Manhattan's District 2 may get its first charter school in 2011-12 and some parents aren't happy about the prospect. The District 2 Community Education Council will vote on two resolutions tonight, addressing the proposed 2011 opening of KED Manhattan Charter School, founded by a Swedish school management organization.

The CECD2's Resolution 30 would ban the co-location of charter schools in District 2 buildings, which in recent years have been housing many schools, and co-located schools, operating in crowded conditions.

CECD2 Resolution 31, calls for the SUNY Charter School Institute, KED's authorizing agency, to prohibit charter applications submitted by for-profit charter organizations.  As part of the New York State Charter School Act, amended in May to raise the state charter cap, for-profit organizations are banned from managing or operating new charter schools.

Resolution #31 would also expand the ban on charter applications by for-profit organizations to include those that were "were grandfathered in under the old law because of the effective date of the new law."<!--more-->

What is KED?

Kunskapsskolan Education (KED), a school management organization operating schools in Sweden and the United Kingdom, is looking to open its first charter school in the United States.  The charter application under review by SUNY's Charter School Institute is for a middle school (grades 6 to 8).

District 2 is not the typical community sought out by charter schools -- whose mission generally is to serve low-income neighborhoods with poor school options -- which may be why KED chose it for its first US-based site.

The KED model aligns with the progressive educational practices used in many District 2 schools serving middle class neighborhoods.  According to KED's website, instruction is highly personalized with great emphasis on self-paced learning:

The steps and courses offer different kinds of lesson formats, such as lectures, workshops, seminars, laboratory experiments etc, which you and your personal tutor will put together in your weekly schedule. If you feel that any subject is particularly difficult, you can choose to devote more time in your personal schedule to teacher-led learning or independent studies in this subject.

In an article covering the arrival of KED in the UK, the Telegraph described the instructional philosophy as "laissez-faire liberalism,"  citing "no bells, no timetable and few structured lessons."

Other charter schools coming soon

If you're curious about new schools coming to a neighborhood near you, check out the latest list of charter school applications under review by SUNY's Charter School Institute and those under review by the city's Department of Education.