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Survey

2020 Candidate Questionnaire

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  • Charter Public Schools

    Charter public schools are publicly funded, open enrollment, tuition-free schools. Charter public schools are free from many of the rules and regulations imposed by state and local agencies. In exchange for this freedom, which comes in the form of greater flexibility in hiring, curriculum, and teaching methods, charter public schools are held accountable for student performance. In the 2018- 2019 academic year, there were 141 charter schools in Illinois serving over 64,000 students.

  • FUNDING

    1. The landmark funding reform bill, SB1947, narrowed the range that districts can fund charter schools from 75% to 125% of a district’s Per Capita Tuition Charge (PCTC) to 97%-103%, providing greater equity to charter students.

  • FACILITIES

    2. The current Illinois charter law does not address access to facilities funding for all Illinois charter public schools. Meanwhile access to facilities often creates a large financial burden for charter public schools and can take valuable resources away from the classroom. These additional financial costs have become one of the greatest causes of inequity between charter and district schools.

  • AUTHORIZERS

    3. Illinois passed SB1226 in 2018 eliminating the Charter School Commission which served as an appeals route for charter public schools. Currently, in Illinois there are no alternative authorizers outside of school districts. Alternatively, states like New York have empowered state universities and colleges to authorize and oversee innovative charter public schools with strong connections to their higher education sponsors. This model provides a new way to bring higher education expertise and access to primary and secondary education students.

  • ELECTED SCHOOL BOARD

    4. Currently, the Mayor of Chicago appoints seven members to serve on the Chicago Board of Education which is responsible for the oversight of the Chicago Public Schools. In recent years, there has been a movement to change this governance model to include board members who are elected directly by the voters of Chicago. The 2018 Illinois House of Representatives voted 110-2 to pass a bill that would have mandated a 20-member elected school board. It is expected that similar bills will surface in the upcoming legislative session. An elected school board would create additional direct representation for communities, but it could also create discord with a large number of elected members.

  • AUTONOMY

    5. Autonomy has been a hallmark of charter public schools since their inception. This freedom allows charter schools curricular and operational freedom, provided they meet academic targets. This autonomy has led charter public schools to innovate and develop new ideas and share best practices. Autonomy has also been responsible for shaping successful charter school’s culture, curriculum, and allowed more money to flow to the classroom.
  • In general, INCS Action does not release the answers of these surveys to the public; however, I acknowledge that it reserves the right to do so. I also understand that INCS ACTION PAC will use my answers to the questions above as one of a number of factors in consideration for endorsement of my candidacy.
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  • PLEASE SIGN & RETURN COMPLETED FORM BY Friday, July 31, 2020.

    Return options:
    • Email a scanned copy to ariel@incsaction.org
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    If you have any questions about this survey, please do not hesitate to contact Ariel Johnson at (773) 370-7179.
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