Foster City Islander Article - 02-07-2007
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Charter Public |
Phyllis Moore, President, Foster City High School Foundation |
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Shattering Charter School Myths
In his book, And Never Stop Dancing, physician and author Gordon Livingston contends that “Much of what we think we know is untrue.” For many, this is certainly the case with charter schools.
A major misunderstanding surrounds the financial impact of our planned high school on the San Mateo Union High School District (SMUHSD). In fact, as the San Mateo Daily News recently reported, our partner High Tech High “...has been chartered directly by the State Board of Education, meaning that it doesn’t have to...pull any resources from the local district school.” The News also calculated that a state-chartered public high school in Foster City could “...save the San Mateo Union High School District the cost of educating as many as 500 students – or about $4.5 million a year – without cutting into its revenues.”
Major misconceptions also surround the success of charter schools. In fact, HTH presents an impressive success record. More than 75 percent of HTH students score above the national average in reading, language, mathematics and science. Nearly all HTH graduates go to college; most to four-year schools. Studies conducted by EdSource, a respected independent research group, as well as research sponsored by the Los Angeles Times, show that charter schools perform at least as well, and in many cases better, than traditional public schools.
Another myth surrounds the relationship between charter schools and school districts. In fact, HTH has worked cooperatively with local school districts in the development of each of its six high schools and will do the same in Foster City. HTH’s Chief Operating Officer Jed Wallace stresses, “We always seek ‘win-win’.” Our high school in Foster City will score a win for our children, a win for their parents, a win for our city, a win for our school district, a win for innovative education and a win for our society.
Building our high school will be an enormous win for everyone in our community. Winning will require the drive and dedication of all our residents and our city government. Shattering myths is critical to our success. As Ghandi said, “When you know the truth, the truth makes you a soldier.”
