West Virginia’s still-new charter schools have been awarded a $12.3 million federal grant that supporters say will provide a major boost to grow the system.
The five-year grant has come from the Expanding Opportunity Through Quality Charter Schools Program under the U.S. Department of Education.
Now, the West Virginia Professional Charter School Board says it can double the number of authorized charter schools and triple the number of students enrolled in them by 2018.
Officials with the charter school board say the federal grant award — along with West Virginia’s recently enacted (but not-yet-funded) Charter Schools Stimulus Fund — will make West Virginia a more attractive place for quality developers to open and expand schools.
“We think having this grant money available is going to entice high-quality operators who otherwise might have looked at West Virginia and said ‘I don’t know if I can make it work with only $8,000 a student,” James Paul, executive director of the professional charter schools board, told state lawmakers during a Sunday interim meeting.
“So I think it’s really going to help bring in high-quality operators that parents are going to be attracted to.”
The charter school board says its wants to improve academic achievement in charter schools and traditional public schools across West Virginia by sharing what it learns about best practices. The board also plans to administer eight subgrants over the grant period — five to newly created charter schools and three to expanding charter schools already up and running.
“These grant dollars can help students reach their fullest potential,” Paul stated in a news release. “This is an exciting time for educational opportunity across the state, and our charter sector has a crucial role to play in connecting parents with schools that meet the unique needs of each child.”
In his presentation to the Legislative Oversight Commission on Education Accountability, Paul said charter schools face significant financial challenges as they are first starting up.
Under the initial circumstances, he said, students may show up for the start of an initial school year in August with their charter school having received only 8% of its annual revenue. Charter schools don’t benefit from excess levy revenues and cannot issue bonds, he said. They’re unlikely to access School Building Authority funds and must pay for facilities from regular operating funds.
West Virginia had no charter schools until passing a state law allowing them in 2019. Charter schools receive financial support from the state’s public education system and are given greater operational latitude in exchange for the possibility of losing their right to operate if they fail. Because they receive public funding, they are considered public schools.
The West Virginia Professional Charter Schools Board is made up of members appointed by the governor. It’s an independent body, separate from the state Board of Education.
In its first year, the professional charter schools board approved charters for new, freestanding schools in Morgantown, Nitro and Jefferson County. A week later, the board approved two charter schools that would operate online.
West Virginia opened four inaugural charter schools in fall 2022.
Now there are five active charter schools, with more than 2,000 students enrolled statewide. Another two schools are authorized to open in fall 2024, and the board is reviewing applications from two more applicants.
“I am encouraged and excited by those numbers,” said Paul, who acknowledged that student population growth has largely been driven by virtual charter schools that aren’t limited by the physical size of a school.
