Years before the groundswell of demands for higher teacher pay led to a school walkout in Arizona, one of the state's high-profile charter schools has subsidized teachers' income by pushing parents to pay.
The Arizona Republic reports Basis Charter Schools Inc., which operates 20 schools in the state with more than 900 teachers, asks parents to make donations.
According to records obtained by the newspaper, Basis Scottsdale requests at least $1,500 per child each year.
Basis receives per-student funding from the state and cannot charge tuition as a public charter school.
Basis Executive Director DeAnna Rowe says parent donations stay at the school where the giving occurs.
Department of Education spokesman Stefan Swiat says he did not know of any other public charter or district school that makes such requests.
