ULC Releases Report on Charter School Facilities Funding Challenges
ULC, school administrators, foundations, financiers and professionals in the charter school industry came together March 17th to discuss the existing challenges of charter school facility funding at the release of “A Better Way,” Funding Options for Colorado’s Charter Schools.
Authored by Alan Gottlieb, the discussion included challenges schools are facing given metro Denver’s hot commercial real estate market, and how two schools faced those challenges.
Jon Hanover, the Founder and Principal of Roots Elementary explained, “Roots spent 8 months putting together a package to build a school, we would have preferred to spend that time on programs, teacher development and student growth. The biggest barrier to scaling impact and moving the needle for kids is the lack of facilities for charter schools.”
Jennifer Douglas, Founder and Principal of the New Legacy Charter School in Aurora echoed Jon’s concerns about school leaders being forced to attempt to become real estate experts while also creating a successful school program. She shared, “Building quality schools in an environment where there are few options is overpowering. Colorado has a huge need for a fund that can support the creation of new facilities through technical assistance and construction.”
Read the full report, A Better Way, and learn about work that is happening to address the real estate challenges that schools are facing in Colorado.