Yesterday, a Florida appeals court handed a charter school group a partial victory.
Some legal complications remain for the Florida Charter Educational Foundation, but it prevailed on the key constitutional question — whether the state has the authority to overturn local school board decisions on charter school applications.
The 4th District Court of Appeal’s decision upholding charter school appeals is a big deal. National business and education reform organizations had gotten involved in the case. A statement issued this morning by the National Alliance for Public Charter schools explains what was at stake.
There are many reasons a charter school can be denied their application at the local level – reasons ranging from legitimate concerns to political interests that benefit adults, not students. We are pleased that Florida has upheld the constitutionality of the pathway which allows charter schools that have been denied their application to appeal to the State Board of Education. It is imperative that Florida’s students, and all students, have access to high-quality public school options – and that political interests don’t prevent these options. The State Board of Education will provide an expert and supervisory eye to such appeals processes, and ensure decisions are truly being made with the best interests of students in mind.
The Palm Beach County school district had argued the state constitution gives it the exclusive authority to regulate all public schools in its geographic area, and the state appeals process violates that principle. This is the second time a state appeals court has rejected that reasoning. Florida’s constitution gives the state board the authority to ensure local school boards follow the law, which spells out requirements for approving or rejecting a charter school application.
According to the Palm Beach Post, the local school board hasn’t decided whether it will appeal the ruling to the state Supreme Court, but its chairman is looking into the possibility.
For the charter school at the center of the case, other issues remain to be hashed out. It’s battling the district over a rule requiring charter schools to be “innovative” and different from other schools in the district. Its lawyers argue this requirement is self-serving and politically motivated.
The individual charter school will also have to make its case again to the Florida Board of Education, where it already won its first appeal. The 4th District joined other Florida appeals courts in criticizing high-performing charter school appeals decided by the state board, saying there weren’t enough written records outlining the board’s decision-making process.
To summarize: Florida’s charter school appeals process look like it’s on solid constitutional footing, but courts have concerns about how appeals are conducted by the state board (and another district looks poised to wade into this issue). And the showdown over a school district’s controversial “innovation” requirement isn’t over.
