Leading charter school proponent Fordham Foundation has announced its merger with the Educational Service Center of Central Ohio (ESCCO), consolidating operations under a single community school sponsor that could expand to other authorizers in Ohio, Fordham says.

Foundation officials told the State Board of Education this week that merger plans under consideration by other community school authorizers in Ohio will correct persistent funding problems and conflicts of interest at many sponsoring organizations.

“We believe that a successful charter school is academically effective, fiscally sound and organizationally viable, and that such schools should be allowed to operate freely and without interference….” Terry Ryan, vice president for Ohio programs and policy, told state board members. “In return for these essential freedoms, however, charter schools are to be held accountable for their academic, fiscal and operational results.”

Ryan says Fordham strongly supports the proposed revision to Ohio Administrative Code section 3301-102-03(E)(6) mandating competitive bidding for fee-based services to charter schools.

“We see it as an inherent conflict of interest when the sponsor also functions as the (paid) purveyor of services to its schools,” he said, “or blurs the line between sponsor and operator in other ways.”

Ryan says Ohio’s many sponsoring entities rarely have the resources for a quality operation, with state statute allowing them only 3 percent of a charter school’s per-pupil funding. “The state’s current system for funding sponsors introduces perverse incentives and shortages.”

He expanded that comment in a follow-up statement. “With almost 70 sponsors today, Ohio simply has too many — and not enough of them have the will and the capacity to place school quality and student learning as priority number one,” Ryan said. “Fordham and ESCCO intend to do their part to rectify this situation.”

He said the organizations’ goal is to create a new “statewide” sponsor on the order of those created in New York, Colorado and Washington, D.C., which hold schools to a high-standard of performance; recruit outstanding charter school models to Ohio; and support the development of excellent new schools. These community schools will be “well funded,” with enough schools and students for “sizeable revenues”; “well supported,” school boards including “diverse and respected partners”; and “well respected,” with a commitment to “quality” schools and sponsorship.

Todd Hanes, associate superintendent at ESCCO, supports that model. “Quality sponsorship costs money to deliver,” he says. “For example, sponsors need the resources to meet the legal costs of closing a school, which can accrue quickly.”

Fordham was first approved in 2004 for sponsorship of up to 30 schools and currently includes six with some 1,900 students. ESCCO currently sponsors another six charter schools serving about 3,200 students statewide.

Steve Burigana, who recently stepped down as chief operating officer for the Ohio Department of Education, offered praise for the statewide merger.

“The partnership between Fordham and ESCCO is the first of its kind and should form the foundation for a new statewide sponsor that is singularly focused on building and sustaining quality charter schools in the Buckeye State,” said Burigana, chief executive officer of the consulting firm Resource Network Inc., which has been hired by Fordham and ESCCO to assist planning for the statewide sponsor.

The National Association of Charter School Authorizers and the Gates Foundation are also providing grant funding.

Ryan is urging other charter school sponsors in Ohio to consider joining the statewide merger.

“Should we be able to put all the pieces together we expect this new sponsor entity to be up and running by the summer of 2011.”

Story originally published in The Hannah Report on May 14, 2010

Darold Johnson

Ohio Federation of Teachers

1251 E. Broad Street

Columbus, Ohio 43205

614-257-4191 (Office)

614-257-4193 (Fax)