Robert
Cotto, Jr., is an elected member of the Hartford, Connecticut, Board of
Education. In this article,
he describes the outlandish fees paid to charter management organizations.
“For
a number of charter schools, roughly 10 percent of all of public dollars meant
for educating children in these schools go to pay fees for private companies
called “charter management organizations.” That’s a problem….
“These CMOs claim that they are private corporations, not public agencies. Organizations that claim to be CMOs in Connecticut include Achievement First; Capital Preparatory Schools; DOMUS, and Jumoke/FUSE, which is now defunct. It’s often hard to tell the difference between the CMO and the charter schools they manage…..
Roughly
10 percent of a charter school’s budget can go toward management fees. For
example, the New Haven-based CMO called Achievement First charged Achievement
First-Hartford Charter School a $1.14 million management fee in 2013-14. The
state provided Achievement First-Hartford charter schools more than $11 million
to operate. So about 10 percent of that state funding went to Achievement First
the CMO, not the charter school in Hartford, which ended the year with a surplus…..
Multiply
this fee by the four Achievement First charter schools in Connecticut, and
Achievement First Inc., the CMO, walks away with about $4.45 million in fees.
The
charter schools that we know pay charter management fees to CMOs have included
the Achievement First schools, Stamford & Trailblazers Academies (DOMUS),
and Jumoke until recently. Interestingly, the proposed Capital Prep Harbor
School in Bridgeport would pay a 10 percent management fee to the Capital Prep
CMO. Recent reports show that lobbyists have spent thousands to get this new
charter school established.
Not
all charter schools are managed by CMOs or pay these management fees. In
2012-13, most charter schools in Connecticut did not pay a “charter management
fee.” These charter schools included: ISAAC, Common Ground, Explorations,
Odyssey, New Beginnings, Bridge Academy, Highville, Side by Side, Park City
Prep, Integrated Day, and Charter School for Young Children.
Simply
put, charter schools can operate without the need to pay fees to CMOs.
There
is a pattern here. The groups that would benefit the most from charter
management fees are among the most vocal advocates for more charter schools
managed by CMOs, like Capital Prep Schools Inc.
The
charter schools that don’t pay CMOs are not as active in the massive lobbying
effort this year for more charter schools. This is a key difference among
Connecticut charter schools.
Instead
of operating schools as public responsibilities, CMOs operate charter schools
as moneymaking arrangements, almost like fast-food franchises. Companies like
Subway Inc. charge local franchises a fee for services ranging from start-up,
food supplies, to signage. This is how Subway makes a profit.
The
CMOs could be spending this money on millions of dollars in No. 2 pencils,
helping to buy foot-long Subway sandwiches at lobbying events, or paying for
student field trips to rally for more charter school money. It’s just unclear….
All
other public schools and districts must disclose how they spend public dollars.
Traditional public, magnet, technical, and charter schools must report their
dollars. By law there also are regulations for CMOs, including rules about
fees. But the CMOs say they are neither public agencies, nor charter schools!
And
recently, Achievement First, among others, fought against a now-dead public
accountability bill before the Connecticut General Assembly. The bill would
have more clearly required that CMOs be subject to the Freedom of Information
Act. (It’s already fairly clear, but CMOs don’t think the current rules apply
to them.)
Many
question where the money is coming from to aggressively lobby for more charter
schools. I would add the question, “where are charter management fees
going…..?”
If
CMOs won’t show us the money, then maybe we don’t need CMOs or their fees.
Charter schools can manage without them.