Strengthening Federal Investment in Charter School Facilities
Author: Wolfe, Christy
Date: 2018-02-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Charter Schools,Educational Facilities,Federal Aid,Financial Support,School Choice,Private Financial Support,Academic Achievement,Disadvantaged Youth,School Safety,Federal Government,Incentives,Educational Equity (Finance),Program Development,Tables (Data),Educational Policy,Futures (of Society),Grants

Charter schools today serve more than 3 million students. Nationally, these students account for approximately 6 percent of all K-12 enrollment, though the percentage is much higher in many communities. Research shows that charter schools on average have a positive impact on student outcomes, and survey data suggest that there are an additional 2.5 million students whose parents would enroll them in a charter school if location and capacity were not an issue. Still, access to facilities is and will continue to be a challenge to the growth of the sector. Public charter schools do not have access to the same financing structures as district schools and, as a result, charter schools are often forced to resort to operating in subpar facilities (like church basements or abandoned storefronts) that lack important amenities (like gymnasiums, libraries, and science labs) or not open at all. A series of stopgap philanthropic and government solutions have helped charter schools access facilities. However, these solutions are limited in both their reach and funding, and do not come close to meeting the charter sector's facilities needs. Given both the increasing demand for charter schools and the academic growth that many charter schools accomplish for high-need youth, it is imperative to improve charter schools' access to facilities. Education is primarily a state responsibility, but the size and importance of the charter school facilities challenge merits the attention of federal policymakers. Federal dollars have historically been a catalyst for charter school growth and innovation, federal policymakers are uniquely positioned to ensure the equitable treatment of all public school children, and federal policy can help provide comprehensive and long-term solutions to help all students attend school in a high-quality and safe facility. Moreover, the federal government has an interest in charters' ability to better reach underserved young people. Federal policymakers may take up the issue of infrastructure in the near future, where they can create and amend programs that will meaningfully improve charter schools' access to facilities. The purpose of this paper is to examine what can be done at the federal level to provide additional resources to charter schools to access school buildings, and to create incentives for states to address inequities in the allocation and funding of buildings. The ideas presented are the result of a one-day convening of more than 30 charter school facility policy experts, finance experts, practitioners, and nonprofit lenders. They include changes that policymakers can make to strengthen existing programs as well as new programs that policymakers can create to ease the facilities burden on charter schools. The proposals offered in this paper are summarized in the tables on the following two pages. Collectively, the suggestions we offer will broaden the reach of federal investments and help equalize access to facilities for charter schools. This will ensure that new schools can launch and existing, high-performing schools can expand to meet current and future demand.