Citing Costs, Poor Service, Charters Ditch District Special Ed - voiceofsandiego.org: Education

Citing Costs, Poor Service, Charters Ditch District Special Ed - voiceofsandiego.org: Education:

Citing Costs, Poor Service, Charters Ditch District Special Ed

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  Photo by Carlos A. Moreno

  Special education teacher Deborah Armusewicz reads her students' letters out loud to check their work. She is one of many support teachers, like Sandra Meza (back), who help facilitate learning for the students of Gompers Preparatory Academy.

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From the Reporter

Jumping Ship

In recent years, dozens of charter schools have found ways to escape San Diego Unified’s special education services. They say they’ve left for a variety of reasons: poor services, autonomy and money.

Growing Costs, Growing Fees

Because San Diego Unified spends much more on special education than it gets from the state to do so, it has to dig into its budget to make up the difference, a trend that’s led to a steady uptick in the fees charged to charter schools and a corresponding exodus of charters.

By the Numbers

The fee charged to charter schools is now $953 per student, more than twice what it was in 2004. The fees account for one-fifth of new charter Old Town Academy’s budget. The school enjoys the services it gets, but is leaving for financial reasons.

Posted: Tuesday, January 17, 2012 6:00 am |Updated: 7:55 am, Sat Jan 14, 2012.

• By Will Carless

There's a quiet, studious hum in Deborah Armusewicz's classroom. Kids dressed neatly in button-down, pine-green sweater vests and neckties politely raise their hands to answer questions while two support teachers mill around the room like earnest chaperones, pausing occasionally to whisper encouragement or corrections over a child's shoulder.