Take Action: Email Maryland Education Leaders to Protect Charter School Funding

Written By Jennifer Randolph

Your email matters. The Maryland State Board of Education and MSDE need to hear directly from parents, educators, and community members who want a funding formula that is fair, transparent, and equitable for charter school students.

Step 1: Select Who to Email

Select Maryland education leaders to email. We’ve compiled them here.

Step 2: Choose An Email Subject Line

  • Fix the Formula: Protect Maryland Charter School Students

  • Charter Families Demand Fairness in Funding Regulation

  • Make These Changes for Equity and Transparency

  • Fix the Charter School Funding Formula – Make These Changes

Step 3: Use the Email Template

Copy, paste, and personalize the email template below.

Tips for More Effective Emails

  • Personalize your email—share why this matters to you as a parent, teacher, or community member.

  • Stay respectful but firm in asking for these specific changes.

  • Keep the focus on fairness and equity for charter students.

  • Remind them that MSDE must review and share the August 22 funding formulas before finalizing any regulation.

Email Template

Dear [Recipient Name or "Members of the Maryland State Board of Education"],

My name is [Your Name], and I am a [parent/educator/community member] who supports Maryland’s public charter schools. I am writing to urge you to make critical changes to the proposed charter school commensurate funding regulation to ensure fairness and equity for all public school students.

Charter schools serve nearly 25,000 Maryland students, but the current draft would continue to underfund them and jeopardize their ability to operate. These changes are necessary to create a transparent and equitable funding process:

  • Remove debt service deductions: Charters receive no facilities funding, yet districts can deduct their facility costs. This is inequitable.

  • Restore the 2% administrative fee cap: Raising it to 5% diverts dollars away from classrooms and contradicts the intent of a streamlined oversight role for districts.

  • Eliminate the “districtwide contracts and expenses” loophole: Vague language allows districts to withhold excessive funds, pushing withholdings up to 25% in some cases.

  • Fix special education overage: Calculations should be at the school level so charters pay only for their own students—not districtwide deficits.

  • Ensure transparency: MSDE must review and publicly share the August 22 district funding formulas before any regulation moves forward.

These reforms are about equity, transparency, and protecting the future of Maryland’s charter school students and families.

Thank you for your leadership and for making sure the funding formula truly reflects fairness for every public school student.

Sincerely,

[Your Name]

[Your City or Charter School Affiliation]

Jennifer Randolph
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Take Action: Call Maryland Education Leaders to Protect Charter School Funding