First she was for them, then she didn’t talk about them, then she opposed them, now we’re not really sure.
Exactly how does Hillary Clinton really feel about public charter schools?
The Democratic presidential candidate released a statement on the Every Student Succeeds Act Wednesday that was awkward in a couple ways.
Clinton applauded passage of a bill that improves the flaws of No Child Left Behind. In 2001, Clinton voted for No Child Left Behind in the Senate. Of course, she didn’t mention that vote in her statement, or even mention No Child Left Behind by name.
Clinton’s statement was also awkward in its positive portrayal of public charter schools. “The legislation also authorizes critical resources to … expand high-quality public charter schools,” Clinton said.
In November, Clinton was singing a different tune on charter schools. “Most charter schools — I don’t want to say every one — but most charter schools, they don’t take the hardest-to-teach kids, or, if they do, they don’t keep them,” Clinton told Roland Martin with TV One. (Clinton’s comment isn’t true.)
The two statements don’t necessarily contradict each other — Clinton can support high-quality charters and still oppose the ones that, in her mind, don’t take hard-to-teach students.
Still, it’s awkward to condemn charters one month, just ahead of getting a teachers union endorsement, and then to praise them the next month. Then again, Clinton’s November comments are only one anti-charter blip in a long history of support for charter schools.
“In the ’90s she certainly was seen as a supporter,” Nina Rees, CEO and president of the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools told the Washington Examiner. “Her husband certainly has been a big supporter. She herself when she was first lady of Arkansas was a big reformer and supporter.”
During her 12 years as a senator and as secretary of state, Clinton was largely silent on the issue. It’s difficult to be a high-level Democrat that supports charter schools with teachers unions opposed to them.
“Because of everything she knows about the movement, I would be very surprised if in her heart of hearts she opposes charter schools,” Rees said. “But I do think when you have the endorsement of the two big teachers unions this early on, it is difficult to posture and position yourself as a strong charter school advocate.” Clinton has been endorsed by both the National Education Association and the American Federation of Teachers, the two largest teachers unions in the country.
Charter schools are government-funded, but independently operated. They do not charge tuition and they are open to all students, but they often don’t have enough space to meet demand. They use a lottery system to determine admission when there aren’t enough seats. Compared to traditional public schools, charter schools have more independence in their operations and curriculum, which is why so many families find charter schools desirable.
To show how teachers unions feel about charter schools and the concept of school choice, one need only look to what Georgia Federation of Teachers President Verdaillia Turner said when she found out the Fordham Institute named Atlanta the ninth-best city in the country for school choice. Turner made a disgraceful comparison, saying, “That’s like saying Chicago is the most murder friendly-city in the nation.”
Jason Russell is a commentary writer for the Washington Examiner.
