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The Ohio Department of Education has additional restrictions for implementing $71 million in federal charter school expansion grants.
(Ohio Department of Education)
COLUMBUS, Ohio - The U.S. Department of Education has slapped more restrictions on the state's $71 million charter school expansion grant.
In a letter to the Ohio Department of Education today, the grant was declared "high risk" because of the poor academic performance of the state's charters and the struggles the state has had in implementing portions of House Bill 2, the state's charter reform bill passed last fall by the state legislature.
High on the list are the reviews of charter oversight organizations that had to be thrown out last year after the department manipulated data to make the sponsors of online schools look better..
The letter states: "As part of this "high-risk" designation, we are imposing certain High-Risk Special Conditions on ODE's CSP SEA grant that will help ODE and the Department more clearly determine ODE's ongoing compliance with applicable requirements" so that it will be more transparent and so that any issues can be identified and fixed quickly.
Restrictions include:
- As announced months ago, the state cannot give out grants to schools as it has in the past. It must have prior approval from the U.S. Department of Education before transferring any money.
- The department must evaluate dropout recovery schools better. It must also provide added information to the USDOE for any grants to dropout schools.
- The state must report its progress four times each year.
- ODE must hire an independent monitor of the grant program.
- The state must create a Grant Implementation Advisory Committee
- And it must do demanding ratings of the oversight agencies knows as "sponsors" in Ohio, but as "authorizers" in most other states.
"We further expect that ODE will do all it can to ensure that the review process reflects the rigorous oversight of authorizers that was described in ODE's approved grant application and establishes high standards for performance and accountability," the letter states. "ODE will be transparent with the Department and the public if it experiences further challenges in this area, in particular with the implementation of the combined components for the overall authorizer rating."
See the full letter below.
ODE spokesperson Brittany Halpin said the department will follow the new rules and is glad that the grants will go forward.
"Ohio's accountability system is stronger thanks to reforms in the state's charter school law," Halpin said. "The department now has greater authority to ensure that quality sponsors oversee schools and we're able to provide incentives to sponsors that have track records of success."
She added: "We've also taken steps to ensure the new sponsor evaluation system is clear, transparent and consistent with rule and law. The department is working towards releasing the sponsor evaluations by the October 15 deadline."
U.S. Sen Sherrod Brown was among several legislators who questioned why Ohio should receive the grants last year.
"Too many Ohio charter schools have a record of waste, fraud, and abuse - they take in taxpayer money and shortchange our students," Brown said. "The safeguards the U.S. Department of Education has put in place to monitor how Ohio spends this grant will greatly increase oversight, accountability, and transparency, so students receive the education they deserve."