Proposed new charter school

[klauspood.livejournal.com]

There is a proposal for a new charter school in Somerville. The state (DESE) will be reviewing the application for the next few weeks and will possibly grant the charter on February 28th. If granted this charter school will undermine the existing Somerville Public Schools by reducing school funding by nearly $5 million a year, which is almost 10% of the current school budget. This cut in funding will lead to devastating cuts in public school programs, loss of 60 -75 teachers, and potentially closure of an entire school. This would represent a huge set back for public education in Somerville, setting back much of the progress that has been made in our schools in the last 25 years.

There will be a public hearing by the DESE on this on December 14 2011 at Somerville High School. More info can be found at:

https://sites.google.com/site/progresstogetherforsomerville

http://www.thesomervillenews.com/archives/21168

http://www.doe.mass.edu/news/news.aspx?id=6532

Comments

OK, so don't send your kid there.

[turil.livejournal.com]

If you really are happy with the status quo of your kid's school, great! These people aren't. And they are taking the responsibility for making their kid's education good enough. That's the kind of thing I hope everyone supports. Don't expect someone else to do things for you, do it yourself. Take responsibility for your life and what the world is like. Rather than complaining to others, be the change you want to see.

I'm sure you agree that this is better than families being forced into a school that doesn't work for them, and better than complaining about it. :-)

Re: OK, so don't send your kid there.

[pekmez.livejournal.com]

I'm not happy with the status quo of my school when it can no longer find funding for an art teacher, a music teacher, etc, or with the status quo of some other school that's likely to get shut down in addition, and which serves kids who can't just pick up and go to a different one nearly as easily once the one in their neighborhood closes.

It's not just that I'm happy with it (which I am, right now) - I'm quite positive there are things that I will want to see changed over the next decade and a half and that I'm going to be part of changing them - it's that I believe it serves our ENTIRE community and I believe it is vitally important to keep free and public school options that serve our ENTIRE community open, well-funded, and available to all.

Re: OK, so don't send your kid there.

[zubatac.livejournal.com]

Are you really suggesting that you would support *any* charter school proposal whose proponents were eager and believed in what they were doing?

Of course I am not happy with the status quo of my kid's school; that school is changing and evolving over time (as all decent schools arguably should). I would like to help *that* school become the best it can become. This will be harder if there is less funding for that school, or fewer children from middle-class families, or fewer engaged parents. *That* is the change I want to be a part of. Does that mean that I will oppose any charter school proposal in Somerville? No, of course not. But it does mean that a new charter should demonstrate to me why it will be *better* than what we have now or could have soon.The SPCS has so far failed to do so for me. I understand you disagree; that does not mean I approve of your condescension.

[I'm starting a stopwatch to see how soon someone suggests that I should be supporting the SPCS because otherwise we will end up with a worse charter.]