Nothing to do with getting away from unionized teachers who slouch on the job.
HOBOKEN, N.J. – Are charter schools popular with middle class parents because they have fewer poor and minority students than the public schools do?
The head of one New Jersey teachers union thinks that’s the case – at least in his community.
During Tuesday night’s school board meeting, Hoboken Education Association President Gary Enrico said the only reason charter parents are avoiding the local public schools is because “they don’t want their children in the classroom with the kids from applied housing or the projects,” reports the Hoboken Patch.
Enrico dismissed the idea that parents choose charter schools because they produce better academic results. He said Hoboken Public Schools are nothing less than “great.”
“We have great teachers, we have great schools, we have great facilities,” said Enrico, a veteran teacher with the district, according to the Hoboken Patch.
This isn’t the first time the union leader has gone public with his theory. Enrico made similar comments during the June 11 school board meeting, the Hoboken Patch reports.
Other Hoboken teachers and public school apologists apparently share Enrico’s incendiary views.