http://www.edreform.com/2013/05/what-michigans-charter-schools-can-teach-the-country/ Since 1993, the leading voice and advocate for lasting, substantive and structural education reform in the U.S. Fri, 31 May 2013 12:52:43 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.4.2 http://www.edreform.com/2013/05/what-michigans-charter-schools-can-teach-the-country/#comment-35445 Newswire: May 21, 2013 Tue, 21 May 2013 23:20:49 +0000 http://www.edreform.com/?p=23766#comment-35445 [...] CLOSING DOORS. Last week, Buena Vista School District in Michigan let all of its teachers go and closed school in early May because they ran out of money. Problems started when enrollment started declining, as parents found better educational options in charter schools. Instead of trying to figure out what charters were doing better, the district schools stayed the course, gave teachers raises using money they didn’t have, and came up short. Unsurprisingly, this did not go over well with parents who have been frantically trying to figure out how to get their students in other schools with only a few weeks left. After some “political grandstanding” the state is giving extra money to the district so they can stay open throughout the school year. But to what benefit of the students? If the school district is so poorly managed, will they really learn anything in the next few weeks or remain pawns in the district’s game? More proof that new and independent entities are needed to create great schools. Michigan does not have to look beyond its borders. [...] [...] CLOSING DOORS. Last week, Buena Vista School District in Michigan let all of its teachers go and closed school in early May because they ran out of money. Problems started when enrollment started declining, as parents found better educational options in charter schools. Instead of trying to figure out what charters were doing better, the district schools stayed the course, gave teachers raises using money they didn’t have, and came up short. Unsurprisingly, this did not go over well with parents who have been frantically trying to figure out how to get their students in other schools with only a few weeks left. After some “political grandstanding” the state is giving extra money to the district so they can stay open throughout the school year. But to what benefit of the students? If the school district is so poorly managed, will they really learn anything in the next few weeks or remain pawns in the district’s game? More proof that new and independent entities are needed to create great schools. Michigan does not have to look beyond its borders. [...]

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