Lawmakers eye changes after struggling SC charter transferred to a new authorizer

Contributing sentiments towards policy:

55% : The growing system of higher education authorizers caught the eye of federal officials, and in 2024 the U.S. Department of Education proposed putting a condition on a federal grant that helps fund the state's charter schools, which would have required the S.C. Department of Education to detail how it monitors, reviews and enforces sponsors' performance.
54% : Such a law is one of the state-level policies that can curb authorizer shopping, according to the National Association of Charter School Authorizers.
53% : The school's move came as some lawmakers say the state law governing charter schools need to be updated, in light of the new school sponsors that pushed the system beyond what the law originally envisioned.
52% : The shift has created a small market of options for charter schools.
44% : "Even if a school is charged with authorizer shopping, the law is solid," Malone told legislators, using the term for when charter schools switch sponsors to avoid accountability measures.
36% : "We don't shut down public schools that are having those same problems," Erickson said.

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