The Obama Administration, citing the success and promise of Washington state charter schools, has awarded a $6.9 million grant to support the development of charter schools in the state.  Earlier this year the state legislature passed a charter school funding bill, SB 6194, making Washington eligible to receive the federal grant.

Governor Jay Inslee objected to signing the bill, but he eventually agreed to let it become law without his signature.  The federal money is part of the $245 million Charter Schools Program administered by the U.S. Department of Education.  Established by President Clinton in 1995, the program has provided over $3 billion to promote public charter schools in the states.

Across the country, charter schools are popular with parents and teachers.  Enrollment has grown six-fold in 15 years, and currently nearly three million children attend 6,800 charter schools nationwide.  In Washington, 1,800 children attend eight charter schools, and three new charters are scheduled to open next year.  The community-based public schools are so popular that most charter schools must maintain waiting lists.

One reason charters are popular with teachers is they are not required to pay union dues (about $1,000 a year) as a condition of employment.  As a consequence, executives at Washington’s powerful teachers’ union, the WEA, strongly oppose charters and have announced their intention to have them closed.

WEA President Kim Mead instructed WEA lawyers to take legal action in opposition to all families attending charter schools in Washington state, the second time the union has sought to close charters using the courts.

Still, public opinion strongly supports public charter schools.  Washington’s charter law was passed by popular initiative, and charter school families enjoy bi-partisan support in Olympia. 

WEA union executives want to close every charter school in the state, but most people, especially parents, want them to stay open.  The reason is clear, once you hear from charter school families.  Below are two examples, courtesy of the Washington State Charter School Association, here.

I will continue to follow the WEA lawsuit against charter school families closely and keep readers informed.  This report is part of WPC’s Charter School Follow-up Project.

Miles and Shirline Wilson

Shirline is from Seattle, Washington, and has a 12-year-old son, Miles, enrolled in Rainier Prep. Miles was diagnosed with ADHD and suffered from deep performance anxiety in his local district school after receiving no support from his teacher in the classroom. Within one year at Rainier Prep, Miles confidence has been restored, as he learns in an environment where teachers, staff, school leaders and community members care about him and believe in his ability to achieve. Source: Washington State Charter Schools Association, here.

Angie and Jennifer Lee

Jennifer is from Mead, Washington, and her daughter Angie attends Spokane International Academy (“SIA”). Angie has oral apraxia, developmental delays and is completely non-verbal, a need her neighborhood school was unresponsive to, causing Angie to be bullied and fall behind academically. SIA was able to provide Angie with one-on-one aid in the general classroom and work with her independently on her sign language skills, making school a place where she is happy, loves learning and is thriving academically. Source: Washington State Charter Schools Association, here.