In Pennsylvania, as in Ohio, charter schools are are barred from discriminating against students. But the Philadelphia school district’s office of charter schools found that “numerous” Philadelphia charter schools presented “significant barriers to entry.”
In at least one case, an unidentified charter made its enrollment application publicly available on only one day during the year. Another unnamed charter required applicants to complete an 11-page application, write an essay, respond to 20 short-answer questions, provide three recommendations, be interviewed, and provide records related to their disciplinary history, citizenship and disability status.
“The District does not believe this is a fair system, nor does it help build a robust system of school-choice,” wrote District spokesperson Fernando Gallard in response to questions submitted by the Notebook/NewsWorks.
Read more at: thenotebook.org
