Florida taxpayers are footing the bill for a failed experiment. The state continues to pour millions into the so-called Schools of Hope program charter schools created to serve students in Florida’s poorest, lowest-performing schools even though the evidence shows they are producing results no better, and sometimes worse, than district-run schools facing the same challenges. That isn’t my opinion. It’s in the state’s own data.
When Somerset Academy, managed by a for-profit company, took over Jefferson County schools, Tallahassee pitched it as a turnaround model. Instead, taxpayers saw higher costs, stagnant results, and constant staff churn. By 2022, the takeover collapsed. Local leaders called it “an absolute disaster.” The state had to step in with a $5 million bailout just to get the district running again.
Jefferson County should have been the cautionary tale that stopped this experiment in its tracks. Instead, lawmakers doubled down, expanding the program statewide.
Eight years into the program, just over a dozen Schools of Hope are operating across Florida. Last year, eight of them earned a C or D. Meanwhile, hundreds of district-run schools serving students in extreme poverty posted A and B grades.
The fact that traditional schools are outperforming these highly subsidized charters shows the flaw at the heart of this policy. The promise was that Hope schools would do better with less bureaucracy. The reality is that they deliver mediocrity while consuming more public dollars.
That’s not reform. That’s lowering the bar.
The Legislature also created the Schools of Hope Revolving Loan Fund in 2017, funneling $100 million into construction and startup costs. Nearly every dollar — $98.9 million — is already gone. Repayment safeguards are weak. Performance benchmarks are weaker. And nowhere is there a requirement that Hope schools outperform the public schools they replace.
No private business would operate this way. Why should taxpayers accept it? The public deserves transparency about where this money has gone and what measurable return if any we are getting on the investment.
This year lawmakers delivered another windfall to Hope operators: the right to occupy underused public-school buildings at little or no cost.
Supporters call it “making use of empty classrooms.” In practice, it’s a Trojan horse:
Charter chains get taxpayer-funded facilities without paying full freight.
Traditional schools are stuck with utilities, maintenance and security.
District budgets shrink, programs disappear and closures follow.
What looks like “efficiency” on paper is, in reality, a backdoor strategy to weaken neighborhood schools and funnel more resources to private operators.
Advocates sell this as “parental choice.” But real choice requires transparency and honesty. Parents deserve to know what’s offered, who gets served, and how every dollar is spent.
Traditional public schools provide AP, IB, dual enrollment, career academies, arts, athletics and special education serving all students, without cherry-picking.
Many charter chains, run by for-profit organizations, offer less breadth, face less oversight, and prioritize the bottom line over student needs.
That isn’t genuine choice. It’s marketing shifting taxpayer money into private hands without requiring better outcomes for students.
For eight years, the Schools of Hope program has drained public dollars, delivered mediocre results and weakened the very neighborhood schools that anchor our communities. If lawmakers were serious about reform, they would invest in proven strategies: smaller class sizes, mental health support, competitive teacher pay, and community schools that partner with families.
Florida families want safe, strong schools. Florida taxpayers want accountability and value. Schools of Hope deliver neither. Expanding this failing experiment isn’t reform; it’s reckless spending.
The real “informed choice” is clear: stop subsidizing underperformers and reinvest in traditional public schools, the only system that serves every child and answers to every taxpayer.
Crystal Etienne is president of the Eduvoter Action Network. She lives in Miami.
