Montana News
New public charter schools bring more options to western Montana
With Montana News, I'm Elinor Smith. Some Montana parents sending their students back to school this fall had new options to pick from. The state's first batch of 17 charter schools opened their doors less than a year after they first got the green light. MTPR's Austin Amistoy reports education leaders are excited for the possibilities and funding the schools may bring. It sounds like a typical elementary classroom and in many ways it is. In a row of colorful rooms at Missoula's Jefferson Elementary, students at the New Teach Academy started their journey learning to read, write, add, and subtract this August. But they'll do it all with a special emphasis on the arts, says Principal Barbara Frank. It's been really neat to watch kids get started in these courses and watch kids start to dance their way into the morning. About 85 kids are enrolled in the new charter school through Missoula County Public Schools. It offers extra opportunities for students to get involved in theater, music, and dance. Frank took the helm of the program over the summer. Just months earlier, the Teach Academy was only a twinkle in the eye of Missoula administrators. Her new office space is still a work in progress. Some days I'm so excited and some days I'm coming up for air so it's, you know, you think that you've planned everything and then the kids walk through the door and you're like, wow, how did I forget that thing? The Teach Academy isn't the only new charter school still working out the kinks. Montana lawmakers approved the creation of charter schools in early 2023. Just more than a year later, 17 of the schools have opened and communities statewide. That number surprised lawmakers who expected five or so schools to open in year one. But the promise of tens of thousands of dollars in new funding was a huge incentive to districts strapped for cash. It really was kind of like a rocket booster, if you will. In the Bitter at Valley, Hamilton School District Superintendent Tom Korsk says his district wanted a piece of that funding. Nearly half a million dollars will help Hamilton establish the Bitter at Polytech. Enrolled students will focus on preparing for life after high school, getting a head start on college classes, taking apprenticeships or working on job certifications. Korsk says the charter school appealed to state education officials looking for innovative programs. If you wanted additional funding, you had to show that you were trying to approve upon a system. And the good thing for us is, yeah, we had a lot of this in place. Hamilton isn't the only district using the charter school model to expand its existing offerings. Many of the new charter programs focus on distance and vocational learning and college readiness. Big interest in charter schools also means a larger than expected price tag, at least $6 million paid by counties and the state, according to state data. Lawmakers didn't put a cap on the funding. Democratic Representative Eric Matthews of Bozeman told MTPR the demand for the new funding isn't surprising. A steady stream of federal pandemic relief dollars is running dry at the end of September. Plus, state support for schools has fallen well behind inflation in recent years. - To innovate when you're trying to just barely keep your lips above water, not even our heads above water, but our lips above water, the money that's coming in with those programs is extremely helpful. - Lawmakers also approved a separate policy last year that would create a system of state-funded charter schools that aren't part of the existing public school system. Democrats have opposed that policy and a Montana judge blocked it while a lawsuit plays out. Back at the Teach Academy, Principal Barbara Frank has some ideas for improving the public charter school system, a checklist to help new schools better meet the requirements for opening or some money upfront to help smaller districts establish a school. But she says she was happy to be on the cutting edge this year. - It's a lot of work, but it is also as a strong public school advocate and spent my whole career in Title I schools, this is an amazing opportunity to give so many kids a chance to see education in a new light, and I'm really excited to be part of it. - The application for next year's potential public charter schools is already available. They could open as soon as next fall. In Missoula, I'm Austin Amestoy.