This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Should we care if people are profiting from Utah charter schools?
We should if Utah students aren't profiting, including the ones who don't go to charters.
South Jordan Republican Rep. Rich Cunningham is questioning the decision of Athlos Academy of Utah, a nonprofit charter school operator, to pay $112,000 a month to lease its building from Athlos Academies, a for-profit Idaho company that builds and manages charter schools in several states. Cunningham says the decision circumvents Utah's competitive-bidding requirement, but Athlos says that requirement doesn't apply to leasing facilities.
If it looks like the fix is in when Athlos, the nonprofit, pays Athlos, the for-profit, for its lease, it appears to be a legal fix. Nonprofit Athlos also pays for-profit Athlos $900 per student for management services.
Utah's charter schools are funded by taxpayers, but the legal requirement that charters be run by nonprofits does not prevent people from profiting. As Athlos shows, it just adds a layer. (Public schools sometimes contract with for-profit companies for services, too, although not for core services like management and real estate.)
Boise-based Athlos Academies is privately held and doesn't report revenues, but it is clearly a growing business. The company last year bought the old Macy's building in downtown Boise to remodel as its headquarters, and it has received tax incentives for adding to its workforce.
And Athlos is not unique. A Tribune examination earlier this year found two private companies that received at least $6.9 million from Utah charter-school contracts. And some private companies have had connections to charter school officials and state legislators, raising further questions about procurement practices.
Charter schools are often worthwhile, but they are about experimenting and niche-serving. They will not replace traditional public schools. Charters can effectively choose their students by tailoring their offerings to specific groups. Traditional public schools take who walks through the door. That means the public schools will continue to go where the profit motive is weakest.
Charter schools are growing, so regulation needs to be such that the charters aren't just pulling away the students whom someone can make money on. That will hurt the majority in traditional schools.
Utahns strongly support their public school system. It is the state's great equalizer and socializer. It is where rich and poor, Mormon and non-Mormon, white and nonwhite come together. That will always be worth more than profits.