Vote No on Question 2 for the sake of our children!

NO on Q2 for the Sake of our Children!

Letter to the Editor:

I write this letter as a veteran public school teacher, to urge Burlington voters to vote NO on Q2 on November 8. Question 2 would greatly increase the number of charter schools allowed under state law. The cap on the number of charters currently allowed is 72 – yet we only have 57. If there is such demand for charters, why aren’t there more? Why the need for 12 more charter schools, every year into perpetuity, if we are not even near the cap?

These are schools that drain our local budgets, their teachers do not need to be certified, and are not equipped to handle special needs, behavioral issues, or English Language Learners. These students are often counseled back to the public schools, but after October 1 so the charters can keep the per pupil expenditure.

This ballot question only affects new charters. Question 2 proponents claim they can give their students a better education, yet Boston Public Schools currently have a higher percentage of students graduating and going on to higher education than Boston’s charter schools. We need all schools to be excellent, not spend money to make only some better. Every student deserves a great public school education. Question 2 is not the pathway to get us there.

While Burlington currently loses $40,850 per year to charters (Burlington per pupil expenditure goes with the students), if this referendum passes, there is nothing to prohibit charters opening in our area, draining our resources. In total, public schools lose $450,000,000 each year to charter schools. Please join me in voting no on Q2 for the sake of our children.

Sincerely,

Phyllis Neufeld, Retired Public School Teacher

Burlington, MA