Let’s not scapegoat charter public schools and the families who value them (Viewpoint) (2025)

Public schools across our region – both district public and charter public – are facing another challenging budget season. Between uncertainty around federal funding, the impact of economic policies and continued demographic shifts, all public schools are trying to navigate an increasingly difficult financial environment.

Last year’s school budget debate was especially painful in Northampton. Against that backdrop, Mary Bates’s recent commentary in The Republican ("It’s time to reform funding for Mass. charter schools," March 26) unfortunately blames local charter public schools for the tight budgets that districts operate under. It’s the same argument that opponents of charter public schools have been using for decades, and it distorts the facts and adds confusion and misdirection to an already difficult situation. Our public school resources belong to our kids.

Every child deserves to get a great public education at a school that’s right for them, whether that’s a district public school or a charter public school.

Let’s look at the facts about charter public school funding. Our state provides education aid to local communities for all public school children who live in a given community – regardless of which public school those children attend. For children who go to district schools, their education funding is allocated to the district. For children enrolled in charter public schools, the education funding goes to their school. It’s an easy and fair concept.

The essay, in my view, misrepresents the flow of funds: charter public schools receive their funding based on their enrollment and their students’ needs directly from the state. The reason the funding does not go to the district is because the district is no longer educating that child.

Additionally, the state recognizes that changes in enrollment have an impact on districts. So, when students enroll in charter public schools, the state provides additional aid to the district over three years. In total, the district gets $2 for every dollar the charter gets. Northampton gets two full years of state education aid for students who aren’t attending the district.

Over the past 10 years (2014-2024), the number of Northampton children attending local charter public schools has actually declined from 190 to 172. Over that same period, spending on Northampton’s district schools has risen from $34 million to $51 million, with spending per pupil increasing from $12,600 to $19,600. During that same time, enrollment in the Northampton district fell from 2,701 students to 2,496.

The fact is that the enrollment of students in charter public schools has been a known factor in Northampton’s budget for decades. The current problems have nothing to do with charter public schools.

The causes of current budget pressures are myriad — use of one-time grants for operational expenses, an increase in students identified with special needs and a list of long deferred difficult decisions.

Blaming charter public schools and consequently the families who have decided to send their children to these schools is divisive. As the author rightly states at the beginning, it is an advantage to families to have excellent educational options.

I appreciate that our local municipalities are facing serious financial challenges. So are all of our public schools – district and charter alike.

Instead of pitting our public school students, educators and families against one another, let’s work together, as a community of public schools, to address these challenges.

Let’s stick to the facts – not scapegoat charter public schools and the families who value what they offer.

And most of all, let’s stand together to advocate for increased funding for all public schools.

Daniel Klatz is a retired educator who was an administrator at the Hilltown Cooperative Charter Public School for 19 years.