Right now, there are approximately 66 charter schools in Utah servicing over 26,000 students. These charter schools are free, public education institutions. We report to the Utah State Office of Education (USOE) just like traditional school districts. A charter school is created when a group of citizens come together to form a board. This board follows the state procedures in creating a “charter” which defines how the school will operate and to what purpose. This process usually requires two to three years of planning and work.
A charter school’s budget is heavily dependent upon enrollment. Each fall, we report our enrollment figures to the state, and the state determines our operating budget. Most charter schools receive enough funds for bare-bones operation. We supplement this operating budget with grants and private donations.
Each charter school director meets with the State Director of Charter Schools every month in Salt Lake City, where directors receive training and information from the USOE. In addition, directors meet with their charter school boards each month (just like a traditional school district) to report and receive direction. These board meetings are posted and open to the public.
The most frequent question I get around town is, “Why charter schools?” Charter schools were created to infuse diversity into our education system. A lot of unique ideas for education exist in universities, among school teachers and administrators, and among parents and community members. Traditional public schools have been able to incorporate some of these new ideas, but the application of widespread creative thinking was pretty much limited to private school settings.
As more traditional schools became centered on school-wide curriculum sets, test-driven decision-making, and a more standardized approach to education, many people began looking to create an alternative free, public school system for putting new ideas into practice. Creating a system of charter schools under the USOE provided a setting for the implementation of educational creativity and originality many Utah parents were seeking. While charter schools embrace state core curriculum standards, they are given a great deal of freedom to experiment with innovative educational ideas.
For example, one charter school in Salt Lake City has a “college-bound” curriculum where classes are taught by visiting university professors; another charter in West Valley centers their curriculum on preparing students for further schooling or jobs in the film production industry. Moab Charter School focuses on the individual by restricting class sizes to 15 or smaller, keeping the school population somewhat small, and focusing the curriculum on project-based, hands-on learning for core subjects which are enhanced with an excellent music and art program.
I am a relative newcomer to Moab Charter School having arrived only in July. However, after three months on the job as the new director, I have become familiar with its history and its strengths and weaknesses. The beginning years were somewhat volatile, and the survival of the school was in question. However, the school has been stabilized and is now on the rise. I have two of my children here, and they were both “high-performing” in traditional schools. I see no drop-off in their educational experience. They love their teachers and the small-school community feel. They have music and art available to them like never before, city walks and visiting artists to enhance their learning, and exciting projects and hands-on activities to make school interesting.
We have a wonderful staff of teachers who are genuinely invested in their students’ lives. I have worked with hundreds of teachers in a variety of schools over the past 10 years, and I can honestly say I’ve never been around a more dedicated and hard-working group. Enrollment at Moab Charter ended last year at 36 students serviced by three teachers. Currently enrollment is up to 49 students serviced by four full-time classroom teachers, one special education teacher, and two full-time classroom aides. We invite anyone who is interested in seeing what a charter school is all about (even if you aren’t interested in enrolling students) to stop by anytime and visit our school. I would be happy to personally walk you through and answer any questions.
Moab Charter School is a wonderful addition to the educational community here, and I see its future as bright and exciting. Utah’s dual system of free public schooling, involving traditional schools and charter schools, is a dynamic effort to serve the needs of all kids and provide a comprehensive setting for implementing the myriad possibilities for educating our children.