STATEMENT FROM NEW YORK CITY CHARTER SCHOOL CENTER CEO JAMES MERRIMAN IN REACTION TO DEMOCRACY BUILDERS’ REPORT ON THE ISSUE OF BACKFILL IN THE NEW YORK CITY PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM
(New York, NY) – Please attribute the following statement to NYC Charter School Center CEO James Merriman:
“Many charter schools are delivering great results for public school students, making it vital to ensure that as many students as possible, especially those at risk of academic failure, have the opportunity to attend a charter. Backfill is an important part of that conversation, albeit a complex one. As we move to have a more public conversation – starting with efforts to increase transparency around who is backfilling, with which students and when – it’s worth noting that a large majority of New York City charter schools have made major steps to address this issue on their own over the last several years – frequently by filling seats during the school year.”
