Ohio teachers union sues state over charter schools

The lawsuit was brought on behalf of Dayton public schools.
COLUMBUS (AP) -- The state's largest teachers union sued the state over its charter school program Friday, saying it lacks proper oversight and takes needed money from traditional public schools.
The Ohio Education Association listed the Ohio Department of Education, the State Board of Education and Susan Zelman, the state superintendent of public instruction, as defendants.
The lawsuit filed in Franklin County Common Pleas Court was brought on behalf of Dayton public schools and the union's Dayton unit. The union has about 130,000 members statewide.
It says the state has not properly monitored the performance of charter schools to comply with state law and their contracts to operate. Charter schools receive state money but are allowed much leeway in making their rules. The Legislature created them in 1998 as an alternative to poorly performing public schools.
The lawsuit also alleges that, since 2000, Dayton has lost 189 million in state funding because of local charter schools.
J.C. Benton, spokesman for the education department, declined to comment. A message seeking comment was left with Attorney General Marc Dann's office.
October ruling
In October, charter schools won a key court victory when the Ohio Supreme Court ruled that the privately held schools were constitutional. That ended a five-year battle between the state and a coalition of teachers unions and other education groups.
The court upheld the state Legislature's ability to create and give money to charter schools even if they are not subject to the same reporting and operational requirements as other public, or common, schools.
The lawsuit the court threw out in October claimed that the state's charter school law violated Ohio's constitution by creating a separate system of publicly funded schools not held to the same academic standards as traditional public schools.
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