Georgia’s Voters Will Decide on Future of Charter Schools

But when it comes to charter schools, parents, teachers, education officials and legislators are deeply divided over what exactly would be best for students.

Here in Georgia, the future of charters, which are publicly financed but privately operated, could be determined Tuesday by a ballot measure that asks voters to amend the State Constitution so that an appointed statewide commission could authorize new schools.

Along with high-stakes testing and tenure changes, legislative efforts to expand charter schools are among the most contentious issues in education circles. Proponents say charters can experiment with new teaching strategies to help struggling students or those stuck in failing public schools. Detractors say the charters drain precious public money and energy from neighborhood schools.

At issue in Georgia is who should decide whether a charter school can open. Supporters of the amendment say a commission focused exclusively on charters is necessary to override resistant local school boards and ensure that parents have ample educational choices.

“Education is one of the few things in our country that you have no choice,” said Lyn Carden, the board chairwoman of the Georgia Charter Educational Foundation, which operates two charter schools that were initially denied applications by their local school boards.

“You live in this neighborhood, you go to this school,” Ms. Carden said. “For some parents, it works great, but not all schools are right for all kids.”

Critics of the amendment say families already have plenty of choices, including charter schools authorized by local school boards.

“We are not arguing the merits or demerits of charter schools,” said Herb Garrett, the executive director of the Georgia School Superintendents Association. “We’re just saying that decisions about new schools in a community ought to be made by elected officials who represent those citizens, not a bunch of political appointees in Atlanta who have no idea what’s going on in a local school district.”

The Georgia initiative, as well as a ballot measure in Washington State that would permit charters there for the first time, is being closely watched across the country. In both states, the measures have attracted financial support from national business leaders and advocacy groups.

In Washington, donors supporting the charter ballot initiative include Bill and Melinda Gates; the parents of Jeff Bezos, the founder and chief executive of Amazon; and Nicholas Hanauer, a prominent venture capitalist. Alice Walton, the daughter of Walmart’s founder, Sam Walton, has contributed to campaigns supporting the measures in both Georgia and Washington.

Americans for Prosperity, the Tea Party organization founded by the billionaire Koch brothers, has donated to a committee supporting the charter amendment in Georgia. Students First, a group run by Michelle A. Rhee, the former schools chancellor in the District of Columbia, has also contributed and is helping to organize supporters in the state.

The roster of contributors in Georgia includes several companies that manage charter schools, including K12 Inc., Charter Schools USA and National Heritage Academies. In all, committees supporting the ballot measure have collected 15 times as much as groups opposing the measure, according to public filings.

Opponents point to such wealthy donors and argue that the charter amendment is part of a broader agenda designed to privatize education and discredit public schools.

The heavy spending, some education experts say, could rouse the kind of opposition that exploded during the teachers’ strike in Chicago in September. The union there railed against teacher evaluations and challenges to union seniority that are advocated by some of the same groups behind the charter movement.

The Chicago strike “was a serious pushback against these fairly radical reformers coming in with a lot of money,” said John S. Ayers, the executive director of the Cowen Institute for Public Education Initiatives at Tulane University. “It will be interesting to see what happens in Georgia.”