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Sports to careers, Satisfactory, questionable or unsatisfactory.
all school programs
scrutinized
The schools chief wants to
BOE: Charter schools need funds
know: Do they further our
goals or are unneeded?By Crystal Kua
Star-BulletinThose labels will be slapped on the 259 instructional and support programs in the Department of Education as they undergo scrutiny during the next six months.
The department has begun a program review of the first and largest group of programs -- 134 school-based services -- to determine whether the department should continue to fund them.
Programs in the first group run the gamut from athletics to careers to classroom cleaners to sister state student exchange.
"There's a certain amount of anxiety because it's a certain amount of risk," Michael Heim told the Board of Education's budget committee. Heim heads the Department of Education's planning and evaluation branch, which is conducting the review.
State Schools Superintendent Paul LeMahieu wants the budget to concentrate on programs that are essential to his agenda of standards-based reform and which provide direct services to schools.
The review will also look at whether the programs are necessary to satisfy critical needs such as health and safety requirements.
Once information on each program is gathered, the department will rate and then designate whether the program is satisfactory, questionable or unsatisfactory.
Programs deemed questionable will undergo further review. Those considered unsatisfactory will get recommendations for reorganization and redistribution of funding.
The first group of programs -- which makes up $700 million of the department's $1 billion budget -- are expected to be reviewed by October. All reviews are scheduled to be completed by February.
Board of Education members said they are elated with the review because some programs haven't been scrutinized in decades and there is no way to assess if the growing number of department-funded programs are needed.
"It just grows and grows," said board member Karen Knudsen, chairwoman of the Budget and Fiscal Accountability Committee.
Member Herbert Watanabe was among those wanting the department to study "pet projects" initiated by state lawmakers and pilot projects that never ended.
Watanabe said the review also could determine if some essential programs are underfunded.
The state Legislature needs to know the additional financial burden on the public school system that comes with establishing new charter schools, Board of Education members said yesterday. Charter schools
need more funds,
BOE saysBy Crystal Kua
Star-BulletinThe Department of Education is preparing to ask for $6.8 million in fixed costs and a yet-to-be-determined amount for additional costs associated with charter schools.
Charter schools are considered public schools because they are funded by taxpayer dollars, but by law, they are exempt from most laws and school regulations, except collective bargaining, discrimination, and health and safety. In exchange for autonomy, these schools agree with the state on a charter to meet certain expectations.
When state law changed last year to allow new schools to become charter schools, the law didn't come with additional funding, board members complained.
The law allows up to 25 schools. So far, six schools have approved charters, but 40 organizations wish to start charter schools. Those additional schools could strain department resources if more funding isn't forthcoming.
Board member Garrett Toguchi said that while charter schools should get equal funding, he doesn't want money taken from other schools to pay for hidden costs of charter schools. "There's got to be a statement that any additional cost doesn't come out of the existing school budget."
For example, while it may cost the department $2 per child to provide school lunch, there may be additional cost in transporting that lunch to a charter school that opts to stay with the department's school lunch program.
Assistant Superintendent Laurel Johnston said the state auditor is expected to release a report by November detailing what services would be the responsibility of charter schools and which ones would fall under the department.