Political Hit Job on Cyber Charter Schools

Originally published by TribLive.

Forget better schools. Apparently, Pennsylvania students need fewer schools, even if that means hurting the kids who need the most help.

That’s effectively the message that two of our state’s leaders have sent in the past few weeks. First, Gov. Josh Shapiro demanded cutting funding for cyber charter schools by more than 40 percent per student. Second, state Auditor General Timothy DeFoor issued a misleading report that’s fueling assaults on cyber charters for supposedly wasting taxpayer money.

The simple truth is that the governor and his allies are trying to kill schools that teacher unions leaders don’t like—which is to say, anything but traditional public schools. Yet traditional public schools are failing most students, with 69 percent of 8th graders not proficient in math or reading. Cyber charters—which are usually non-unionized public schools—give families a chance to escape failing schools. No wonder about 60,000 students and counting have enrolled in them.

Read more at TribLive.