FOCUS D.C. Public Charter
School Bulletin

January 5, 2004 -- HAPPY NEW
YEAR!

Williams Approves Additional $6.5
Million for Charter Schools

Mayor Anthony Williams has decided to provide the charter schools with an additional
$6.5 million in the current fiscal year, upon approval by the Council. The money
is intended to compensate the charter schools for the $32 million dollars in
"enhancements" that DCPS was given this year outside the Uniform Per
Student Funding Formula.

The government has not yet determined
how much each charter school would receive, but it should be between $400 and
$500 per student.

During last spring's budget process
FOCUS organized the charter schools to protest the inequitable funding provided
for in the Mayor's budget, and obtained a legal opinion demonstrating that the
extra-formulaic funding was improper. The Council Education Committee admitted
the illegality of the DCPS funding but failed to identify additional funds for
the charter schools, instead asking Congress to provide the money. FOCUS then
worked with the House and Senate D.C. Appropriations Subcommittees, which refused
to hand over the funds but in the report accompanying the appropriations bill
strongly admonished the Mayor and Council to follow the law and provide additional
funding. During the months following the issuance of the report FOCUS repeatedly
urged the administration to identify the needed funds and recruited various
Council members to support the charter school position with the Mayor.

We are now attempting to find out
when the Council is likely to approve the funds and when the charter schools
will receive them, and will put out another bulletin when we have the information.

Friends of Choice in Urban Schools

1530 16th Street, NW #104

Washington, DC 20036

(202) 387-0405 phone

(202) 667-3798 fax

www.focus-dccharter.org