In Mississippi, give charters a chance

MISSISSIPPI’S CHARTER school law has barely disturbed the state’s public education monopoly. That’s a sure sign the 12-year-old law, which was supposed to create alternatives to traditional public schools, is too weak to achieve that purpose and needs to be revamped.

State Sen. Michael Watson, R-Pascagoula, would like to see these independent schools take root all over the state. He wrote a bill that would allow up to 20 charter schools in the state, with five permitted in each congressional district.

The Senate approved Sen. Watson’s bill last month, but it faces an uncertain future in the House, where public education officials opposed to any alternatives to traditional schools have considerable clout.

Mississippi has just one charter school. That’s a reflection of the 1997 law’s restrictions, not a lack of public interest in alternatives to conventional public schools.

Charter schools are publicly funded, but they aren’t encumbered by all the bureaucratic rules and regulations that govern public schools. Their purpose is to promote innovation and competition within the public school system.

In some areas of the country, charter schools provide an alternative to failing public schools.

Forty states have embraced the charter school concept, along with politicians from across the political spectrum.

President Barack Obama is an enthusiastic advocate of charters. During the presidential campaign, Mr. Obama said he would like to double federal funding for charter schools.

Sen. Watson said he thought his bill was well-timed to take advantage of growing national support for charter schools. Now, however, he fears “the flame is flickering.”

Mississippi’s charter school law is set to expire in July. It would be unfortunate if the state followed the bad example of Alabama, which is one of the few states without a charter school law. In Alabama the teachers’ union is opposed to charter schools, so most legislators won’t risk taking up the cause of parents and pressing for alternatives in public education….

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