DeSantis wants to manipulate a government program meant to bring jobs and opportunity to neighborhoods to instead provide steep tax incentives to charter schools, you know because that’s what for profit charter schools and we need.
What has he proposed doing for public schools again? Oh that’s right something so close to nothing you might as well say it is.
From Politifact:
Gov. Ron DeSantis wants to leverage a tax incentive championed by President Donald Trump to launch a five-fold expansion of charter schools in the state.
Some 250 Florida communities could be candidates for the new charter schools under the DeSantis plan.
The DeSantis budget proposed linking the state‘s Schools of Hope program to federal "opportunity zones"created by Trump’s $1.5 billion tax plan. The zones, which were championed by policymakers on the left and right, offer tax incentives to encourage private investment in economically distressed and lower-income communities.
At least 247 Florida communities would be eligible for Hope schools, up from 47 currently, if lawmakers approve the DeSantis plan. The governor’s budget also includes additional incentives to charter schools, such as money for construction.
Hope schools currently are permitted to open their doors only near “persistently low-performing schools” that fail to earn a grade of C or better from the state three years in a row. The program was championed in 2017 by then-House Speaker Richard Corcoran.
About 50 schools were on the list in 2017-18.
Um so let me make this clear, rather than investing in our public schools, he wants to invest more in charter schools, that can open up across the street from public schools. As bad as that is, his proposal gets even worse.
Also from Politifact,
In addition to opening more communities to Hope schools, DeSantis recommended changing the definition of a low-performing school to give charters even more opportunity to expand. In the DeSantis budget, “persistently low-performing schools” would be those receiving a grade below C for three out of five years, as opposed to three consecutive years.
DeSantis also recommended allowing Hope charters to receive charter school capital outlay funding during their first year of operation, something not allowed by current rule. Hope schools would be eligible for state money to lease a facility under the DeSantis proposal.
Lawmakers in 2017 created Schools of Hope as part of a controversial measure that cleared the way for established charter school companies to open their doors near struggling traditional public schools.
As of December, however, no operator has committed to opening a school, according to the state.
The state set aside $140 million for Schools of Hope in 2017-18 and 2018-19, and the Department of Education is requesting the same amount for next school year.
Some of the funding was awarded to supplement the resources of low-performing traditional public schools. About $40 million of the fund went to traditional public schools in 2017-18, while $12.8 million was spent in 2018-19, according to the state.
Think about that friends, instead of investing in our public schools he wants to double down on a charter school scheme that failed and make the requirements which were modest to say the least even easier.
Um maybe if we would have spent that 200 million unspent on the fifty low performing schools that were originally designated in communities of hope they wouldn’t be low performing anymore and friends that should tell you all you need to know.
You see DeSantis and the republicans in Tallahassee don’t want to invest in or help improve our public schools, no they would rather invest in one voucher and charter scheme after another. Their aim, the destruction of public schools and it doesn’t matter to them one bit to them if the replacement is inferior. They are like modern day crusaders obsessed with their cause and if people and communities get hurt in their path of destruction so be it.
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