Senate committee approves McDonnell's charter school proposal

Senate committee approves McDonnell's charter school proposal: "A Senate committee this morning overwhelmingly passed Gov. Bob McDonnell's education package, including his proposal to expand the number of charter schools in Virginia. The vote virtually assures passage of the bills in the Democrat-controlled Senate next week and in the General Assembly this year. The charter school bill is a weakened version of McDonnell's original proposal. McDonnell's office worked behind the scenes to negotiate a compromise with groups that represent teachers, school boards and superintendents -- all vocal in their opposition to the bill -- to return some power to the local boards and ease concerns about the state having final control over applications. The bill would give the state Board of Education a role in advising prospective providers on their applications before they go up for approval before school boards, but the local boards would retain ultimate authority to approve such schools.