That's the trade-off required in a bill pending in the New Jersey Legislature. It would allow private and parochial schools in failing school districts, such as Camden, to convert to taxpayer-funded charter schools.
Seven schools in Washington recently made such conversions for budgetary reasons. As a result, the archdiocese there was able to keep more than a dozen other Catholic schools open.
Supporters of the idea in New Jersey, who include Senate President Stephen Sweeney (D., Gloucester) and Camden County Democratic Party power broker George E. Norcross 3d, say the proposal gives financially struggling schools and students stuck in failing districts another option.
But Camden Catholic-school leaders say they aren't interested in an alternative that takes away their identity.
Under New Jersey's bill, which has passed the Assembly, parochial schools could avoid closing by eliminating all religious symbols and classes, and adopting a secular name. Current students, faculty, and staff would have first dibs on staying and would avoid the charter-school lottery process.
"It would provide immediate relief" if a struggling Catholic school converted to a charter, said Norcross, a strong proponent of charter schools in Camden.
Under current law, some parishes have leased or sold their buildings to charter schools after a Catholic school has closed. But that takes time, and enrollment preference is not given to the school's former students.
The bill would "facilitate the continuum of a quality-education environment," said cosponsor Assemblyman Albert Coutinho (D., Essex-Union).
The Camden Diocese and Catholic school operators say, however, that religious beliefs and values are at the core of the curriculum.
