Missouri's education system is bracing for big changes this school year as two education bills officially go into effect Wednesday.
Last May, Gov. Mike Parson signed House Bill 2287 and Senate Bill 727, which outlined several significant changes, into law. Specifically, Senate Bill 727 outlines provisions that allow charter schools to operate in Boone County.
Officials say the addition of charter schools would particularly affect the Columbia Public Schools District, which Rep. David Tyson Smith, D-Columbia, said the new law poses a threat to his district.
“It would be devastating to Columbia Public Schools,” Tyson Smith said. “The people of Columbia hate that bill.”
Tyson-Smith said the bill would reduce enrollment in public schools and force some of the district's students to attend charter schools, which anyone can attend but only a portion of students may be able to attend, he said.
“You're going to lose a percentage of your students,” Tyson-Smith said. “Charter schools can pick and choose who they want to enroll and who they don't, so a lot of students are going to be left behind.”
Students who move to charter schools take their funding with them, Tyson-Smith said, which could cost Columbia Public Schools up to $15 million, he added.
Columbia School Board Chairwoman Suzette Waters said the way charter schools in Boone County receive funding is unique: Unlike other areas with existing charter schools, such as Kansas City and St. Louis, charter schools in Boone County will receive local funding as well as state funding.
“While other charter schools in the state only receive state funding, charter schools in Boone County also receive local funding,” Waters said. “There's no additional funding, it's just split between the two systems.”
But supporters of the new law, such as Republican Rep. Sherri Tolson Reich of Hullsville, took a different stance, saying Columbia's charter schools would give parents choice over their children's education and pointing to the district's low test scores.
“One size doesn't fit all,” Thorson-Reich said. “These kids are being failed, and we need to reach out to them.”
CPS officials maintained that the district was accredited because preliminary map test results showed growth in all core subjects, and Waters said she was proud of the education the district provides to all students of all abilities.
“Kids come to us with different abilities and backgrounds, and we embrace them all,” Waters said.
While there is no exact timeline, Thorson Reich said he believes a charter school is on the way to being built in Boone County.
“We need to make sure Columbia is providing the best education possible for our kids,” Thorsson Reich said.
She said she plans to work with the Missouri Charter School Association to bring charter schools to Columbia in the next few years. Meanwhile, Tyson-Smith said she will continue to oppose the expansion of charter schools.
Waters said she plans to introduce legislation during the next legislative session that would explicitly ban Columbia from opening new charter schools. At this point, it's unclear how new charter schools would affect the district, Waters said.
“We'll just have to wait and see what happens,” Waters said.