DENNIS – Governor Charlie Baker and state officials have received letters from Dennis Selectmen, criticizing charter school funding.
Selectmen believe that the funding undercuts school districts with a high number of “high needs” students.
Around 54 percent of the school district’s population are high needs students.
High needs comprise of low-income, special needs, and English as a second language students.
The letter said that selectmen do not support lifting the cap on charter schools and that they would like charter schools to raise some of their own funding.
Dennis selectman Wayne Bergeron said that the Dennis-Yarmouth Regional School District will lose $1.85 million in the next school year to Sturgis Charter Public School and Cape Cod Lighthouse Charter School.
“It’s not an equal educational playing field and it is certainly separate,” said Bergeron. “We need to go ahead and have a funding formula that works, not just for the charter schools, but also for the traditional public schools.”
Funding that would normally go to the public school district follows students when they choose to go to a charter school instead.
The D-Y School District also plans to cut 19 assistant positions and nine teacher positions next year.
Bergeron believes that the state needs to increase Chapter 70 local aid and funding for regional transportation and special education.
“These children are underserved and they’re marginalized, and the charter schools are taking a lot of the money we get to work with,” said Bergeron.
By JUSTIN SAUNDERS, CapeCod.com Newscenter
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