Progress Now Action

I seem to upset right-wing bloggers every time I point out how state Board of Ed member Bob Schaffer's charter school friends haven't turned out to be very good at, you know, running schools. Which seems to not be a dealbreaker when you have powerful allies like Schaffer to vote your way no matter how egregiously these for-profit charter schools fail children while siphoning money from public schools.

Some of the more overtly corrupt political stuff involving Schaffer's buddies in the charter school "choice" bonanza, though, seems to be coming home to roost:

Elections panel sets record $5.2 million fine

A record $5.2 million fine was levied yesterday by the Ohio Elections Commission against a pro-charter-school group that helped elect Republicans across Ohio in 2006.

The whopping fine fell on All Children Matter, a Michigan-based organization that the commission said illegally funneled $870,000 in campaign contributions through its Virginia political-action committee to its PAC in Ohio in 2006. David Brennan of Akron, Ohio's biggest charter-school operator, has donated $200,000 to the group...

The fine amount was unheard of, particularly from a commission that is regularly criticized by watchdog groups and others for going light on campaign-finance violators. Philip C. Richter, executive director of the commission, said his previous highest recommendation for a fine was about $90,000.

But normal cases don't exceed campaign contribution limits by $870,000.

For those of you not following the David Brennan story here in Colorado, one of his charter schools in Denver was ordered closed by DPS for underperformance in '07, but Bob Schaffer cast the deciding vote on the Colorado Board of Education forcing DPS to reconsider--right before he took thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from Brennan. Brennan had also donated to Schaffer's '04 Senate run. And a year later, the same Denver charter school was once again ordered onto a watch list for continued failing scores.

Various excuses made by Brennan and White Hat about their failing schools, blaming locals and disclaiming day-to-day control of these schools, look less credible after this report from last week. Also from Ohio:

Teachers union asks IRS to curb charters

The Ohio Federation of Teachers on Thursday sent a letter to the Internal Revenue Service asking it to investigate the nonprofit, tax-exempt status of at least 25 of the charter schools run by White Hat Management Inc.

White Hat, a for-profit company based in Akron, operates 31 charter schools in Ohio, including four Cincinnati-area schools: Life Skills Centers in Middletown, Walnut Hills and Roselawn, and Riverside Academy, a Hope Academy in Riverside. Its Ohio schools serve more than 9,000 students; the schools received about $85 million in state revenue last year, the union said...

Ohio law says charter schools - which are public schools run by independent boards - must be nonprofit or sponsored by a nonprofit authorizing entity.

The IRS guidelines for nonprofit status are more specific, with several dozen standards that must be met before a school has tax-exempt "501(c)3" status.

The union's letter says that White Hat's Ohio schools don't meet those federal standards.

Susan Taylor, president of the Ohio Federation of Teachers, said White Hat, which is supposedly hired by the schools' boards, exercises too much control over the schools, boards and finances, violating IRS rules, she said.

Also, at least 95 percent of these schools' revenues - mainly Ohio education dollars - are "passed through" to for-profit White Hat entities.

Hat tip for these stories: Colorado Pols

Blog-right windbags blustering on about these wonderful charter schools and the qualityplusvalue they deliver to students and taxpayers alike? Defending Bob Schaffer as the kindly champion of disadvantaged kids? Here are the people he's really fronting for, and be assured: they're in it for the money, and so is Bob Schaffer. Thank you, Bob.