and financially. One of these schools was rated F by the state and the other two have too few students to even receive academic ratings.

Like zombie banks, zombie schools hurt people and threaten community well-being. They hurt children attending them because they are ill-equipped and ill-prepared to educate these youngsters. They hurt employees by shorting their pay or not meeting their fundamental commitments for things like health insurance. They hurt charter supporters who find themselves associated with dysfunctional schools and irresponsible sponsors. And they hurt communities by violating the core obligation of a society's adults to do right by its children.

Closing a charter school is hard and painful work. Last year, Fordham worked closely with the leadership of two Dayton charter schools to help close their doors after more than eight years of serving families and children here. In both cases, responsible adults struggled with the difficult decision to close their doors because they cared deeply about these schools and the children in them. But the schools were ultimately shuttered - and one merged with the Dayton Public Schools - because, in the end, everyone agreed that this was preferable to letting them continue in a way that might embarrass their supporters or hurt the children and families that depended on them (see here).

Of course we'd rather open schools and see them thrive than watch them falter-despite valiant efforts to turn them around-and then close. But sometimes the responsible move is to shut them down while assisting families to find acceptable alternatives. In Dayton and across Ohio, those sponsoring and operating zombie charters need to do what's right and bury the walking dead. If they refuse or fail to do this, state authorities must crack down.

Charter supporters - lawmakers, advocates, and operators - should not just demand protection, fair treatment and equitable funding of decent charter schools (as they did recently at a rally in Columbus), but also push hard for the closure - in a fair and transparent way - of zombie schools that hurt children and wound the charter movement itself.

Those currently working on the state's biennial budget should pursue a "tough love" approach to charter schools. This approach is just as right for schools as it is for child rearing. Love means giving them the freedom and resources they need to be successful. Tough means holding them accountable and coming down hard on those that fail or are irresponsible. That, by the way, is also the way to treat district schools. Let's purge the zombie schools among us.

A version of this op-ed appeared originally in the Dayton Daily News (see here).

Charter-school operators are finishing up the details of their five-year operating budgets, a tough task given that lawmakers are still wrangling over exactly what kind of school-funding charters are to receive over the next two years (see here).

State law requires charter schools to submit five-year budget forecasts but school operators, confused and fearful for the future of their schools, can only guess at how to complete these. Many say their schools won't make it anywhere near five more years if the state charter-school financing approved by the Ohio House becomes law. Adding to the uncertainty are Ohio's declining economy and falling state revenues (see here).

House-approved spending levels would send the 350 students expected to enroll this autumn in Cleveland's Entrepreneurship Preparatory School (see here) back to what John Zitzner, the school's founder and president, calls the "dropout factories"-his name for most of the city's public district schools. The vast majority of his students are from families living in poverty. Almost every student receives a subsidized lunch.

A $400,000 loss in state funds would devastate the school's education program. "Of the 145 (public district and charter) schools in Cleveland, 15 are effective or excellent and we're one of them," he said. Instead of pushing ahead to establish another 10 schools in the next 20 years, Zitzner figures his school would be out of business in a year if proposed spending cuts are left intact.

Charter-school leaders are so focused on money issues that they have sometimes lost sight of other draconian provisions being considered by lawmakers, such as changes to teacher licensure requirements and changes that would require charter facilities to comply with Ohio School Facilities Commission design specifications. This, despite the fact they receive not one dime from the state for facilities.

The proposed building design rules would be a serious blow, said Catherine West of the Ohio Alliance for Public Charter Schools (see here). Charter schools already must meet the highly qualified teacher provisions of the federal No Child Left Behind Act, but a change being considered by state lawmakers would require instructors to teach only in the grade levels and subject areas covered by their licenses. This would hurt short-staffed charter schools and make it impossible for great teachers from programs like Teach for America (see here) or the New Teacher Project (see here) to work in Ohio's charters.

"If my license is only in chemistry, I couldn't teach math no matter how qualified I am," West said. "I'm not hearing schools talking about this because of funding worries."

Money has been front and center since Gov. Strickland's education plans were introduced in February (see here). When the House approved its version of the budget, it included $147 million less for charter schools (see here). Most of the proposed reductions are for e-schools, but brick-and-mortar operators are preparing for substantial cuts also.

"We're confidant the Senate will be able to push back but to be prudent we're figuring 10 percent reductions on state funds," said Thomas Babb, treasurer of Constellation Schools (see here), a group of 16 schools in Cuyahoga, Lorain, and Richland counties. Constellation has an academic performance record that most urban schools-district or charter-would envy. Still, under the House education-spending plan, the organization's school in Parma would lose $1.5 million, a third of its operating budget.

Constellation has a $30 million annual budget and employs 420 teachers, administrators, office staff, maintenance staff, and other workers.

The state's moribund economy is also a worry. "Even if we get a budget bill passed the way we want to see it, we don't know what the future will hold as far as the economy goes," Babb said.

Particularly unfair, he said, is public district schools getting average seven percent funding increases while many public charters are being cut. "If we were treated the same as traditional public schools we wouldn't complain," he said.

Marty Porter, director of the Toledo School for the Arts (see here), said the school, which has a state rating of Excellent, is looking at having to more than double its private fund-raising at a time when philanthropy is down.

"I don't want to build a budget on what we think we might be able to raise," he said.

Right now, Porter is looking at cutting all transportation, furniture and equipment purchases, a second principal, teaching aids and raises for teachers. If the drop in state funding for his school is more than $500,000, he would have to reopen all teacher contracts for renegotiation.

"Our teachers already make $6,000 less than the starting salaries for Toledo teachers," (about $32,000) he said.

Andrew Boy, who heads Columbus Collegiate Academy (see here), one of two Columbus charters sponsored by the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation, is planning for a budget with five percent less state money. Because, Boy said, he will not compromise on curriculum, the shortfall will have to be made up with increased fundraising. "If it's more than that," Boy said, "we'll have to move quickly to adjust during the summer."

The uncertainty is also muddying expansion plans. The school has approval for a $1.35 million loan to buy and refurbish a former public school near downtown. The lender, however, is holding up making the loan pending the final version of the state budget.

"This building is perfect but we can't move on it because we have no idea what is going to happen," said Boy.

Schools have been cutting for months as the economic news becomes bleaker. "I just received an email from our treasurer this morning informing me that I need to make a plan B budget that reflects an additional $125,000 less for expenditures," said Hannah Powell, the principal of KIPP Journey Academy (see here), the second Columbus charter school sponsored by Fordham. "I already cut the budget by $120,000 a few months ago...(and) $240,000 less in expenditures is devastating. I am in the process of solidifying my staff, making preparations for the building, and ordering curriculum as we expand, and this lack of clarity has us at a frustrated standstill."

What is clear is that demand for charter schools continues to increase. At Columbus Collegiate Academy, enrollment is expected to grow from 49 students to 105 and there still will be a waiting list. At KIPP Journey Academy, autumn enrollment now stands at 105, up from 63. The school has a goal of 135.

Zitzner's Entrepreneurship Preparatory School is adding a second school, which would more than double enrollment to 440 students. Constellation Schools is projecting an enrollment of 3,300 students this fall, up from 3,151 this year. The Toledo School for the Arts has 529 students enrolled for the autumn term, up from 508 this year. The school has nearly 100 students on its waiting list.

"We are getting lots more questions asking if we are okay. Are we still going to be here? The mood for parents is more panicked," Toledo School for the Arts' Porter said. "They're worried we're going to be cut off at the knees."

The National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance
May 2009

While there have been many studies describing how to collect and manage data, the education sector has largely ignored the difficult issue of gathering and storing data in such a way that it is available in a centralized manner. This analysis finds that the Northeast and Islands region (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, and the Virgin Islands) manages its data in four ways: 1) centralizing information into one data system or warehouse, 2) developing tools for further data analysis and reporting, 3) training educators on the data system or warehouse, and 4) continuing to educate professionals concerning the collected information. However, these states have encountered limits to collecting data, namely, lack of staff, expertise, and funding. The lack of staff and expertise is side-stepped by using vendors who assemble and maintain the data as well as instruct educators on how to use the data. While costly, all the states and the Virgin Islands hired outside vendors, a number of which were partially funded by federal grants. The analysis allows education leaders in Ohio to take a more in-depth look at its teacher-student data and see how other states handle the task. For the report, see here.

Erin Dillon
May 2009

Opening supply and demand is the first step in creating great schools, but having the educational market open is just not enough, argues Erin Dillon from Ed Sector. Using examples of how retail grocery stores and banks expand into low-income neighborhoods, this paper explores the more nuanced understandings of supply and demand and how to build a high-quality, school-choice market. To build the supply of good schools, for example, school reformers need to analyze community needs and assets and map the educational marketplace to know what kind of school a community needs. Also, school reformers need to establish strong community connections through advertising and by gaining public support during the planning stages for the school. Equally important, Dillon argues, that, on the demand side, parents need accurate information to identify and select good options. A lack of knowledge can lead to poor school choices. In Ohio, organizations, such as the Ohio Black Alliance for Educational Options and School Choice Ohio, provide critical services for families needing to learn about school-choice options. Because the paper details the possibilities and recommendations for improvements in school supply and demand, it makes for an interesting read and can be found here.