DeLaney comments on ‘genius’ innovation in the charter school space

Wednesday (April 10), the State Board of Education granted provisional private school accreditation to the Genius School, a failing charter school on Indianapolis' east side. State Rep. Ed DeLaney (D-Indianapolis), member of the House Committee on Education, issued a statement on this “genius” innovation in the charter and private school space:

“I am stunned. The State of Indiana will fund any failing school so long as it has 'charter' or 'private' in the name. In one swift move, the Department of Education allowed the Genius School, beset by performance issues and falling attendance, to switch from being a charter school to a private school so they can receive private school vouchers and less regulatory oversight with the use of those state dollars. I have to hand it to the school's leadership – this is a 'genius' innovation we never saw coming.

“This approval by the DOE raises more questions than anything. Is this the fruit of 15 years of so-called 'education reform'? Is this where all charter schools are headed – switching to become private schools so they can still receive taxpayer dollars with no state oversight? Does a charter school that becomes a private school have an obligation to pay the state anything back?

“These questions can all be answered through a simple means: the Republican supermajority signing off on Sen. Andrea Hunley's recent request for an interim study committee examining the charter school authorization process to determine opportunities for efficiency and equity. This should be a clarion call to all lawmakers that the charter and private school space must be subject to more scrutiny.”