Civic Caucus strategic plan discussion May 22, 2009--Approval of bill for new schools within school districts--Members noted that the Legislature approved, and the Governor signed, a bill that allows school districts to establish their own charter-type schools, if approved by the School Board and teachers.  This little-noticed law could have far reaching implications for stimulating innovation that would occur within the framework of existing school districts.

State Rep. Mindy Greiling, April 24, 2009--Support for district-created site-governed schools--The omnibus education bill being passed by the House includes enabling legislation that allows individual school districts to set up their own site-governed schools.  A school board, if it so chooses, could establish charter-type schools within its own structure.  In effect, a school district could compete with charter schools that are set up without school district approval.  This legislation is being backed by Education|Evolving.

Curt Johnson, Education|Evolving, April 10, 2009--Constructively competitive with charter schools--Education|Evolving has been heavily involved in the establishment and spread of charter schools in Minnesota and elsewhere, and continues to support charter schools, Johnson said.  A key difference between charter schools and self-governed schools under HF751 is that charter schools can be set up independently without approval of the school board. The new innovative schools would require school board approval.

            Education|Evolving is a champion of innovation, whether by chartering or any other mechanism, he said.  Innovation, Johnson said, is not merely replicating new things that emerge and work well elsewhere.  Innovation is the result of trying something that hasn't been tried before.   Education|Evolving likes to think up the next important change in education policy, persuade the Minnesota Legislature to pass a law, get people to try it, and if it succeeds help new models spread around the nation.

Curt Johnson, Education|Evolving, April 10, 2009--Need for non-governmental new schools agency--Both for charter schools and new district schools there is a need for a new non-governmental statewide agency to conduct research, raise funds, and provide technical assistance to new school start-ups, Johnson said.  Most funds for such an agency would be raised privately, he said.  EE’s bills call this new agency NewSchoolsMinnesota.

Curt Johnson, Education|Evolving, April 10, 2009--Important policy changes in Minnesota--Johnson reviewed significant changes for school choice in Minnesota, beginning in the mid-1980s with giving high schoolers the opportunity to take college courses, continuing on with open enrollment and then to the first charter school law in the nation in 1991.   The new schools initiative this year, he said, can open an entirely new chapter on effective schooling.  Unfortunately, the national discussion seems to focus more on standardization.

State Sen. Geoff Michel, March 13, 2009-Questions about restrictions on charter schools--Moving on to the field of education, Michel was asked about proposals to place a moratorium on new charter schools in Minnesota.   Michel said that while improvements are needed in charter schools, he opposes restrictions on their development because they are important sources of innovation.   Some legislators appear to be interested in charter restrictions, he said, because of the possibility that--in this time of budgetary shortfalls--dollars could be shifted to traditional schools.  

            On a related educational matter, Michel said he doesn't like the federally-funded No Child Left Behind program and fears a growing federal role in education.

State Rep. Marty Seifert, Jan. 23, 2009--Potential of charter schools--Many people are questioning the worth of charter schools, he said, because of examples of poor management and bookkeeping.  But some such schools have done amazingly well and have received awards.  Seifert said one charter school in his district has a very low dropout rate.  Asked about proposals to provide for reduced-regulatory schools within the structure of existing school districts, Seifert said he's heard about the idea but hasn't seen a bill yet.

Jim Bartholomew, Minnesota Business Partnership, and Tim McDonald, Education|Evolving, Dec. 19, 2008--Importance of empowering teachers—During discussion of graduation rates, Bartholomew and Tim McDonald, an associate with Education|Evolving, http://www.educationevolving.org/bios.asp, agreed that a key component of improving achievement and graduation rates is to empower teachers.  Empowerment, they said, requires that teachers be given greater professional opportunities, with responsibility and accountability for what happens not only in the classroom, but in their school building and district.  This means a substantial elevation of the role of teachers, relative to the role of school administrators, they said. 

Smaller schools along with greater choice of school are part of the equation, they said.  McDonald contended that in schools with 200 or fewer students, with teachers in charge, discipline and attendance problems evaporate, and parents become much more involved.  Charter schools are helpful, but not essential, they said.  “District schools”, that is, schools operating totally within the framework of existing school districts, also can operate successful, smaller, teacher-managed schools, they said.   McDonald added that charter schools are inherently self-governed, while with district schools permission must be given. 

McDonald and Bartholomew said that giving choice to racial-ethic minorities must be a higher goal than achieving racial-ethnic balance in schools.  McDonald rejects the argument that minorities cannot learn unless surrounded by white peers as ‘premised upon racial inferiority.’ He draws a distinct difference between state-imposed segregation of the 1950’s and the unintentional, ‘de facto’ segregation that happens when non-white families exercise choice over multiple public school options. ‘Not the same thing.’

Bartholomew noted recent legislative testimony by Eric Mahmoud of Harvest Prep and Bill Wilson of Higher Ground Academy, both charter schools with high minority enrollments that are performing well.

Joe Nathan, HHH Institute, University of Minnesota, Dec. 12, 2008--Minnesota education is at a crossroads--We can continue
to expand, improve and refine or we can yield to threats to cut back on progress, Nathan said.  He is particularly worried about attacks
from many persons in the educational establishment who, he said, would like to discontinue charter schools, post-secondary options
and school choice.

 Joe Nathan, HHH Institute, University of Minnesota, Dec. 12, 2008--Controversy over success of charter schools--A Civic
Caucus member noted recent publicity about a study by the Institute for Race and Poverty (IRE) at the University of Minnesota claiming
that charter schools perform worse than comparable district schools on state tests and intensify racial and economic segregation.

(http://www.startribune.com/local/stpaul/35109429.html?elr=KArksLckD8EQDUoaEyqyP4O:DW3ckUiD3aPc:_
Yyc:aULPQL7PQLanchO7DiUJ

·         Nathan responded that the study missed a great deal, and presented very questionable information.  For example, he pointed out that some of the most effective public schools with African American students in the state are charters like Harvest Prep in Minneapolis, Higher Ground in St Paul, and Tarek Ibn Ziyad in Inver Grove Heights.

In legislative testimony earlier this month, legislators learned the following from Eric Mahmoud of Harvest Prep and Bill Wilson of Higher Ground.  Legislators were surprised and impressed.

Percentage of African American Students proficient in Mn Statewide reading and math tests, by district 

School /           %A/A proficient in reading       % A/A proficient in math

District*

Harvest Prep               62%                             56%

Higher Ground 53%                             55%

Tarek Ibn Ziyad            67%                             86%

Mpls district                 31%                             22%                            

St. Paul district            38%                             29%

Eden Prairie                45%                             31%

Edina                           50%                             40%

(http://education.state.mn.us/ReportCard2005/index.do)

*  This chart shows, for example, that 62% of African American students at Harvest Prep in Minneapolis are proficient on the Minnesota’s statewide reading test, compared to 31% of African American students in Minneapolis, 38% of African American students in St Paul, 45% of African American students in Eden Prairie and 50% of African American students in Edina.

·          Minnesota Charters are legally considered districts for accountability purposes, although they do not have the power to levy taxes, as more traditional districts do.

While all the schools have room for growth, Nathan asked – might not there be something valuable to learn, rather than criticism from places like Harvest Prep, Higher Ground and Tarek?

·         Nathan also quoted Formerly ST. Paul city council chair Bill Wilson (the first African American chair of the city council) and founder of Higher Ground in St. Paul recently responded at a state legislative hearing re IRE’s charges that schools such as Higher Ground and Harvest Prep represent “segregation.”

Wilson testified quietly, “I don’t know whether Professor Orfield has experience segregation.  I have.   While a student in Evansville, Indiana, I was bused past 3 schools because of my skin color, to an inferior school, just for people like me.  That’s segregation.   

"Giving low-income people the power to decide for themselves among various schools – including ours is not segregation.  It’s giving low income people, and people of color, the kind of power to make decisions that wealthy white people have had for many years.”

·         Nathan pointed out that a study of charters in Minneapolis he conducted several years ago showed 5 of 7 Mpls charters over two years, and 6 of 8 charters in Mpls over one year showed more progress in reading, math or both than district public schools. He pointed out that the IRE study did not look at growth or progress

·         Nathan urged Civic Caucus members to read Paul Tough’s Nov 26, 2006 NY Times Sunday Magazine article cited above.  Most of these Tough serve all or virtually all students of color, and that they embody ideas also used by some of Minnesota’s most effective charters that were vigorously criticized in the IRE report.

            Nathan said the IRE report is often factually incorrect and reflects a bias toward moving inner city students to more affluent communities.  Nathan said this works sometimes.  Nathan noted that neither the recent IRE report nor the Star Tribune story about it cited data from the Minnesota Department of Education report on the Minneapolis to suburban choice program showing that

·         For the most recent year in which data are available, students staying in Minneapolis made more progress in reading at every grade level measured than did those who went to the suburbs

·         For the recent year in which data are available, students who went to the suburbs and students who stayed in Minneapolis made similar progress in math

·         62% of students who participated in this program have withdrawn within one year.

Nathan asked, “Is this the kind of program we want to rely on entirely to close the achievement gap, or should we also try to replicate much more successful programs?”

Joe Nathan, HHH Institute, University of Minnesota, Dec. 12, 2008--Not all charter schools succeed--Nathan readily agreed that some charter schools have underperformed and should be closed, but the charter concept is solidly established and must be preserved. 

Joe Graba, senior policy fellow, Education Evolving, July 25, 2008--Charter schools, too, are part of the established system--Noting that Education Evolving largely originated the concept of charter schools, of which there now are some 4,300 nationally, including 145 in Minnesota, Graba said that those schools, too, are largely unable to shift from standardization to customization.  He said about 20 of Minnesota's 145 charter schools have some aspects that would place them in the forefront of change. 

            Specifically, Graba highlighted New Country School in Henderson, MN (http://www.newcountryschool.com/), which organizes learning around students' projects.  Students, teachers and parents develop the projects, each of which would include many learning disciplines, such as math, writing, research, and literature.  Teachers call themselves advisors, not teachers.   A key aspect of New Country is that its board is run and operated by a professional practice of teachers, similar to professional practices found among lawyers and doctors.

Joe Graba, senior policy fellow, Education Evolving, July 25, 2008--Budget problems facing the Minnesota Legislature--The 2009 session will be very difficult for the Legislature, Graba predicted, with the possibility of starting with a projected deficit of $1 billion to $1.5 billion.   It has been 17 years since the state passed the first charter school law in the nation.  Education Evolving is reviewing the charter school law and will likely be recommending substantial changes.  Education Evolving has visited with Governor Pawlenty about possible changes.  One objective of Education Evolving will be to lay out some principles to be followed by any charter school, he said.

State Sen. Larry Pogemiller, Dec. 13, 2007--Invest in education--In Minnesota the best thing the state could do for its economy is to increase its investment in education, Pogemiller said.   In response to a question, he said that charter schools are helpful but not a panacea.  Part of the solution, he said, must be more authority for the faculty at each school.  It was noted that in some school districts, including Minneapolis, vacancies in schools are filled by teacher seniority, which means that some senior teachers select the schools with fewer at-risk children.   Pogemiller replied that there'd be no problem if all schools in the state had enrollments with a proportionate share of at-risk children.