It’s highly unlikely that anyone turns cartwheels when they pay their property taxes, but the idea that the money is going to the school up the street to educate neighborhood children can provide some solace.

The reality, however, is that a chunk of those resources are being diverted from local educational needs and being sent to charter and cyberschools that are located many miles away, don’t have the same level of transparency as public schools and frequently have worse educational outcomes than their public counterparts.

How is this fair?

It’s not, and last week officials from five public school districts across the region sounded the alarm, outlining the relentless drain charter and cyberschools have on their budgets, and urging state lawmakers to reform laws around charter and cyberschools. That it did not happen with the 2022-23 budget that was approved a few weeks ago stands as yet another missed opportunity.

A brief explanation is probably in order: In Pennsylvania, if a student decides to enroll in a charter or cyberschool, the per-pupil allotment from their home district follows them. It goes along even if the student is attending a cyberschool that, obviously, does not have the same fixed costs as a brick-and-mortar school, such as building maintenance, food, cafeteria personnel, buses or drivers.

The overwhelming majority of school boards in Pennsylvania have approved resolutions imploring that rules surrounding charter and cyberschools be changed, and it’s time for those calls to be heeded. If taxpayer money is pouring into their coffers, cyber and charter schools should be just as transparent and accountable as public schools. Their performance academically needs to improve. And cyberschools in particular should stop receiving more in tuition money than it actually costs to educate each individual student.

— Uniontown Herald Standard via AP