Charter School Funding Restored

The Los Angeles Board of Education on Tuesday agreed to restore $3 million in funding to seven charter campuses that had complained the school district was shortchanging them of money used to serve minority students.

Leaders of the schools, which were once part of the Los Angeles Unified School District, said the board decision was a small victory in winning back some of the millions of dollars they contend the district has withheld for special education and integration services.

The charter schools, which have formed the Coalition of High Achieving Los Angeles Charter Schools, said the restored funds will be used to maintain small class sizes.

The district and coalition also recently resolved a dispute over $2 million in facilities and oversight fees.

“I certainly hope this is a significant shift in the way the district views charter schools,” said Vahe Markarian, co-principal of Santa Monica Boulevard Community Charter School, one of the seven campuses in the coalition. “We are working to serve district students, and all students deserve the same services.”

The schools converted to charters, with Board of Education approval, to be free from most district rules and requirements, but they expected to receive state funding.

The coalition is continuing to pressure the district to stop charging its schools $2 million in special education fees. Charter school leaders say the district does not provide adequate services for special education, and schools pay for their own counselors, therapists and other specialized staff.

But Los Angeles Unified officials say state law allows them to charge those fees because the district funds special education services for the charter schools.

There is a history of tension between this type of charter school and the district. Last year, one of the district’s highest-achieving campuses, Granada Hills High, converted to a charter. Schools Supt. Roy Romer raised questions at the time about the financial, racial and academic effects on other schools.

On Tuesday, Romer told the board meeting audience of nearly 100 parents, students and staff who wore blue stickers that read, “Charter students are district students,” that he supports charter schools.

“I don’t want anyone in this audience to believe there is any hostility toward you,” he said.

But he added that the district is facing serious budget problems and finding money to reimburse charter schools for integration funding will be a challenge.

The coalition is composed of Granada Hills, Vaughn, Fenton Avenue Charter School, Montague Charter Academy, Pacoima Charter School -- all in the San Fernando Valley -- and Santa Monica Boulevard in Hollywood and Palisades Charter High School in Pacific Palisades.

Board members Jose Huizar, Mike Lansing and John Lauritzen voted against the motion.

The motion urged the district to restore integration funding for the 2004-05 school year and asked the superintendent to “conduct a full review” to determine whether the money should be allocated beyond that.

Lansing and Lauritzen said that they opposed it because of the tight district budget.