Ringgold board hears from supporters of proposed charter school
The Ringgold School Board president said a group trying to open a charter school in the district left “an awful lot of unanswered questions to say we’re starting a school in July” when it explained its plans to district officials Wednesday.
“There’s just lots of issues that they’ve got to overcome,” said William Stein following the hearing.
District officials probed representatives of the nonprofit Prominence Charter School – incorporated two months ago as part of the group’s bid to open a publicly funded, privately led school in the mid-Mon Valley in time for next school year – about the proposed school’s curriculum, finances, location and other aspects of the plans.
“What we’re doing is truly in the best interest of area students,” said Dana Moreno, one of the supporters spearheading the effort.
The school would teach students in kindergarten through eighth grade at first and eventually expand to include grades nine to 12. Full enrollment would be 450 students, based on plans for two classes of 25 students at each grade level.
About 10 supporters and board members of the proposed charter school attended the session.
They said the group is in negotiations involving the owner of the former Monongahela Elementary Center and the national nonprofit Building Hope to use the old school building, which the district shuttered in 2011 and later sold to a private buyer.
Cindy Crone, another member of the group, said Building Hope – whose website says it “provides a range of solutions including pro bono technical assistance, low-cost subordinate loans, and turnkey development of lease-to-own facilities for charter schools” – would also underwrite the school’s education program.
Questioned by district solicitor Timothy Berggren, Moreno admitted its application didn’t include a letter or other documentation promising that Building Hope would provide financial support.
“Even if we approve the application, there’s still no guarantee that they’re going to underwrite or do anything – am I understanding that right?” Berggren said.
Moreno said most organizations that assist in financing charters first require an approved application.
Students from Ringgold would get priority in enrollment, but seats would be open to students from other area districts if they were available.
School districts must pay for students within their borders who attend charters.
For Rinngold, that bill would come to $8,742 per regular student and $18,147 per special-education student.
Charters often find themselves at odds with traditional public schools on questions of policy.
Asked about concerns that charters compete for money with traditional public schools, Moreno said families should be able to pick the program that best suits their child.
“We as a society need to look at students first,” she said. “If the normal, or typical, public education program isn’t what the student needs, it doesn’t make that program ‘bad.'”
State law says the district must decide after 45 days and within 75 days of the hearing.
Superintendent Karen Polkabla said a vote on the Prominence application likely will occur at the board’s February meeting.
If the district rejects the application, Prominence can resubmit it or appeal the decision to the state charter appeal board.
Discussing his concerns after the hearing, Stein noted architects previously told the district that major repairs to Monongahela Elementary Center would cost $15 million to $20 million.
“If someone says, ‘If you grant this, I might get this or I might get that’ – we have to know when we grant permission to a charter school they have a place and it’s a safe place and it provides a quality education equal to or better than the opportunity that we have here,” he said.