Increased Assault on DC Charters

When forums are framed in deliberately misleading language, we know the intent isn’t public information but harmful actions. That’s why I’m writing to you right now, to bring to your attention that in the District, anti-charter forces are organizing community forums, clad in pleasing language like “transparency” and “accountability” but which in reality have as an ultimate goal the destruction of education choices for the children of DC. Those choices lifted a failed, mismanaged system out of disaster, lifted the achievement for thousands and the futures for tens of thousands. Thanks to charter schools, kids are learning, people are moving back to the city FOR those schools and the economy is booming.

The topic of DC’s public charter schools will be discussed at these two forums on 9/11 and 9/24:

6:30 p.m. Wed. Sept. 11
‘Bethel 21’: School Choice Forum

Hosted by Joshua Johnson, host of NPR’s 1A.

PANELISTS:
Marco Clark, Richard Wright Public Charter School
Adam Harris, The Atlantic
Elizabeth Davis, Washington Teachers’ Union

Metropolitan A.M.E. Church. 1518 M Street N.W.

RSVP HERE

6:30 p.m. Tues. Sept. 24.
City Paper Community Conversations- School Transparency

Moderated by Rachel M. Cohen,

PANELISTS:
Fritz Mulhauser, DC Open Government Coalition
Elizabeth Koenig, EmpowerED
Rich Pohlman, FOCUS

Black Cat- 1811 14th St NW

RSVP HERE

But that’s not good enough for the mostly newer entrants to the city who would not have dreamed of living here – like many of us do and did- before the hot bars and restaurants came along. They don’t move to Ward 7 or 8 but they want to thwart the parents living there from having the choices they have. Instead, they move to the more affluent sections where shopping is a hop, skip and a jump away, they enroll their kids in schools of choice – or buy in affluent neighborhoods where they can afford to be near a great public school – and they think that the schools are great for their kids (when in reality their financial and neighborhood advantage starts their kids out at much higher levels and results in higher performing schools).

Yet across the city the more than 120 charter schools serving almost 50% of the city’s students are largely focussed on those for whom choice was anathema until charters came along. They are high performing highly accountable and highly in demand.

And except for one thing, the public would see evidence of this daily. That one thing is, most of the parents whose children attend charter schools don’t have the luxury of time to show up at meetings to counter the atrocious and immoral allegations of these allegedly progressive parents (mostly white) who oppose charters and who are now influencing leading African American community members by making them feel that their choices – or those of their neighbors – are somehow all a plot to help someone else.

No, parents of kids in charters and the thousands on waiting lists are working, struggling and sticking to their own business while these so called promoters of good public ed are holding forums, attending city council meetings and feeding bad media bad stories. The unions and their friends are funding this nonsense. It’s time to push back.

We urge you to take action now to push back on these ridiculous people and their damaging events.

Pass this onto others in your schools, your communities.

There is real danger for all who value great education. Speak out, get involved. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook and we’ll keep you informed there. Watch for our Doors for Opportunity across the city. And please share any events or things you hear that are being touted by these anti-education opportunity forces with us at [email protected].