Testimony: Jennifer Alexander, CEO, ConnCANTestimony in Favor of Proposed Public Charter School Law Changes in Connecticut

State Board of Education - Wednesday, July 9, 2014

Chairman Taylor, Commissioner Pryor, and members of the State Board of Education, thank you for the opportunity to speak to you.

Connecticut needs to update our laws and regulations governing public charter schools. As CEO of the Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now, I applaud you for your leadership in acting on this fact.

The goal, as you know, must be to make sure that students at all types of public schools, including charters, are assured sound legal and regulatory protections, the opportunity to learn from great educators, fair funding based on their learning needs, and an excellent education that will prepare them for success in college, careers and life.

We have labored toward that goal, but for many of us who have been working to improve education across Connecticut, this summer has so far been a difficult one in which we’ve uncovered deeply disappointing news about unacceptable professional conduct. We have high expectations and we have been let down, to say the least.

We must make sure that never happens again, and thankfully, we have an opportunity to do so now. An update to the laws and regulations governing public charter schools is urgent. Charter schools, like all public schools, should be congratulated for their successes and held accountable for their failures.

As we do so, our focus must never waver from what matters most. It is our responsibility to provide every child the opportunity to get a high-quality education, no matter where he or she lives. Charter schools are an essential part of this effort.

As we move forward, I urge you to remember that charter schools in Connecticut are providing students, particularly students who need it most, with a high quality education. Overall, 80 percent of Connecticut’s public charter schools perform better than schools in their host districts. That’s more third graders reading well and prepared to succeed in later grades, and more 12th graders prepared to

succeed in college and career. In fact, in some of our public charter schools in our lowest performing school districts in Connecticut, 100 percent of students who graduate go on to college.

Those results are why we need to support charter schools and share their successes more broadly. Those results are why thousands of families in Connecticut are on wait lists to send their children to attend these high-quality education options.

The basic premise of public charter schools is tough accountability in exchange for the flexibility to do what it takes to deliver an effective education for kids. We must hold true to that premise.

The steps you are currently taking move Connecticut toward necessary protections, accountability and transparency for the thousands of children who attend public charter schools, as well as employees of those schools and related charter management organizations. We also encourage you to ensure that charters continue to have the flexibility to deliver innovative and effective education.

As the process of improving our charter policy moves forward, I strongly encourage the State Department of Education and State Board of Education to involve a wide spectrum of advocates and stakeholders, all working to guarantee the flexibility and accountability public charter schools need.

ConnCAN looks forward to being part of that conversation. Together, we can ensure that Connecticut is a place where people want to live, work, and invest in their future.

Thank you.