Parents, Not Labor Unions, Should Decide What School Is Best for Their Child

By Myrna Castrejón, President & CEO, California Charter Schools Association

Distance learning, virtual instruction, is an education model that is widely chosen by thousands of families across California and has helped students succeed academically. This is ONE of the many types of charter public school models known as nonclassroom-based schools (NCBs). It was also the only model utilized to keep kids learning and communities safe at the start of the pandemic. While distance learning may be a new concept to many families this year, NCBs and the distance learning methods they pioneered have played a consistent and crucial role in meeting the needs of students and families seeking an alternative to site-based public schools for nearly two decades.

However, teachers’ unions, that have continuously created barriers throughout the pandemic instead of prioritizing students and parents, are trying to take this education opportunity away from families to keep the status quo. A front organization funded by Partnership for Working Families, which is run and funded by anti-charter labor unions, called In the Public Interest is attacking NCBs and calling on the State to deny funding to these public schools, essentially limiting public school opportunities for parents to decide what school best fits the unique needs of their child. In the Public Interest is not looking out for families; they are looking out for their labor union funders. They should really be known as: In the Special Interest.

Union leaders claim that their priority is the student, but by their own actions, they have repeatedly shown that their true priority is protecting their political power. This attack against NCBs comes at a time when these unions have been exposed by the press for months of resisting efforts to mitigate learning loss for kids through the pandemic. Their first priority when schools shut down was renegotiating their contracts to lessen their work hours and resisted calls to shift to virtual learning. Now, their demands continue and continue to move the goal post at every opportunity as States move towards reopening schools for in-person learning. Their attack on NCBs is a red herring to distract from increasingly negative public sentiment towards the unions.

A recent report issued by the union-funded organization attempts to spread misinformation regarding the positive impact and the economic model of NCBs to persuade lawmakers to limit any growth of these schools at a time of increased parent interest in charter public schools as a result of the pandemic. The report ignores strict accountability measures that have been put into place in recent years to increase transparency for NCB programs — measures the California Charter Schools Association supported.

A 2021 report, just released, by the California Charter Schools Association finds that:

• Just 3% of all California students were enrolled at NCBs in 2020.
• Most NCBs offer a mix of virtual, online, and site-based programming. Less than 10% are exclusively virtual. Before COVID-19, some NCBs held on-site class as many as four days out of the week.
• All NCBs are required by law to have regular one-on-one check-ins between teachers and students. NCB leaders credited these ongoing interactions with their schools’ high level of engagement during COVID, something which traditional public schools have struggled with.
• Although most NCBs offer a digital curriculum, they also have certified teachers just like site-based schools, who are responsible for developing instructional programming for students.
• NCBs are popular with California families because of the wide variety of specialized programs available, including ones focusing on: career technical education, personalized learning, college-readiness, reengagement offerings for at-promise and adult students, constructivist learning, CORE content, and 21st century learning.
• About 33% of all NCBs are classified as Dashboard Alternative Status Schools (DASS), which is a designation given by the California Department of Education to schools that serve a high proportion of at-promise students (students with multiple expulsions, chronically absent, high school dropouts, adults, or teen parents).

These are facts that union leaders don’t want parents, legislators and the media to know. Instead, they create sham organizations to attack charter public schools at every opportunity.

When schools were forced to shut down due to COVID-19, it was charter public schools that quickly shifted to distance learning to mitigate learning loss and partnered with parents who overnight became teachers, guidance counselors and coaches. Many NCB charter public schools offered best practices of their online and distance learning programs to schools throughout the State.

California’s charter public schools are not in competition with traditional public schools, we are partners. Traditional public school teachers and charter public school teachers are all committed to providing a first-class education. It is shameful that in the middle of a national pandemic, union leaders use such fear tactics to attack and mislead legislators and families. Right now, we must work together on behalf of the kids and families we all serve and offer real education opportunities to families who are struggling.

You can learn more about California’s nonprofit charter schools by following CCSA on Twitter @CALcharters.

Myrna Castrejón is President & CEO of the California Charter Schools Association