Baton Rouge, LA – Today, the Louisiana Department of Education announced that the state will receive more than $19 million over the next two years to aid the development and support of new charter schools. Louisiana is eligible to earn an additional $5.8 million during the third year of the grant cycle, depending on whether the state makes satisfactory progress toward meeting the outlined goals of the federal agency during the first two years.
Louisiana, along with Tennessee, Arizona, New Mexico and Wisconsin, will share $82 million – the latest round of charter school grants awarded by the U. S. Department of Education (USDOE).
Governor Bobby Jindal said, “We know that if we are going to achieve the dramatic improvements we need to ensure the success of our children, we must support non-traditional school models and programs. This funding will provide a major boost to establish and support high-quality charter schools throughout our state and build on the work we have already done to promote excellence in education for all Louisiana students.”
State education leaders say the funding will be used to assist new charter schools by providing them with financial assistance during the most critical phase of their development – from the time the charter application is approved, to the opening of the school, and during the first two years of the school’s operation.
“This grant represents a tremendous opportunity for our state – especially for our students,” State Superintendent of Education Paul Pastorek said. “There is strong evidence to support the effectiveness of charter schools in Louisiana, according to a recent report by Stanford University’s Center for Research on Education Outcomes (CREDO). We are humbled by the endorsement of this grant award. President Obama and his Department of Education have recognized Louisiana as a national leader in the charter school movement, and it makes our educators and students proud. As we’ve stressed previously, charter schools are not the only solution for improving Louisiana’s public education system, but we believe these alternative governance models have played and will continue to play a key role in our progress.”
The Stanford University CREDO report gave high marks to Louisiana’s charter schools when compared to the state’s traditional schools and to charter schools in 14 other states and Washington, D.C. The Stanford report revealed that in Louisiana, the growth demonstrated by charter school students in reading and math during their first year of enrollment in a charter school was equal to the gains made by traditional public school students. However, in subsequent years, the charter school students showed greater gains in both subjects – with the largest increases made in years two and three.
Pastorek emphasized that locally authorized charter schools are also eligible to benefit from the federal grant, provided that schools have undergone a rigorous approval process and that schools meet the state and federal definitions of a charter school.
“Public charter schools offer a number of structural advantages that we believe are essential to improving performance at low-performing schools, including stronger accountability and increased autonomy over personnel and resources,” Pastorek continued. “The Department is hopeful that these advantages, combined with access to funding from this grant will encourage local school districts to launch and support more high-quality charter schools.”
Recently passed legislation lifted the limit on the number of charter schools that could operate in Louisiana, making the state one of only 13 to allow an unlimited number of authorizations. However, charter applicants must still meet the state’s authorization requirements and accountability standards, which are designed to ensure that only high-quality charter schools are allowed to operate in the state.
Through the grant, charter schools will be awarded up to $600,000 over a maximum period of 36 months. The grant will allow the state to utilize the funding to provide start-up assistance to new charters and to fund implementation costs for existing charters if, over the next two years, the schools will be in their first or second year of operation.
Conventional uses of the grant include staff development, educational supplies and materials, technology, program evaluation, board training, and personnel costs associated with the start-up of a charter school.
During the 2009-2010 school year, 77 charter schools will operate in the state, up from 65 charters last school year. In an effort to enhance the effectiveness of the Department in assisting these schools, including charter providers who have taken over chronically failing schools, the Department will also use funds from this grant to intensify its own monitoring and support activities.
Charter schools are publicly funded schools and are commonly established by local community groups, including non-profit organizations, community or parent groups, churches, businesses, universities, municipalities, teachers and others. These schools are governed by their own board of directors, and Louisiana law requires no fewer than three certified teachers to be involved in the sponsoring group. Louisiana law also requires charter schools to participate in the state’s accountability system, abide by curriculum requirements and ensure that the qualifications of its instructional staff meet No Child Left Behind (NCLB) requirements.
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