Our View — Charter schools become businesses

The Free Press

February 20, 2008 01:43 am

— The charter school movement in Minnesota was designed to offer residents educational alternatives, get parents more involved in schools and innovate education from the ground up.
Unfortunately, the system set up to watch what charter schools do with the public’s money seems more laissez faire than was originally intended.
More than 10 percent of Minnesota charter schools have been circumventing a law that was designed to provide them money to lease buildings, according to a report in the Star Tribune. It turns out, those 10 percent of charter schools have facilitated the purchase of land and buildings through state lease aid to nonprofits affiliated with the charter schools.
There’s nothing inherently illegal about doing that, but a legislative auditor’s report of five years ago suggested lawmakers review the lease aid program because charter schools were “clearly circumventing the law.”
In one case, a Stillwater-based charter school — St. Croix Preparatory Academy — had its nonprofit Friends of St. Croix Prep recently gain approval of Washington County to build a $19 million building that would generate $1.17 million in state lease aid each year. This is taxpayer money not really approved by taxpayers.
Of course, traditional school leaders cry fowl, saying when they build new buildings they have to get voter approval. They argue against the unfair competition created by the charter schools.
There appear to be very few rules governing use of lease aid, and charter school entrepreneurs appear to be exploiting a loophole. Said State Rep. Mindy Greiling, a Roseville DFLer and one of the original sponsors of lease aid: “Any time you give a group an inch, they can take a mile.”
It’s clear charter schools compete with traditional schools for real students who bring with them real money, about $5,000 on average, each. So, the state should make sure the playing field in this competitive educational business is level.
But more troubling is how several charter schools appear to be using lease aid to take on the burdens of buildings and gymnasiums that for years have hamstrung the educational efforts of traditional schools. Charter schools were supposed to be set up in nature centers and downtown buildings to create the “real world” learning environment. It was a model where the educational dollar could be focused on education instead of buildings. Many charter schools seem to be moving back to the campus model of traditional schools.
The Legislature should look closely at lease aid and heed the five-year old advice of its own auditor. It’s important the charter schools stick to principles that make charter schools innovative places for learning and not create “educational” businesses that are simply another way to organize a typical school with tax benefits to developers.