It may be that under the charter, the principal can run the school free from many regulations but that staff voice and involvement are no greater than before. Since many provisions of union contracts are designed to protect members from arbitrary and capricious actions of principals, unions are not likely to change these provisions so long as school authority relations remain unchanged. If, however, charter schools are governed differently in a collegial, professional and democratic manner, there is no reason for unions to insist that rules in a central contract take precedence over the judgment of the members in each school. Using per-pupil expenditure as a way of calculating costs and devising budgets creates a host of difficulties. Making these calculations will require a whole new type of negotiations for unions.
Public education is under attack.
Even though the efforts to adopt vouchers have been defeated, voucher proposals are likely to resurface unless confidence is restored in public education. The greatest hope for such restoration lies in the creation of a type of system that already works in other countries. Unfortunately, there are efforts to use charter schools not as a way to strengthen public education, but as a cover for undermining them by providing public funds for private schools and for home schooling. We will work to defeat such proposals. Students do not learn without hard work both in school and at home.