BY INITIATIVES 173 AND 177
Neither Initiative 173 or Initiative 177 have any provisions or make any mention within either regarding "charter" schools. Yet, from time to time, each have refered to their respective schools as such. Don't be fooled by meaningless, superficial jargon. The words "charter school" are as misused by these initiatives as the wording in their ballot titles; "choice in education act" and "education excellence act."
Though "charter schools" is a relatively new term, it is by no means a new concept. Washington State laws are already in place for the creation of charter schools. Existing Washington State schools that fit the definition are more commonly called "magnet" or "alternative schools." These schools serve a specific and special purpose in our existing system. Often, these schools provide the path back into the regular school system for students who have, for one reason or another, fallen out, fallen behind or dropped out of the school system all together. The standards of education, hiring practices, curriculum and content are set by the State and overseen in partnership between parents, teachers, community members and local school boards.
"Charter schools" created under either of these initiatives would have no pre-set educational standards and would never be required to have any educational standards under the initiatives' criteria. True "charter schools" are already in place in our communities. They are funded with tax dollars and serve a real purpose. Do not hand over blank checks drawn on our educational future to these two initiatives!
Allowing public funds, funds intended to educate our children by set guidelines and standards, to be funnelled off would be irresponsible. Alternative or charter schools such as Jantsch High School of Spokane, Washington, which provides an invaluable service in educating and returning our local children to mainstream or regular public high schools, would suffer greatly if funding were allocated to substandard schools. I have seen first hand the positive impact Jantsch has had on youths in the Spokane community. Public school fund resources are not rich and are most certainly finite. To essentially hand over blank checks drawn on our children's future to two initiatives is tantamount to condemning our educational system to failure.
Follow the links provided below to discover a little more of the truth about Initiatives 173 and 177.
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You are invited to e-mail your questions, comments and support! Thank you for taking your time to explore the truth. Now, put your knowledge to good use and be sure to on November 5th!
Note: Initiatives 173
& 177 were defeated. These pages remain in place for information purposes
only.
The e-mail address is no longer valid.