It was an historic day in Washington when our state’s first public charter school opened its doors on Wednesday. First Place Scholars is the first of its kind ready to go since voters approved these new public schools in 2012.
But even as First Place Scholars welcomed children on opening day, a narrow segment of the liberal progressive community is continuing desperately to close its doors.
The mission of First Place Scholars is to help children from impoverished backgrounds – including some whose families have experienced homelessness – overcome their rough start in life and excel in school. The school’s public funding only accounts for a third of its budget, but the new money has allowed it to expand opportunity for 98 students, up from 45 last year.
You’d think that a school set up to meet the unique needs of kids from poor backgrounds would be welcomed by liberals, but perhaps you don’t understand the power politics practiced by the Washington Education Association. The state teachers union, along with El Centro de la Raza and the League of Women Voters, is suing to overturn the state’s public charter school law and take away the $720,000 First Place Scholars receives in taxpayer money – and the education opportunity being extended to more at-risk kids.
If the union leaders spending the dues money to take from teachers was really concerned with educating children instead of protecting their share of the education cash pie, they would drop their lawsuit. It is, after all, a pittance compared to the vast sums the state spends on public education.
It’s not just about money, though. The union bosses can’t stand that public charter schools are not mandated under state law to use only teachers represented by the WEA. That’s the real issue in the case – it’s about political power.
And if a few homeless kids get in the way of the WEA’s monopoly, well maybe they should start paying dues to get the union’s attention.
