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Bill would authorize municipalities to pursue an all‑charter model; educators oppose sweeping change
Summary
Representative Place’s bill would authorize local municipalities to pursue an all‑charter school model, citing New Orleans as an example; the National Education Association of Rhode Island and the state teachers’ federation testified in strong opposition, calling the proposal vague and potentially harmful to public education.
Representative Place said the bill sets a path a municipality could use to pursue an all‑charter model and argued that post‑Katrina New Orleans showed measurable academic gains under a broad charter reform. "By 2015, the high school graduation rates had climbed 73%...Test scores have soared too," Place read from studies he cited and said the legislation merely provides an option for local communities.
Eric Hazelhurst of the National Education Association of Rhode Island testified in strong opposition. He said the bill is "vague" about "nontraditional approaches" and warned it would circumvent current charter approval and oversight processes. "We are here today in staunch opposition to this bill," Hazelhurst said, adding that the proposal raises concerns about equity and consistency in curriculum and warned of a national movement to reduce public funding for traditional public schools.
Hazelhurst and written testimony from the Rhode Island Federation of Teachers and Health Professionals urged the committee to hold the bill for further study. Representative Kislak questioned placement of New Orleans as a model and noted recent local political decisions affecting New Orleans schools. Kislak said outcomes there are "decidedly mixed" and cautioned that political decisions may have driven some reversals.
Representative Place said he would welcome a data-driven conversation and that some studies attribute gains in New Orleans to charter reforms. The committee did not vote on the bill’s merits during the hearing; members and advocates said further study and more detailed language would be appropriate before advancing a municipal option for wholesale conversion to charter management.
