Back in January, just two days after being sworn in, Governor Rick Scott and his advisor Michelle Rhee flew to Miami to enthusiastically praise what turned out to be an F school. “We have to make sure our system does exactly what you are doing here at Florida International Academy,” said Scott.
Last week Jacksonville’s KIPP School, the site of Governor Scott’s grandly-staged signing of SB736/Teacher Merit Pay, earned its first grade: F
Rhee said: …”charter schools can accomplish things quicker and at a lower cost than typical public schools because there is less paperwork involved.”
Less paperwork? Lower cost? Charter schools use a proprietary formula to deduct profits from each child’s per pupil funding allocation. Charter students receive the same funding as any other public school student. Rhee and Scott have one thing right: charter schools and their for-profit management companies (CMOs) have found a great way to quickly rake in the cash with little or no investment.
What do you think?
Rick Scott, Michelle Rhee praised charter school that just got an F (partly)Miami Herald Naked Politics blog, June 30, 2011When Gov. Rick Scott unveiled some of his education policy proposals with school-choice celeb Michelle Rhee this January, they paid a visit to a second-grade class at Florida International Academy in Opa-Locka to showcase the successes of school choice.Oops.The school rankings are out. And the academy’s new elementary school just got an F.Full story found here.
New Jacksonville KIPP charter scores at bottom in FCAT
Jacksonville Times-Union, June 30, 2011
A charter school that opened this year with high expectations and wealthy, powerful backers scored at the bottom of all schools in all of Northeast Florida in School Grade score.KIPP Impact Middle, a college preparatory school, earned an F in its opening year.“We’re disappointed,” Principal Robert Hawke said. “We fell pretty far short of where we wanted to be.”Full story found here.
