State Retracting Charter School Sponsor Evaluations

The Ohio Department of Education is retracting evaluations of charter school sponsors after discovering a pro-charter school  official excluded failing grades received by online schools from the reports. The department issued a statement saying it is consulting independent experts to assure the evaluation process is "credible, accurate and compliant." School Choice Director David Hansen confirmed earlier this week under questioning by the Ohio Board of Education that failing grades for online and dropout recovery schools were left off from the evaluations because he felt the marks would "mask" successes elsewhere. Officials said Hansen was legally bound to report all the grades. The omission boosted the ratings of two oversight agencies, which could make them eligible for more state perks.  Hansen was once a vice president at the National Association of Charter School Authorizers.  His wife, Beth, was Governor John Kasich’s chief of staff and now manages Kasich’s presidential campaign. On Thursday, the ranking Democrat on the Ohio House Education Committee, Theresa Fedor, called for the resignation of State Schools Superintendent Richard Ross.