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Former Senator Responds to Patch Blogger with Call For State Charter Support

Ember Reichgott Junge was discussed by Elizabeth Hooper in her recent blogs, and now he offers his own opinion.

  • October 4, 2012
 

As the Democratic lead author of the first charter school law in the nation, I am pleased to be in Georgia this week to support Georgia charter legislation and the constitutional amendment on the November ballot!  Passage of this amendment by the people of Georgia will allow Georgia to catch up with most of the other 40 states and District of Columbia  in ensuring that your charter law allows the public school choices that Georgia students, parents and teachers deserve.  While every state’s law is different, there is one fundamental component of every law that allows choices to flourish—the inclusion of an alternate authorizer or appeals process that doesn’t disadvantage the chartered school. Your support of the constitutional amendment will provide just that!    

I look forward to talking more with the people of Georgia in the next few days.  Thank you for your wonderful southern hospitality.

Warmly,

Ember Reichgott Junge

Former Minnesota State Senator

Related Topics: Charter Schools, Elections, State Charter Amendment, elections 2012, and participate 2012

Steely Dan

8:32 am on Friday, October 5, 2012

Welcome, Mrs. Junge. Your opinions in this heated debate are both welcome and show that this is an across-the-aisle issue involving parents who want what's best for their children, rather than blindly trusting the gov't to provide for them regardless of which side of the aisle they're casting a vote for.

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Stevie Nicks

11:02 am on Friday, October 5, 2012

Just yesterday the state BOE approved 4 charter schools. So the rumor that the commission is needed is FALSE! There is a process in place for charters to be approved at the state level. So why blindly trust the government when they say another layer of larger government is needed??

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Elizabeth Hooper

1:46 pm on Friday, October 5, 2012

"now HE offers HIS own opinion" - did Ember have a sex change during her visit? Come on guys, at least get the sex of the speaker right! And once again, the state of Georgia already has an alternative authorizer - the State BOE which is appointed and doing a great job, and, despite all the lies about it, is NOT under any threat of being ruled unconstitutional. It is not polite to lie to guests. Furthermore - what I asked Ember to comment on was the vague legal language of HB 797 and the complete lack of inclusion of any of the following; parental involvement, teacher involvement, targeted areas of improvement, monitoring procedures, termination procedures, rules and regs. for EMOS - fees and real estate deals. Even if we did need another authorizer, WHICH WE DON'T, HB 797 is a blank check and a black hole for taxpayers. In addition, it is interesting to note that Ms. Junge went from being a champion of teacher's being able to innovate at charter schools to sitting on the Board of a charter school finance / development company. Despite that evolution, I still think that if she/he were to compare HB 797 to Minnesota's law her opinion would not be favorable. My original post is below just in case.

http://alpharetta.patch.com/blog_posts/charter-school-amendment-ember-reichgott-junge-have-you-read-hb-797

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Frank Jones

2:02 pm on Friday, October 5, 2012

Yesterday I saw a billboard sign advocating for the charter amendment. There is too much money fighting for the amendment. There are too many out-of-state players. Makes you wonder why!

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Lynn McIntyre

9:23 am on Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Simple answer: BIG BUCKS, including the ability for foreigners to receive VISAs if they invest! What a trojan horse! This is the most misleading legislation and it is such a LIE! We love our charter schools and the process works! Don't fix what is not broken. Accountability is key, including parental involvement in the governance. THAT IS NOT in this legislation at all!
Wake up folks! Vote No to this travesty of Amendment #1.

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