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State Board Prez Fights Parental Choice

A growing push back against charter schools

The president of the Michigan State Board of Education said there are “detrimental effects” on education performance with an "unregulated" school marketplace where parents are left to decide.

John Austin made the comments in an email when asked about accountability of charter public schools. He said parents don’t have “perfect information” about education quality and “many parents and their students can't execute a choice if they wanted to… they don't have time energy, transportation money to pick or get to a different school.” (See Austin's full comment here).

In a later phone interview, Austin said he considers Michigan to be "heading in the direction" of an "unregulated" school marketplace.

Austin’s comments are part of growing sentiment among the public sector’s top decision makers that charter schools need more oversight.

State Superintendent Michael Flanagan said he would use his authority to suspend charter authorizers that don’t measure up after a series of articles by the Detroit Free Press was critical of charter schools.

Austin also cited Paul Reville, the former Massachusetts Commissioner of Education, as saying that if a charter school doesn’t outperform a conventional public school, “there is no reason to have them.”

“We hold our charters to a higher standard of performance than typical schools because there are extra costs associated with charters. We expect them to be innovative and high performing. If they’re not, it’s hard to justify the increased expenditure,” said Reville, now the Francis Keppel Professor of Practice of Educational Policy and Administration at Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Reville said that an example of tight control in Massachusetts was that there aren’t multiple authorizes of charter schools, just a single authorizer with “very clear standards and procedures.”

“We close down charter schools if they are not high performing,” he said. “The standards are just high. What we are saying is the school has to be innovative and it has to be high performing. It can’t be more of the same.”

Austin’s stance is that charter schools that don’t do better than conventional schools aren’t necessary.

But Audrey Spalding, education policy director at the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, wondered what these state officials have done to bring accountability to Michigan’s conventional school system.

“Why do state officials value conventional schools more than charter schools? Why should a higher standard applied to charter schools?” Spalding asked.

Karen Braun, a parent activist who blogs about school issues and is involved with “Stop Common Core in Michigan," said that Austin’s comments about parental ability to make choices on education for their children are at odds with the Michigan revised school code. She said the school code recognizes that parents have the “natural and fundamental right” to direct the education of their children and public schools work by “cooperating with the pupil’s parents and legal guardian.”

“It speaks to who is the ultimate authority in education in Michigan,” Braun said. “Parents are the authority and Austin and the schools [are supposed to] work in cooperation with us.”

Gary Naeyaert, executive director of the Great Lakes Education Project, said charter schools are often a better academic option for students than the conventional school district they came from. Naeyaert cited a Center for Research on Education Outcomes (CREDO) study done by Stanford University that found Detroit school children are learning at a rate of an extra three months in school a year when in charter public schools compared to similar counterparts in conventional Detroit Public Schools.

Naeyaert said Austin and others who want more restrictions on charter schools have a limited view of choice in education.

“They believe choice is restricted options within the traditional public school model or allow you to pay tuition for a private school. That’s what they believe choice is,” he said.

Spalding said the concern of the extra cost associated with more charter schools isn’t persuasive.

“Using that logic, why have any choice at all? There are extra costs to having alternative grocery stores, doctors, etc. — should the government ban those options?” Spalding asked.

Editor's Note: The story has been updated to clarify Austin's comments.

Michigan Capitol Confidential is the news source produced by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. Michigan Capitol Confidential reports with a free-market news perspective.

News Story

Michigan 8th Congressional District GOP Primary Getting Feisty

Former Sen. Mike Bishop vs. State Rep. Tom McMillin

When it comes to major federal issues such as health care, energy plans and the role the government should have in banking and housing, Republicans Tom McMillin and Mike Bishop have very similar views.

Both are well-known conservatives running to replace U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Howell, for the 8th Congressional District seat. Rogers is retiring.

Bishop was the Senate Majority Leader under former Gov. Jennifer Granholm. Since leaving office, Bishop has been the chief legal officer for International Bancard Corp. and is an adjunct professor at Thomas M. Cooley Law School.

McMillin was elected to his third term in the Michigan House of Representatives in 2012.

Both candidates are opposed to Obamacare and prefer a market-based insurance plan. Both candidates support U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan’s “premium support” plan on Medicare. The premium support plan allows seniors the choice of a private plan that competes alongside the traditional fee-for-service Medicare program on a newly created Medicare Exchange. Medicare would provide a premium-support payment to pay for or offset the premium of the plan chosen by the senior. 

“I believe we can make health care more affordable and accessible without putting the federal government in charge of Americans’ health care decisions,” Bishop said. “We need patient-centered, free-market policies that will strengthen competition. I also believe that we must simplify our tax code in order to keep people’s hard-earned money in the private sector in order to help stimulate the economy.”

McMillin said he would support a plan that provides more choice to those on Medicare.

“I would prefer health care and health insurance policy be sent to the states,” McMillin said. “If a state wanted to try a more socialized Romneycare kind of plan, they could do that — though I think they would pay a price as businesses and citizens left to go to states with a more market-based system.”

The charter of the Export-Import Bank of the United States expires September of 2014. Neither candidate supports extending it.

The Ex-Im Bank is the export credit agency of the U.S. and helps with the financing for overseas companies in buying of U.S. exports. Because the bank gives special subsidies to select companies that the private market will not, it has faced criticism from free-market advocates.

“U.S. taxpayers should not be strapped with the default risks on loans that certain select businesses have,” McMillin said. “It’s a clear case of corporate welfare.”

Bishop said there needs to be less government intervention and more of a focus on private-sector solutions.

Bishop said he supports expanding all sources of American energy and supports an “all-of-the-above” energy policy.

“We must have a new policy in this country that focuses on safely using American innovation and American natural resources to create millions of jobs, bring down the cost of energy and make America independent from overseas oil,” Bishop said. “Subsidies only add to distort the market creating an uneven playing field that leads to increased prices.”

McMillin said all forms of safe energy production should be allowed.

“But I support ending the subsidies and tax credits to special interest energy sectors,” he said. “We must stop distorting the free market and stop the government from picking winners and losers.”

McMillin said he would support ending all ethanol subsidies and mandates.

“Again, I oppose government picking winners and losers, which due to political influence rarely pick the best option,” McMillin said.

Bishop said he would allow the ethanol subsidies to expire, “while understanding the importance of finding an alternative source of energy that will lead to energy independence.”

Both candidates are also against having the federal government play a major role in the home loan industry.

Each candidate has criticized the other for various votes in the past.

McMillin said that Bishop has a long voting record of supporting the government picking “winner and losers” with various economic development programs.

“I am the House leader in opposing corporate welfare and government subsidies that usually end up costing the tax payers millions more than any benefit to the state,” McMillin said. “My opponent voted for all of these corporate subsidies paid for by Michigan taxpayers, such wind power, film subsidies …”

As Senate Speaker, Bishop did stand against then-Gov. Jennifer Granholm and Democratic Leader of the House Andy Dillon in 2009 against another tax hike. Gov. Granholm eventually signed the 2010 budget but said the cuts were too deep and she didn’t agree with it or support it. 

Bishop said he has a record of persuading Democrats to cut government.

“My opponent does not,” Bishop said. “During my time in the Michigan Legislature, I built a record on finding solutions; working with Republicans and Democrats to achieve tangible, conservative reforms. My opponent has spent many years either being unable or unwilling to work with either side of the aisle to get things done. It takes more to achieve reforms than voting ‘no’ out of principle.”

McMillin, however, has worked with the ACLU as well as House and Senate Democrats to provide better lawyers to people who couldn’t afford attorneys. 

“If you had told me during my Christian Coalition years that I’d be working with the ACLU, I would have called you crazy,” McMillin said in an MLive story. “But when you’re working on something you feel strongly about, you can work with groups that you normally wouldn’t agree with."

Editor's note: Michigan Capitol Confidential will be reporting and writing about key primary races leading up to the election on Aug. 5. The series of stories are designed to provide readers with some insight into candidates who have said they support free market issues. The stories are not endorsements and readers are encouraged to give every candidate a serious look before the election.

Michigan Capitol Confidential is the news source produced by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. Michigan Capitol Confidential reports with a free-market news perspective.