Teachers Unions and School Districts are Appealing Judge’s Decision to Keep Open Charter Schools Serving 13,000 Louisiana Children

BATON ROUGE, LA –PublicSchoolOptions.org and Louisiana parents Jennette Franklin and Christin Kaiser submitted a motion to file an amicus brief in the case of Louisiana Educators Association vs State of Louisiana. Franklin and Kaiser have children who attend Louisiana charter schools that are threatened by the frivolous lawsuit brought by the Louisiana teachers union and Iberville Parish School Board. An amicus brief would allow parents’ voices to be heard in a trial that will determine the fate of their children’s future. The motion can be found here: http://www.publicschooloptions.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/LA-Amicus-November-2015.pdfEven though a District Court judge ruled in favor of Louisiana parents in May with a clear message that charter schools are public schools, and that the current funding mechanism established by the state could continue, the union and district are pushing forward with an appeal to the decision in their continued fight to diminish options in public education for Louisiana children.The suit asks that public funding be discontinued to Type 2 charter schools in the state, which would cause the schools to close. Type 2 charter schools currently serve over 13,000 students in the state. Should the union and district be successful in their suit, many of these students would be sent back to a local public school that has already failed to meet their learning needs.The brief urges the court to take into consideration the children and families served by these public charter schools, which are currently unrepresented in these proceedings.STATEMENT FROM CHRISTIN KAISER:“We want every child in Louisiana to have the opportunity to attend the school that best fits their needs, and that includes public charter schools. The union’s continued threat to cut off public funding to a public charter school is not only reckless, but a blatant disregard for the children and families who choose this public school option. We are confident that the courts will side with the children and families who benefit from these schools. All 13,000 of them.”