Reform By Charter

School Administrator, August, 1997 by Donna Harrington-Lueker

"We're just strong promoters of choice an see charter schools as a viable choice for parents," says Superintendent Rick O'Connell. In fact, he adds, one of the district's core-knowledge charter schools was the first charter school in Colorado developed by parents.

That commitment to choice and charters, though, means that school officials have a significant role to play in helping charter organizers understand "the mechanics of running a school," O'Connell acknowledges.

One of Douglas County's assistant superintendents, Pat Grippe, works closely with the district's charter schools, coaching new charter schools through the application process, advising them n start-up issues, and negotiating whether the charter will purchase se vices such as transportation, payroll, and school lunches from the district. Once a charter is operating, Grippe continues to provide advice on discipline codes, personnel issues special education plans, governance, budgeting, and a myriad of other concerns.

Such support is most intensive when a charter is starting up and typically tapers off once t e school becomes established, Grippe says.

The process is time-consuming. Grippe estimates that e spends half his time working with charter schools in the district. Still, the district is comfortable wit the relationship and with the amount of support it provides. "We went in to [our first] charter with the untie standing and the philosophy that t is was one of our schools--and that it was just as important as any other school in our district," says Grippe.

Up until now, the district provided such support free of charge. This fall, though, when the district has five charter schools operating, the school system plans to hire a halftime charter school ombudsman whose salary will be assessed to the charter schools.

Genteel Relations

One of the biggest challenges facing charter schools is securing the funds they require for start-up costs for rent, instructional materials, insurance, and other needs. (Charter school legislation typically provides a charter school with some portion of the district's per-pupil expenditure once the school is operating but offers little in the way of start-up funds.)

To help with such expenses, the Jefferson County Public Schools, located in the suburbs of Denver, provides charter schools with loans of up to $100,000 and has allowed the fledgling schools to use surplus materials from the district's warehouse, says Wayne Carle, who retired this summer as superintendent. The charter schools repay the loans over the course of their four-year contract.

"There's some risk involved," Carle says, "but there's also that recognition that if you approve a charter, you have an interest in having it succeed."

The district also has grouped its "schools of choice," which include the charter schools as well as districtwide alternative schools, into a single feeder system of schools and encourages charter school personnel to attend in-service workshops the district offers. (Approximately 10,000 of the district's 85,000 students attend alternative schools or charters.) "That's really been beneficial," says Carle. "They're able to trade on each other's ideas and compare not only logistics but programs.