The leader of the Buffalo Public School District answered with caution when asked about charter schools. WBFO's Focus on Education Reporter Eileen Buckley explains.
"Charters are no better in the main than traditional schools in terms of their success and failure rate," said Dr. Kriner Cash, Buffalo Schools Superintendent. He was reacting to a question asked last week by Investigative Post's Jim Heaney during a public event.
Dr. Cash was asked his position on charter schools and what roll they should play in here in Buffalo.
"They can be a mix or what I call a portfolio of different kinds of schools. Good charter schools is a good school," Cash told the audience.
Cash did note there are some good charter schools in Buffalo. He said the District should look at how it might be able to replicate areas of success at those schools are experiencing. Still, he doesn't see it as the single reform answer.
"But to have a one pellet reform, that says if we just charterize every school -- is a misguided and really flawed education assumption," said Cash.
Buffalo Attorney Steven Polowitz is a long-time charter school advocate. Polowitz actually agreed with some of the superintendent's comments.
"He talked about a portfolio schools approach and I think that make sense," stated Polowitz. "You have district schools that are managed by education management organizations, you have district schools that are managed by lead partners in partnerships with the district and you have traditional schools. Bottom line, the answer is that you want to push as much control and autonomy and flexibility down to the local school level, and that's the objective," said Polowitz.
Polowitz tells WBFO what continues to hold back the Buffalo district in making successful reforms are union collective bargaining agreements.
