Memo: NSEA Supports Senate Bill 363

Over the last several years, NSEA has been calling for greater accountability for charter schools.

SB363 is a small, but important reform that will help shine some light on what happens to millions of tax-payer dollars directed to charter schools.

We know the explosive growth of charters has been driven by deliberate, billionaire-backed efforts to exempt charters from the basic safeguards and standards that apply to our neighborhood public schools. This growth has created an uneven dynamic, undermining local public schools and communities, without producing an overall increase in student learning and growth.

However, it wasn’t until last June, when the Nevada Current reported on a dispute between the American Preparatory Academy in Las Vegas and their Utah-based, for-profit management organization, that we were able to view more of the inner workings of the charter industry. This included large payouts to education management organizations who the charter claimed provided little in terms of services and complicated financial relationships related to charter school facilities.