Officials and school board members representing the Durham Public Schools (DPS) are fighting the expansion of existing charter schools, Kestrel Heights and Voyager, and the establishment of a new charter, Research Triangle High School.
In a letter to the state Office of Charter Schools, Superintendent Eric Becoats complained that charter school expansion in Durham County “severely impacts Durham Public School’s ability to provide a sound basic education to its students.” Of course, Becoats does not mention that students exiting DPS will reduce the district’s capital and operating costs. Rather, DPS officials want the public to believe that charter schools, which are public schools, are all cost and no benefit. North Carolinians do not buy it.
In the News & Observer article, John Betterton argued that DPS Durham school leaders “should look at why charters are so popular in their county.” He is right. Nevertheless, I suspect that DPS officials have no interest in doing so. Those accustomed to operating a monopoly never take consumer preferences seriously.
