PRESS RELEASE October 15, 2014 League of Women Voters--Teaneck FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE League of Women Voters of Teaneck Concludes Study of Charter Schools

Suburbanite, November 2014 Teaneck, NJ. The League of Women Voters (LWV) may be best known for its work registering voters and sponsoring candidate debates, but its actual mission is much broader, extending to educating and informing voters on a wide range of timelyand often controversialtopics. LWV issues range from climate change and gun safety to campaign finance reform and global democracy. Like other state leagues, the League of Women Voters of New Jersey (LWVNJ) plays an active role advocating for state legislation after careful study and consensus of its members.

In that spirit, the Teaneck LWV chapter elected to participate in a state-wide consensus study to update the LWVNJs current position on charter schools. The original LWVNJ position statement, adopted in 2000, supports the intent of the 1995 legislation that established charter schools as a means to encourage innovation within local public schools. However, that support came with qualifications; furthermore, the educational landscape has changed substantially over the past 15 years.

After extensive background study and discussion, members of the Teaneck LWV convened on October 15th to develop consensus regarding several critical areas of charter school operations. These concerns spanned 5 broad categories: 1) accountability, including school governance, student achievement, and communication of innovative practices and curricula to the district public schools; 2) the role of district residents in charter approval; 3) what organizations should be allowed to authorize charter schools; 4) full-time virtual charter schools; and 5) oversight of educational management organizations in the operation of charter schools. The groups conclusions have been submitted to LWVNJ, which will be considering input from leagues all over New Jersey in updating its position statement. This statement will be published on the state's website (www.lwvnj.org) in early 2015. For further information about the charter school study, or to join the LWV and get involved in its advocacy work, please email lwvteaneck@gmail.com. Membership is open to both women and men at least 18 years of age.