Chartering efforts
for their children

By Jon Campisi
Times Staff Writer

Like any parent concerned with his or her child’s education, Karen Lash made the decision that she felt was right when it came to school placement.
But Lash’s decision to enroll her two elementary-aged boys in a charter school wasn’t based on blind faith; she did her research and found out exactly what she was getting into.
And what she learned about the combination public/private school made her a believer in a system that has gotten a somewhat negative reputation in the past, one she sees as being based around false perceptions.
Lash recently helped to found Parents Unified for Charter Schools, a citywide group aimed at improving communication among parents of charter school children, as well as school district officials.
The Holmesburg resident said the idea for the organization stemmed from the realization that there was really no coherent way for parents from the city’s 61 charter schools to get together and discuss matters affecting all of their children.
"There wasn’t an opportunity for parents at charter schools to connect, so you feel kind of isolated," she said during a recent interview in her Teesdale Street home.
Lash’s sons Ryan, 12, and Brendan, 7, attend MaST Community Charter School on Byberry Road in Somerton. While Lash’s older son previously attended Edwin Forrest Elementary School, and Lash herself was involved with the school on a volunteer basis, it was the realization that things would change when her son moved on to a public middle school that opened her eyes to the possibility that this may not be the right path for him.
Nothing against the instruction at the city’s middle schools, she said, but the fact remains that the "larger middle school model," with three grades worth of overcrowded classrooms, didn’t appeal to her.
And then there’s the specialized focus at charter schools, each one providing a niche brand of education.
MaST, which stands for Math, Science, Technology, was the perfect choice for Ryan, she said, because he’s known since he was a young boy that he wants to be a paleontologist when he grows up.
"The nature of charter schools are more autonomous and more independent. They have more specialized curriculum," she said. "It’s been a great fit for (my kids). It’s real cutting edge, 21st century stuff."
PUCS was launched in December but didn’t have its first meeting until April, a get-together Lash deemed a success, considering there were parents from 25 charters represented. On the parents who showed up at the meeting, Lash said: "They thought this group will have value in helping us network and helping us share ideas. We’re all working together for the benefit of our schools and the benefit of our children."
Lash claims that the school of thought that says charter schools are a drain on the system is unfounded. Charters actually do more with less money, she said, noting the schools receive 25 percent less public funding than traditional city schools.
At the same time, the schools are also bound by federal laws and guidelines, such as No Child Left Behind. Lash said she is proud of the fact that MaST, in particular, has met its Adequate Yearly Progress requirements every year under its current charter.
Lash points out that charter schools are, for all intents and purposes, public schools. They only resemble private schools in the respect that students have to apply to get in.
"It’s basically a lottery process," she said.
The only way a student would be denied entry is if the class size is already capped. Other than that, Lash said, charter schools accept children regardless of economic status, ethnicity or grades.
"Perception isn’t always reality," she said. "Charters are not private schools, they are public schools."
Charter schools operate under a contract with the school districts serving the municipalities in which they are situated. Unlike traditional public schools, students enrolling in a charter school don’t have to adhere to strict geographic boundaries in terms of deciding what school to attend.
For example, MaST, the school that Lash’s children attend, educates students from 12 different ZIP codes throughout the city, Lash said.
Philadelphia has 61 charter schools operating citywide. There are a total of 32,000 students currently attending those schools, with an additional 20,000 on a waiting list to get in, according to Lash.
The real benefits of a charter school have to do with the specialized instruction, Lash said. This is where charters differ from traditional public school.
"There are some things that I really wanted that I lobbied for, like art and music, like a library program, like smaller class sizes, more state-of-the-art programs, more innovation, more technology," Lash said of her days as a public school mom. "The thing about a standardized curriculum in a public school is that it’s kind of one size fits all."
She said her aim is not to bash public schools — she and her husband are products of the public school system— but rather to push for choice.
Scott Meier couldn’t agree more.
Meier helped to co-found PUCS alongside Lash and serves as the president of the Parent Advisory Council at MaST, of which Lash is also a member. He said his decision to move his children to a charter school also stemmed from an uneasiness about the middle school model.
His oldest son Scott, now 18, attended regular public school through fourth grade, but all of his other children, now ages 11, 12 and 13, have grown up in a charter school.
Meier initially went online to research charter schools, and soon learned of the benefits associated with a more specialized curriculum. And Scott, who was enrolled at MaST in fifth grade, ended up enjoying his new educational institution, as did the other children.
"They’re very happy there," Meier said. "He (Scott) was OK with Bridesburg (Elementary), he did well there, but he’s excelled in MaST. He’s gotten a lot out of MaST."
Meier added that there is sibling preference at charter schools, which made it easier for his younger children to get accepted after Scott was enrolled.
Meier shared Lash’s sentiment that the smaller class sizes at a charter school offer a more healthy learning environment, since instructors can spend more one-on-one time with students.
"That’s definitely beneficial, because the staff gets to know the kids, and can play to their strengths and weaknesses," he said.
As for his volunteerism, Meier said he decided to get involved, at first with MaST’s parent council, and then PUCS, after noticing what he said was a bad portrayal of charter schools in the news media.
In actuality, he said, charters are filled with dedicated teachers, administrators and parents who only want what’s best for the children. And the latter, he said, work tirelessly to ensure the word gets out about what a viable alternative charters really are.
"The parents are major stakeholders in the charters," he said. "They choose to put their children in the charters."
Meier also said charter schools are perhaps held to a higher standard than traditional public schools because they run the risk of being shut down if performance and accountability are sub-par. On the flip side, it’s much more difficult to close a regular public school, he said.
As for the relationship between charter schools and city district officials, Lash said things have been going much more smoothly since her group’s inception.
She acknowledges part of the reason the group formed was in response to a School Reform Commission vote in late 2007 to amend the charter school policy with what she termed little opportunity for discussion and input by charter school parents, but she also says things have been better since then.
And she expects PUCS to have a good working relationship with Arlene Ackerman, the School District of Philadelphia’s new chief executive officer.
In the end, Lash said she has not regretted one bit her decision to put her children in a charter school. Her only hope is that other parents realize that they have a real choice when it comes to the education of their kids.
"There are incredible schools with incredibly dedicated faculty and parents and amazing kids that are doing wonderful things," she said. ••
Reporter Jon Campisi can be reached at 215-354-3038 or jcampisi@phillynews.com