Inside the Financial Relationship Between Pete Buttigieg and Charter School Backers

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On Saturday, surging Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg released his plan for K-12 education, a wide-ranging 20-page document that offers just one paragraph on charter schools.

Up to this point, Buttigieg's comments on charters, the publicly-funded, privately-managed schools that educate about 7 percent of public school students, have been minimal. He didn't respond to the Washington Post's candidate questionnaire on the topic, and he missed an NEA-sponsored public education forum that ten candidates participated in in July. In April, at a Northeastern University event in Boston, he reportedly dodged a charter school question, but then responded to a follow-up by saying they "have a place" as "a laboratory for techniques that can be replicated." In May, he said on the trail that he supported Sen. Bernie Sanders' call to ban for-profit charters.

The problem is that charter schools have become something of a flashpoint in the 2020 primary, as many candidates have criticized them for things like taking resources away from traditional public schools and privatizing education. In doing so, these candidates have been largely distancing themselves from the pro-charter school policies embraced by the Obama administration. The media has not pressed Buttigieg much on charters, or even on public education, perhaps because he was polling relatively low for much of the race.

But Buttigieg, who is now leading in some Iowa caucus surveys, has been holding private fundraisers with a number of prominent charter school supporters, according to invitations reviewed by VICE. While his education plan was enthusiastically endorsed by American Federation of Teachers president Randi Weingarten, who has praised all the leading candidates' education platforms, Buttigieg's financial ties with the charter school community raise questions about what policy positions he might adopt if ultimately elected president.

https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/5dmmmz/inside-the-financial-relationship-between-pete-buttigieg-a