[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 144 (Monday, October 12, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S12432-S12433]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   THE CHARTER SCHOOLS EXPANSION ACT

 Mr. COATS. Mr. President, I am happy to speak today in 
recognition of the passage by unanimous consent of the Charter Schools 
Expansion Act, the bi-partisan bill. Senator Lieberman and I introduced 
this bill last November to help further expand the charter school 
movement which is so successfully providing new educational 
opportunities for children all around the country. This bill passed 
unanimously out of the Labor Committee and was unanimously approved by 
the Senate.
  This important bill builds upon the great success of the original 
charter school legislation which Senator Lieberman and former Senator 
Durenberger introduced in 1994. It was Senator Durenberger's timeless 
promotion of charter schools that educated all of us to the promise and 
the benefit of this important public educational reform initiative.
  The Federal Charter School Grant Program provides seed money to 
charter school operators to help them pay for the planning, design and 
initial implementation of a charter school. Since the program's 
inception, the number of charter schools has tripled, with over 1100 
charter schools now operating in 33 States and the District of 
Columbia.
  Charter schools are independent public schools that have been freed 
from onerous bureaucratic and regulatory burdens in order to pursue 
clear objectives and goals aimed at increasing student achievement. To 
increase student achievement, charter schools are able to design and 
deliver educational programs tailored to meet the needs of their 
students and their communities.
  It is the individualized education available to students through 
charter schools that makes this a desirable educational alternative for 
many families. Charter schools give families an opportunity to choose 
the educational setting that best meet their child's needs. For many 
low-income families in particular, charter schools provide their first 
opportunity to select an educational setting which is best suited for 
their child.
  Parents and educators have, in turn, given these programs 
overwhelmingly high marks. Broad-based studies conducted by the 
Department of Education and the Hudson Institute show that charters are 
effectively serving diverse populations, particularly disadvantaged and 
at-risk children, that traditional public schools have struggled to 
educate.
  With results like these, it is no wonder that some of the strongest 
support for charter legislation comes from low-income families. Not 
only do these parents now have real educational choices, but they are 
actually needed in the charter school environment for everything from 
volunteering to coaching, fundraising, and even teaching. This direct 
involvement of families is helping to build small communities centered 
around the school.
  Charter schools can be started by anyone interested in providing a 
quality education: parents, teachers, school administrators, community 
groups, businesses and colleges can all apply for a charter. And, 
importantly, if these schools fail to deliver a high-quality education, 
they will be closed--either through a district or State's 
accountability measures or from lack of students. Accountability is 
literally built into the charter school process--the school must comply 
with the provision in its charter, and unhappy parents and students can 
leave if they are not satisfied.
  Additionally, a survey conducted last fall by the National School 
Boards Association (NSBA) found that the charter movement is already 
having a positive ripple effect that is being felt in many local public 
school districts. The NSBA report cites evidence that traditional 
public schools are working harder to please local families so they 
won't abandon them to competing charter schools, and that central 
administrators often see charters as ``a powerful tool'' to develop new 
ideas and programs without fearing regulatory roadblocks.
  Several other studies have recently been released highlighting the 
success of charter schools around the country. Among other things, 
these studies have shown that charter schools have successfully met and 
surpassed the standards outlined in their charters, attracted 
significant proportions of minority and low-income students, and have 
higher parental approval rates than public schools.
  The results of these studies point to important ways to improve and 
reinvent public education as a whole. The implications from the success 
of charter schools indicate that public schools should be consumer-
oriented, diverse, results-oriented, and professional places that also 
function as mediating institutions in their communities.
  The purpose of this bill is to further encourage the growth of high-
quality charter schools around the country. This bill provides 
incentives to encourage States to increase the number of high quality 
charter schools in their State. To qualify for funding under this bill, 
States must satisfy two criteria. First, they must provide for review 
and evaluation of their charter schools by the public chartering agency 
at least once every five years to ensure that the charter school is 
meeting the terms of its charter and meeting its academic performance 
requirements. And second, States meet at least one of three priority 
criteria:
  The State has demonstrated progress in increasing the number of high 
quality charter schools that meet clear and measurable objectives for 
the educational progress of their students;

                           *   *   *   *   *

  To help ensure that the amount of the federal grants are proportional 
to the level of charter school activity in the State, this bill directs 
the Secretary to take into consideration the number of charter schools 
in operation, or that have been approved to open.
  During drafting of this bill, the single greatest concern I heard 
from charter school operators related to their ability to access their 
fair share of federal education funding. And so, to ensure that charter 
schools have enough funding to continue once their doors are opened, 
this bill provides that charter schools get their fair share of federal 
programs for which they are eligible, such as Title 1 and IDEA. The 
bill also directs States to inform their charter schools of any Federal 
funds to which they are entitled.
  This bill also increases the financing options available to charter 
schools and allows them to utilize funds from the Title VI block grant 
program for start-up costs.
  Because it is so important that charter schools are held accountable 
in return for the flexibility they are given from Federal, state and 
local laws and regulations, this amendment includes

[[Page S12433]]

several significant provisions which strengthen accountability. First, 
under the priority criteria, States must review and evaluate their 
charter schools at least once every five years to ensure that they are 
meeting the terms of their charter and their academic performance 
requirements. They are rewarded for increasing the number of high 
quality charter schools that are ``held accountable in their charter 
for meeting clear and measurable objectives for the educational 
progress of their students.''

  The definitions section of the bill also stresses accountability by 
requiring a written performance contract with the authorized chartering 
agency in the State. These written performance contracts include 
clearly defined objectives for the charter school to meet in return for 
the autonomy they are given. The performance objectives in the contract 
are to be measured by State assessments and other assessments the 
charter wishes to use.
  I am confident that this amendment will build on and contribute to 
the success of the charter school movement. This bill stresses the need 
for high quality, accountable schools which are given the autonomy they 
need to provide the best educational opportunity for their students.
  With the passage of this bill, a strong signal will be sent to 
parents and teachers all across this country that they are not alone in 
their struggle to improve education. We hope to ease their struggle by 
enabling new charter schools to be developed. More charter schools will 
result in greater accountability, broader flexibility for classroom 
innovation, and ultimately more choice in public education. I urge my 
colleagues to increase educational opportunities for all children by 
supporting this bill.
  Mr. President, I would like to take a moment and thank Senator 
Lieberman for his tremendous leadership in the area of educational 
reform. He and I have worked closely on a number of issues over the 
last several years, and I want to commend him, in particular, for his 
strong support and leadership on issues concerning increasing 
educational opportunities for low-income children. He understands so 
clearly the fundamental importance of providing a high quality 
education in a safe environmental of our neediest children. In addition 
to this charter schools bill, which will help to increase educational 
opportunities for low-income children, Senator Lieberman and I have 
worked closely for the last 4 years to gain support for publicly-funded 
scholarships for low-income children. I want to thank him for his 
unwavering commitment to this issue and his vitally important 
leadership. His efforts have done much to win bipartisan support for 
both charter schools and low-income scholarships and I thank him for 
his strong commitment to our country's neediest children. With the 
passage of this charter schools bill, Senator Lieberman and I have the 
pleasure of seeing the first of our joint educational reform 
initiatives move closer to becoming law.

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