Charter schools in New York City have proven to be a successful option for parents and students. With over 50,000 students on charter school wait-lists, Mayor Bill de Blasio and Schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña have a duty to serve those families.
De Blasio and Fariña have strongly indicated their desire to charge many charter schools rent for occupying public school space. A NY Daily News editorial discusses how this decision will severely halt the success charter schools have been experiencing:
While neither [de Blasio and Fariña] urges abolition of charters, de Blasio has called for charging many rent for the space they occupy in public school buildings. This is akin to demanding payments from public schools to occupy public school buildings. Under these constraints, in the long run, the expansion of charters would come to a halt, if not reverse.
The editorial further points out that charter schools provide parents and students with quality alternatives to education:
Parents, especially parents struggling to pay the rent in this exceedingly expensive metropolis, crave more quality alternatives. Proof: There are 50,000 students on New York City charter school wait-lists.
De Blasio and Fariña should learn from charters’ success and seek to replicate it, not resent it or wish it away.
