mikevago t1_jcmlx1u wrote on March 17, 2023 at 10:46 PM

I'll just echo what everyone else is saying: charter schools in Jersey City are by lottery and therefore aren't more selective. So are you being disingenuous? Or do you just not know the basic facts of what you're reporting on?

I do have two kids who went to a K-8 charter (TECCS), and I can't imagine the tests were administered any differently, but the kids did get a lot of support, despite the school's criminal lack of funding in its early years. Smaller class sizes meant they got a bit more attention, and the faculty and staff really took the "community" in the name seriously. I always felt like the people there were invested in my kids and wanted them to do well.

hardo_chocolate t1_jcmwgd1 wrote on March 18, 2023 at 12:03 AM

Mike — the journo is looking to get a sound bite that can be twisted to fit in with the JC Times support for the NJEA, JCBOE, and well you know … higher taxes (more gentrification).

It’s a typical mid-election cycle hit job that in a few years’ time, when the NJEA needs to undermine the charters, there is already a planted piece in a semi-credible “blog”. It is money the NJEA takes from teachers — union dues — that both JCTimes and the NJEA use to undermine charters.

TECCS is a middle of the pack charter. They have been chronically underfunded, but in recent years appear to be rebounding. Other charters haven’t been this successful.

And, Mike, I appreciate that you are forthcoming. I always respected that in you.

Need to go back into my lair.

mikevago t1_jcnk6rr wrote on March 18, 2023 at 3:12 AM

Ironically, the state budget cuts helped TECCS financially, because it was the state that was short-changing them. (There were several funding loopholes they were on the wrong side of — schools founded after 2007 got less money, charters got less money, there was a third thing I can't remember.) When the city passed the commuter tax, the charters actually got their fair share.

But there's a minimum per-student funding in New Jersey that, by law, every school has to get, and for several years TECCS was operating at 2/3 of that minimum. It's a goddamn miracle that school is as good as it is.

thelostcharming t1_jcmp4lt wrote on March 17, 2023 at 11:09 PM

Thank you, I am aware that lottery takes place when too many students/parents apply and that if a student has a sibling in a charter they will get preference because there is a benefit to them being together. I say there are more selective because that is the national perspective and I want to make sure that in Jersey City, people know how they work and if they work (like with your children). If there is more support and the right kind of support, where students feel they're cared for, that is something that makes a significant difference.

mikevago t1_jcnjvrk wrote on March 18, 2023 at 3:10 AM

No, there is always a lottery, in every instance. We came to TECCS in the second year it was a school and they ended up going through the whole waiting list to fill their spots, but they still started with a lottery. There is never not a lottery. I beg you, do literally any research into how our charter schools work before you try writing about them.