Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Letter To The Editor On Marc Fisher's Column
May 16, 2006
The Washington Post
Dear Sir:
Marc Fisher has written an extremely misleading and insulting column in your newspaper today regarding Washington D.C.'s vibrant and dynamic charter school movement. He also gets quite a few things wrong.
Three years into their existence D.C. charter schools had not "sucked away 15 percent of the students from regular public schools." Parents, whose only hope was to provide a decent education for their children, bravely chose to move their kids out of often times failing and dangerous institutions into learning environments that are free from drugs and weapons and low expectations. In addition, it was not conservatives who came up with the idea of charter schools. The concept was originated in 1988 by the head of the American Federation of Teachers Albert Shanker in a speech at the National Press Club here in Washington, D.C.
Finally, Mr. Fisher refutes the idea that competition for students will improve all schools. But if he did just a few minutes of research he would find that across the country it takes a charter school enrollment of approximately 25% of all students to force changes to a public system. At last count D.C.'s charter school movement is just about there and in February of this year DCPS Superintendent Janey announced a new Master Education Plan. When presenting the plan Mr. Janey commented: "If we are to become the school system of choice for District residents, we must hold the highest expectations for all students - and do everything we can to make sure that each student succeeds." Thank goodness for school choice.
Sincerely,
Mark S. Lerner
Chairman, Board of Directors
The William E. Doar, Jr. Public Charter School for The Performing Arts
PermaLink | 5:39 AM |
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The Washington Post
Dear Sir:
Marc Fisher has written an extremely misleading and insulting column in your newspaper today regarding Washington D.C.'s vibrant and dynamic charter school movement. He also gets quite a few things wrong.
Three years into their existence D.C. charter schools had not "sucked away 15 percent of the students from regular public schools." Parents, whose only hope was to provide a decent education for their children, bravely chose to move their kids out of often times failing and dangerous institutions into learning environments that are free from drugs and weapons and low expectations. In addition, it was not conservatives who came up with the idea of charter schools. The concept was originated in 1988 by the head of the American Federation of Teachers Albert Shanker in a speech at the National Press Club here in Washington, D.C.
Finally, Mr. Fisher refutes the idea that competition for students will improve all schools. But if he did just a few minutes of research he would find that across the country it takes a charter school enrollment of approximately 25% of all students to force changes to a public system. At last count D.C.'s charter school movement is just about there and in February of this year DCPS Superintendent Janey announced a new Master Education Plan. When presenting the plan Mr. Janey commented: "If we are to become the school system of choice for District residents, we must hold the highest expectations for all students - and do everything we can to make sure that each student succeeds." Thank goodness for school choice.
Sincerely,
Mark S. Lerner
Chairman, Board of Directors
The William E. Doar, Jr. Public Charter School for The Performing Arts
PermaLink | 5:39 AM |
| 
