Charter School Gets a Reprieve

State Board Seeks New Information

Usually when the Maryland Board of Education reviews a charter school application that has been rejected at the county level, the state panel does one of two things: rejects it again or grants permission for the school to open.

But last week the board did something a little different as members looked over an application for the Bay Arts and Sciences Public Charter School in Calvert County. The proposal had been voted down unanimously by the county school board in September.

Instead of giving a thumbs up or down, the state panel ordered the local board to work with the charter school founders to resolve three deficiencies and then report back in late April.

"The State Board acknowledges that this Order is unusual," the board wrote in the Feb. 26 opinion, "but we find that this is an unusual case because, unlike most charter school applications, the application here appeared thorough and well-developed."

The board briefly addressed three shortcomings in the application:

¿ Plans for curriculum and how it will align with the Voluntary State Curriculum, which spells out what students should know at each grade level.

¿ Budget matters, particularly defining what a 2 percent administrative fee paid to the school system will cover. Sometimes charter schools have to pay a larger fee to account for services such as special education and bus transportation, said Karen S. Mittelman, who chairs the charter school's founding board.

¿ Availability of a temporary facility until a permanent school can be built.

The state board's decision surprised both sides of the approval process in Calvert. The charter school's backers celebrated what they consider a victory in their years-long quest to open the school. The county school board scheduled a meeting today with its general counsel.