Slippery Rock Area School District v. Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School
2009 WL 1545473, 975 A.2d 1221, 2009 Pa. Commw. LEXIS 453 (2009)
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Rule of Law:
A local school district is obligated under the Charter School Law to pay for a resident student's education at a charter school, even when the charter school offers a discretionary program, such as kindergarten for four-year-olds, that the district has chosen not to provide in its own schools.
Facts:
- A four-year-old student residing within the Slippery Rock Area School District (Slippery Rock) enrolled in the kindergarten program of the Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School (Charter School).
- Under the Pennsylvania Public School Code, establishing kindergarten for children between the ages of four and six is a discretionary choice for school districts.
- Slippery Rock exercised its discretion to offer kindergarten, but only for children who are at least five years old.
- Slippery Rock refused to pay the Charter School for the education of the four-year-old kindergarten student, arguing it was not obligated to fund a program it did not offer.
- The Charter School Law requires a student's district of residence to make payments to the charter school for that student based on a statutory formula.
Procedural Posture:
- The Secretary of Education notified Slippery Rock that it had deducted funds from its state subsidy to pay the Charter School for a four-year-old student.
- Slippery Rock submitted a letter of objection to the Department of Education, requesting a hearing.
- The Secretary appointed a hearing officer to address the objection.
- The Charter School filed a motion to dismiss Slippery Rock's objection.
- With no disputed factual issues, the hearing officer certified the case to the Secretary of Education for disposition.
- The Secretary of Education issued an order granting the Charter School's motion to dismiss Slippery Rock's objection.
- Slippery Rock (Petitioner) filed a petition for review of the Secretary's order with the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania.
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Issue:
Does the Pennsylvania Charter School Law require a local school district to fund a student's enrollment in a discretionary educational program at a charter school when the district itself does not offer that same program?
Opinions:
Majority - President Judge Leadbetter
Yes. The Charter School Law requires a local school district to fund a resident student's enrollment in a discretionary program offered by a charter school, even if the district does not offer that program. The legislature enacted the Charter School Law with the express purpose of increasing learning opportunities and providing parents with expanded educational choices that are independent of the existing school district structure. Allowing a district to withhold funding for any program it does not personally offer would frustrate this central legislative intent. The authority to decide operational matters, including curriculum and admissions policies like kindergarten entry age, rests with the charter school's board of trustees, not the local school district. Therefore, if a charter school validly offers a program contemplated by state law, such as kindergarten for a four-year-old, the student's home district is responsible for the corresponding funding.
Analysis:
This decision reinforces the autonomy and independence of charter schools in Pennsylvania by clarifying that their funding is not contingent on mirroring the programmatic offerings of local school districts. It establishes that a district's financial obligation is tied to the student's residency, not the district's curricular choices. This precedent prevents local districts from indirectly controlling charter schools by withholding funds for programs they disapprove of or do not offer themselves, thereby protecting the legislative goal of providing diverse educational alternatives within the public school system.
