Dive Brief:

• Ohio has seen a dramatic drop in the number of new charter schools being opened, and the decrease is being attributed to a slew of recent charter closings and increased state scrutiny of authorizers. 
• In 2014, only 11 new charter schools were opened, compared to more than 50 in 2013.
• Last year, 28 charter schools were closed statewide, which prompted an investigation by the state Department of Education into three specific charter school sponsors.

Dive Insight:

While Ohio is typically deemed as a charter-friendly state, its House of Representatives in April passed an array of education bills including a charter protection law, which aims to stop failing charters from reopening under different names and requires education management companies (or service providers) to get approval from statewide charter sponsors before they can operate in the state.

The state's wariness of charter schools is largely informed by past experiences with a handful of management organizations. For example, in 2011, the state sued White Hat Management for poor academic performance and nontransparent finances. Additionally, the Columbus Dispatch ran a story last January reporting that 17 Columbus charter schools closed during the 2013-14 school year — nine of which were open only a few months. Those nine closed so quickly that it cost taxpayers $1.6 million, and five of those nine were operated by the same management company: North Central Ohio Educational Service Center.