PROMOTING PUBLIC SCHOOLS
A New Organization Supporting Nebraska’s Excellent Public Schools BY ANN HUNTER-PIRTLE, Executive Director, Nebraska Public Schools Coalition
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Hunter-Pirtle
ello, NCSA members. I got to meet many of you at Administrators’ Days in Kearney back in July, where I introduced a new organization supporting public schools under the working name Nebraska Public Schools Coalition. (We’re working on something a little shorter; look for more information soon.) Our mission is to support Nebraska’s excellent public schools and advance policies that make them stronger, while opposing policies that would weaken them—like charter schools, tax credits, and vouchers. Public education reflects Nebraska’s values. Public schools are open to all, they are free and fair, and they provide fiscally conservative oversight of taxpayer dollars through elected school boards. Public schools do an excellent job of educating our children—because Nebraskans know every child deserves a top-notch education. But some in the state want to weaken and privatize public schools by allowing charters, because they see an opportunity for private companies to turn a profit. Broadly speaking, charter schools take public funds away from public schools, but operate without the oversight of an elected school board. They are managed by private boards of directors—which can be located in another state or even overseas, and have led to widespread fraud, corruption, and abuse in states where they exist. Policies like charter schools pose a new threat to our excellent public schools in Nebraska—and out-of-state groups are jumping on board with campaign donations, publicity stunts, and special interest front groups, all designed to convince Nebraskans that our schools are failing and private entities have the solution. But Nebraskans know better. For years, polls have shown an overwhelming majority of Nebraskans support public education—support that is well earned, because our schools get excellent results. Nebraska public schools are the hearts of their communities. Students are respected, and teachers are certified and committed—which is why our graduation rates are high and students perform very well on national standardized tests and college entrance exams. We also know public education challenges are Nebraska’s challenges. Poverty, lack of economic opportunity, and mental and behavioral health are growing issues in many schools, just as they are growing challenges for many Nebraska communities. And to meet them, we need
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to protect the excellent schools we have, while providing our students, teachers, and families the support and tools they need to meet these challenges. What we don’t need are New York solutions to Nebraska problems. Nebraskans know better than to leave local education decisions up to folks who live outside the state. Charter advocates press for so-called “school choice.” But what they are really advocating is school privatization. In fact, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) recently ruled that charter schools are private, not public entities, in a labor dispute. Nebraska already has school choice through statewide open enrollment—students can choose to attend any public school in the state, and parents can choose private or parochial schools, or homeschooling. Not only do charter schools receive public funds without public oversight; their lack of accountability has led to widespread corruption and fraud in states where charters exist. For instance, Ohio is in the midst of a scandal with its charter schools involving rigged performance scores, phantom attendance records, and tens of millions of dollars in illegal payments for students who may never have existed. And while charter school advocates claim that they support the most vulnerable students, research shows otherwise. That’s why in recent months, both the NAACP and the Movement for Black Lives have called for a moratorium on charter schools—because they fail to serve the very students who need great schools the most. Charters have a long track record of systematically excluding the most vulnerable children, including special education students, English language learners, and those with behavioral and mental health challenges. Instead of taking resources away from our public schools, we need to help them flourish. We need to promote policies like expanded learning, early childhood education, and school to career pathways to make our schools even stronger while meeting growing student needs. • Expanded learning opportunities: After-school and summer programs help supplement what children learn in school and provide critical engagement beyond the classroom. They are also an opportunity for community groups to engage with young people in creative, innovative ways that are specific to their community. (continued on page 9)