Ball State's Office of Charter Schools has intensified accountability guidelines for the 11 Indiana charter schools it sponsors.
"Accountability is the cornerstone of what charter schools are all about," Director of Ball State Charter Schools Martin Dezelan said.
According to Dezelan, Ball State has never put any strict guidelines into effect for these schools, so a major goal of the university is long-term improvement for the charter schools.
According to the new guidelines, the university will review the charter schools at the end of each year.
Ball State teams will also conduct academic walkthroughs of the schools annually. Teams will observe class time and gather feedback from teachers.
Charter schools are funded by government money but are not run by public school administrations. A small group of board members is in charge of each charter school. Under the new guidelines, these board members must write self-evaluations describing their roles and examples of leadership.
Many families choose charter schools when public schools do not perform well. In most states, public universities, local school boards, local colleges and the state board of education can authorize the creation of a charter school.
Federal legislation provides funding according to enrollment as well as help with start-up costs for these schools. While charter schools were created to improve upon the public school system and provide choices for students and teachers, some view charter schools with mixed feelings.
"I think charter schools try to shelter their students; they aren't opened up to the real world," education major Andrea Kilmer said.
Competition can be an important factor in pushing education in America forward, according to Professor of Educational Leadership William Sharp.
"Having a few innovative schools can provide competition and cause other schools to do even better," Sharp said. "Charter schools are supposed to be different from public schools. If they weren't, there would be no reason to have them."
There may be too many differences between normal public schools and charter schools, according to Muncie Central High School principal Dick Daniel.
"From a public school point of view, if a charter school is allowed to operate under a different set of rules, comparisons between the two are not valid," Daniel said.-รก
Despite differences, enhancing the accountability for these schools is an excellent opportunity for Ball State to show what it can do for education in the state of Indiana, Dezelan said.
"These charter schools benefit Ball State. We have the largest teachers college in the state, and we encourage innovation through education by sponsoring these schools," Dezelan said.
Ball State charter schools employ about 130 teachers and administrators as well as serve 1,500 students.
The university will continue to raise the stakes for accountability of its charter schools in order to ensure academic success, Dezelan said.
"Accountability is an evolutionary process for these schools," Dezelan said.
"I hope charter schools will be embraced as a positive part of evolution in public education."
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