Education bill that will allow charter schools in Boone County goes into effect Wednesday

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A new law goes into effect Wednesday that will allow for charter schools in Boone County.

Gov. Mike Parson signed Senate Bill 727 May, which includes many changes for public education.

Boone County public school administrators previously sent a letter to Parson asking him to veto the bill.

Local superintendents also signed a letter of opposition to the bill, arguing a local charter school would drain much-needed resources from the traditional public school districts in Boone County.

Charter schools are public schools that operate independently of a traditional school district. The Missouri Charter Public Schools Association said there are currently 80 charter school buildings with a total of about 25,000 students in the Kansas City and St. Louis areas.

While the law goes into effect Wednesday, the association's executive director Noah Devine said the first school in Boone County would likely not even be possible until the 2026-27 school year.

Devine said to start a charter school, community members first have to come together in support of a charter school, form a nonprofit board and find a sponsor to back them.

The sponsor then has to submit an application to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and prove there is a community need. Devine said this can be done by getting signatures on a petition or having video interviews of community members expressing their need for the school.

After a sponsor has applied, he said DESE will spend anywhere between a year to 18 months to ensure the school will be following all regulations, state laws and public school laws. Then, a charter school will be possible.

However, others think it could be sooner. Columbia Missouri NEA President and Hickman High School teacher Noelle Gilzow said she thinks there have been forces in motion to make this happen sooner rather than later.

"I think there are some people waiting in the wings," Gilzow said. "They have wanted to pass a bill like this for decades."

Gilzow is opposed to charter schools because of the funding it will take away from traditional public schools.

She estimates a charter school would take a couple hundred students from Columbia Public Schools, causing some need for rearranging. However, she's most worried about smaller schools. For example, if a charter school is placed in northern Columbia, she said that could harm districts like Hallsville, too.

"As we know, the funding follows the student, so it decimates the funding for those schools," Gilzow said.

Meanwhile, the Missouri State Teachers Association also opposes charter schools. Spokesperson Todd Fuller said there are concerns about how the schools are independently managed.

"Finding ways to hold them accountable is more challenging sometimes than the way that legislature or that the community holds public schools accountable," Fuller said.

According to DESE's website, charter schools are "free from some rules and regulations that apply to traditional public school districts." ABC 17 News reached out to DESE for more information but did not hear back.

Fuller said both have the same state oversight, but there are differences at the local level. While traditional public school districts report to a board of elected officials, charter schools are run by the un-elected, nonprofit board and the school's sponsor.

However, Devine said the two are not oppositional of each other. He said charter schools are still held to the same testing standards as traditional districts, they just provide a different need for families in that community.

"I think all boats can lift each other and can support each other and can provide a great system of schools for families," Devine said.

He said charter schools are held accountable in the fact that if they aren't successful, they will close.

Increasing teacher pay

The new law will also increase teacher salaries across the state starting in the 2025-26 school year.

Minimum teacher salaries will increase from $25,000 up to $40,000 for those with bachelor's degrees and from $33,000 to $46,000 for teachers with advanced degrees or over ten years of experience. That minimum will increase each year until the 2027-28 school year.

After that, the law states minimum teacher's salaries will be adjusted annually.

The law states the General Assembly may put money into the fund to increase these salaries.

However, Gilzow said she is worried about how much funding the state will put toward increasing salaries or if districts will end up carrying the load.

"I do think teachers across the state need to be paid more, however, I think this bill doesn't do an adequate job of supporting that."

She said if starting teachers make as much as experienced teachers, that could also cause wage compression and deter existing teachers.

However, Fuller said if districts are doing what they're supposed to do, this shouldn't be an issue. He said this law indicates there will be enough money put in by the state to provide money to districts to increase both base and existing teacher pay.

"When something is in statute, then there is an amount of money that there is an expectation that the legislature should be funding and will be funding public education," Fuller said.

He said it's important to pay attention to existing teacher salaries, because the most who are leaving the profession do so around the 5-10 year mark.

"(Salary) is not the only reason that teachers stay in education, but they need to be compensated for what they're doing," Fuller said. "And this is certainly a step in that direction."

Columbia Public Schools spokesperson Michelle Baumstark said this part of legislation will not impact CPS because its minimum teacher salary is already $43,000.