Title: Georgia’s Education Problems Not All About Money – Peach Pundit
Headings: Georgia’s Education Problems Not All About Money
Georgia’s Education Problems Not All About Money
This week’s Courier Herald column:

Content: Modeled after programs used in Louisiana and Tennessee, the program would give the state the ability to take over failing schools. The other states generally use non-profit operators of charter schools to reconstitute school operations, and have some element of school choice as to where students attend. Rules are generally established at the school principal level, and can be changed at the principal’s discretion – up to and including extending the school days. In New Orleans where the program was pioneered, schools that failed to meet attendance and improvement goals did not have their charters renewed with a “zero tolerance” policy. The result was that only the schools that both had interest from students & parents were deemed viable, and then only those who showed improvement received charter renewals each year. The schools and students remained within the public funding arena. The accountability – for educators as well as students and parents – changed the dynamic using the market power of choice to force improvement into a stagnant system. The Recovery School District plan will require a constitutional amendment, which means 2/3 of both the House and Senate to pass. The measure would then have to be approved by a majority of Georgia’s voters. Legislators will also be considering a proposal to lift the amount of tax credits given to donors of Student Scholarship Organizations (SSO’s).