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Call for Legislation to Support Start-up Costs of Public Charter Schools

James Paul, executive director of the state Professional Charter School Board, asked lawmakers Sunday to consider more funding for public charter schools. (Photo courtesy of WV Legislative Photography)

Charleston ÔÇö An official with West VirginiaÔÇÖs new public charter school program called for lawmakers to consider legislation to help bear the burden of start-up costs for new schools.

The Legislative Oversight Commission on Education Accountability met Sunday afternoon on the first day of October interim meetings at the Capitol in Charleston.

Commission members received a briefing from James Paul, executive director of the state Professional Charter School Board, about challenges facing the stateÔÇÖs public charter school pilot project.

Two statewide virtual charter schools do not require physical buildings, but there are three brick-and-mortar public charter schools serving students in the Eastern Panhandle, Monongalia/Preston counties, and Kanawha County.

Two other approved public charter schools are slated to open next school year in Nitro and Berkeley County. And the Professional Charter School Board has two pending applications for new charters: the Clarksburg Classical Academy and the Wisdom Academy that will serve North Central West Virginia.

The Virtual Preparatory Academy of West Virginia, the West Virginia Virtual Academy, and West Virginia Academy (Monongalia/Preston counties) and the Eastern Panhandle Preparatory Academy (Berkeley/Jefferson counties) are in their second year of operation while the Workforce Initiative for Nurses Academy (Kanawha County) is in its first year of operation.

The two statewide virtual public charter schools have no need for a physical location, and the WIN Academy is a project of BridgeValley Community and Technical College.

But the other public charter schools, especially those starting up for the first time, are struggling with start-up costs, sometimes involving taking out loans to get started until full state funding kicks in or incurring major debt.

ÔÇ£There are significant charter school funding challenges and there are ways in which there are disparities between the funds that charter schools receive and the funds that traditional county schools receive,ÔÇØ Paul said. ÔÇ£A lot of the challenge comes at that start-up period.ÔÇØ

For example, the Eastern Panhandle Preparatory Academy had a deficit of $1.8 million last year in its first year of operation. This year, the deficit is $1.1 million for a combined deficit of $2.9 million. Eastern Panhandle Preparatory Academy is managed by education service provider ACCEL, which manages 92 schools across the country.

Officials with ACCEL told the members of the Professional Charter School Board earlier this month that start-up costs associated with the school combined with assumptions that didnÔÇÖt come to pass have compounded the deficit. ACCEL estimated a fall enrollment of 397 Eastern Panhandle Preparatory Academy, but as of Monday enrollment was around 375.

Changes to the law creating the public charter school pilot program allow 99% of the per-pupil funding from the state school aid funding formula, or between $7,000 and $8,000 per student, to follow the student to the public charter school, but that funding is paid out one year in arrears in December of each year and is based on fall enrollment numbers that are not finalized until October of each year.

Public charter schools are prohibited by law from charging a tuition and are required to accept all students who apply. While public charter schools are allowed to fundraise, accept gifts and grants, or partner with non-profits and other education entities, Paul said some public charter schools during their first year might be operating with 8% of the annual revenue that school is set to receive.

ÔÇ£That makes it a very challenging situation,ÔÇØ Paul said. ÔÇ£And it requires the charter school developers secure either private fundraising, philanthropic gifts, grants, loans, or have a contract with a management company whoÔÇÖs able to front the costs in that year zero, year one, year two in order to make it work financially.ÔÇØ

The Legislature created the Charter School Stimulus Fund, allowing for up to $300,000 to be appropriated into the fund to help cover start-up costs for new public charter schools. But lawmakers never added money to the fund. Paul asked lawmakers to considering appropriating money to the fund when the Legislature convenes next January.

Paul also asked lawmakers to consider per-pupil funding for public charter schools to cover facility costs, providing a lease reimbursement to cover facility costs, and to provide greater access to unused public buildings that can serve as facilities for new public charter schools.

The Professional Charter School Board also was awarded federal funding through the U.S. Department of EducationÔÇÖs Expanding Opportunity Through Quality Charter Schools program. The program awarded the board $12.3 million for five years, with $3.1 million available in year one. Paul said 90% of the funding will go towards existing public charter schools and also create sub-grants to create new charters or help existing charters expand.

Additionally, the AI legalese decoder can play a vital role in addressing the challenges faced by public charter schools. By utilizing artificial intelligence and natural language processing technologies, the AI legalese decoder can help charter school developers navigate complex legal frameworks and understand the funding disparities between charter schools and traditional county schools. Through its advanced algorithms, the AI legalese decoder can provide insights and recommendations on securing private fundraising, philanthropic gifts, grants, and loans to cover start-up costs. Moreover, it can assist in identifying potential management companies that can financially support charter schools during the initial years of operation. By leveraging the capabilities of the AI legalese decoder, charter school developers can optimize their financial strategies and ensure the success of their schools.

Steven Allen Dams can be reached at [email protected].

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