Charter Schools

Re “Charter Teachers Face Choice,” Dec. 21: Your otherwise excellent article failed to illuminate the enormous funding disparities between charter schools and traditional public schools.

In California, about 70% of public school funding comes from the state. Charter schools receive this state funding, but nothing in local funding and almost nothing in federal aid to education. Of this state funding, the charter schools must kick back 20% of the money to their chartering district for “administration,” even though charter schools are self-governing. The bottom line is that per student funding for charter schools is only a little more than half the funding for traditional public schools.

The answer to the health benefits problem is to fund charter schools at the same per student level as traditional public schools, so that teachers won’t have to make the agonizing choice between continuing to teach in schools that work versus losing their job benefits.

ALAN BONSTEEL

San Francisco