Washington charter schools say budget cut endangers basic education

SEATTLE — For the past two school years, public charter schools could count on $1,500 per student in enrichment funding from the state.

That won’t happen next year.

The money — about $7.5 million distributed among the state’s 15 public charter schools — was stripped during the short legislative session, which ended March 12. The Washington Charter School Commission, the independent state agency that authorizes and oversees charter schools and their boards, also saw a $262,000 cut.

Charter advocates say though the cuts appear small, they could significantly affect the publicly funded, privately run schools’ ability to serve nearly 4,700 students statewide. Leaders are working on next school year’s budgets and deliberating how to absorb the reductions, they said.

The enrichment money underwrites “basic operations” such as career-exploration programs, instructional assistants and counseling services, advocates said. The commission used the money to provide technical assistance and training to help charter schools tackle challenges including enrollment issues, serving students who need special education or highly capable services, or addressing bullying before it escalates, according to Marcus Harden, the agency’s executive director.

The services funded by these enrichment dollars “are not extras,” said Chris Korsmo, the executive director of Washington State Charter Schools Association. “They are core things. School leaders are working really hard to find other ways to reduce costs so they can continue to provide those things.”

The effect varies from school to school, but the funds range from an average of 8% to 12% of some schools’ annual budgets, advocates said.

“It’s critical that the students we serve have the maximum resources available to them because they are more likely to come from marginalized communities — whether they’re low-income, or communities of color or special needs,” Korsmo said. “The kids that will feel this, the families who will feel this are those least able to absorb one more punch.”

Charter schools have received the enrichment money since the 2024-25 school year to help narrow the funding gap with traditional public schools. Unlike regular public schools, charters can’t raise revenues through local levies, which many districts tap for extra staff and programs.

Sen. Lisa Wellman, D-Mercer Island, the chair of the Senate Early Learning & K-12 Education Committee, said she made the call to remove the enrichment funds from the budget in a challenging year for education that required difficult cuts.

Lawmakers eyed enrichment funding to maintain the Transition to Kindergarten program for 4-year-old students, which has had positive effects in rural, urban and suburban communities, she said. It also served well students in poverty and those in bilingual programs, she said.

Wellman said the funding showed up as “enrichment,” but she acknowledged districts and charters have been using those funds for basic education expenses as costs have risen.

“The costs are real, the schools are feeling those crunches, and so enrichment has been challenged across the board,” she said. “It’s unfortunate because we want our kids to have everything we can give them, whether they’re in a K-12 system, in a charter school, or in any other type of school.”

Harden, the charter commission’s executive director, said the cut could affect the small agency’s efforts to follow a 2023 legislative mandate. After several closures and compliance issues, the Legislature tasked the agency with conducting oversight of the schools and their boards’ academics, operations and finances. The agency is independent but is housed in the state’s Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction.

Harden said the commission now employs a preventive approach that uses coaching and visits to work with schools to stave off larger problems. Complaints to the commission have dropped significantly in the past 18 months, he said.

“It just makes no sense to me to shift back to a responsive model that waits for schools to be in trouble and then we come aboard,” he said.

The charter schools are being asked to do more with less despite having more responsibilities and accountability requirements than traditional public schools, he said. He worries that charter schools may not be able to live up to their full potential if they aren’t on the same funding level as traditional public schools.

Charter advocates plan to lobby lawmakers to make the enrichment funds permanent next year. The state provides additional funds to school districts that cannot raise a lot of money through local levies. Korsmo would like to see charters treated similarly.

The year-to-year uncertainty makes long-term planning, hiring and budgeting difficult, Korsmo said.

Wellman said she is open to hearing the sector’s proposal, though she cautioned next year’s state budget forecast doesn’t look much better.

Things could change if the “millionaires tax” survives expected legal challenges, she said. The tax, which adds a 9.9 % levy on income over $1 million, will go into effect in 2028, with the first receipts due in 2029. The tax is expected to raise an estimated $3 to $4 billion annually for K-12 schools, colleges, prisons and other government services.

“I would like to be assured that we will recognize in the payout from a millionaires tax … our paramount duty is to K-12 education across the board,” she said. “I would certainly at that point feel very comfortable looking at what the charter schools are asking for as well.”

This article includes material from The Seattle Times archives.