Proposed legislation in Harrisburg would save some Lehigh Valley school districts millions of dollars each year in cybercharter tuition, but could leave the online schools in a dire state and hinder school choice for parents and students.
Bills recently introduced in the state Senate and state House would require parents to pay their child’s tuition at a cybercharter school if the student’s home district has an online program.
Districts currently must pay cybercharter schools for each student who opts to attend one.
The proposed policy changes have been introduced before, but may gain traction in the House. Chief sponsor Rep. Curt Sonney, R-Erie, now chairs the House Education Committee.
Sonney said in an interview he will examine the cyberprograms offered both by the districts and by the online-only schools before pushing his bill.
But if the bill does go through, it will hurt the cybercharter schools that depend on money from the school districts.
“My bill is a death knell to cybercharter schools,” Sonney said.
Cybercharter supporters say if passed, the policy changes would eliminate school choice for parents who can’t afford tuition at a cybercharter school for their children.
“This legislation would … [force] students to remain with a district that does not serve and meet the expectations of families,” said Ana Myers, executive director of Pennsylvania Coalition of Public Charter Schools.
Cybercharter schools typically perform near the bottom on the state’s standardized test scores. All Pennsylvania cybercharter schools had graduation rates below the state average of 86.6 percent, according to the state’s measuring tool, the Future Ready PA Index.
Comparing that with district cyberschools is difficult. While the state website includes data on how each district’s school does, it does not rate the district’s virtual programs.
State Sen. Judy Schwank, D-Berks, introduced her bill in January after hearing from superintendents in her county about the costs of cybercharter schools.
“It’s incredible how much districts are spending,” she said. “I think taxpayers would be shocked if they knew where these funds were going.”
Districts must pay a per-pupil tuition fee for each student attending a cybercharter school. A 2018 survey by the Pennsylvania Association of School Administrators found districts pay $11,306 for each regular education student attending a cybercharter, and $24,192 on average for special education students.
The Northampton Area School District sent $2 million for 130 students who attended cybercharters last year. Northampton has had its own cyberprogram for 10 years, but only 45 students are enrolled.
“Absolutely [the proposed change] would help the district,” Northampton Area Superintendent Joseph Kovalchik said.
Enrollment in districts’ own virtual programs remains lower than in competing cybercharter schools. The Allentown School District has 132 high school students enrolled in its online program, but sends more than 400 students to cybercharters at a cost of $5 million.
The Parkland School District has had its own cyberprogram for grades six through 12 since 2010, but still sent $1.65 million to cybercharter schools last year.
“I would be supportive of [the] legislation,” Superintendent Richard Sniscak said.
The Bethlehem Area School District, which sent more than 200 students to cybercharter schools last year, would save at least $2 million, even after factoring in any costs associated with returning students.
“If the law is passed as is, I don’t believe many families would choose to pay to go to a cybercharter,” Bethlehem Area Superintendent Joseph Roy said.
Schwank knows she will have to fight to have her bill passed, especially since it tasks families with picking up the costs. Right now, districts are the ones footing the bill for their own virtual programs and the cybercharters.
But she envisions a commission forming to explore the costs of cybercharter schools.
“At least it gets the conversation going,” she said.
