The Saline Reporter
A Heritage Newspaper
Weekly Publication
Offering parents choice
Number of public school academies rising
By Christine Laughren, Heritage Newspapers
PUBLISHED: March 27, 2008
Each year since 1994, at least one charter school has joined ranks with customary public schools in Michigan to compete for students, teachers and administrators.
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Although some believe charter schools, or public school academies, are a strain on traditional public schools, others say it's all about choice.
There are nearly 230 state-supported public school academies in Michigan. A public school academy must be authorized by a public university, a community college, a K-12 local education agency or an intermediate school district, according to the Michigan Department of Education.
Like regular public schools, a public school academy is funded on a per-pupil basis through the State School Aid Act. However, by law, "this amount may not exceed the per-pupil base foundation received by the local school district where the PSA is geographically located."
Charter schools, however, are not the same as public schools.
"What I see through the charter schools system are (taxpayers) funding one kind of private school through public dollars," said Ypsilanti resident Jim Karnopp.
Karnopp's 14-year-old son, Forrest, attends Fortis Academy in Ypsilanti. The seventh-grader said he attends Fortis because regular schools wouldn't give him the special attention he needs in reading.
In fact, the public school system told Karnopp that his son would have to be enrolled in special education classes if Forrest were to attend.
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