In an April 4th letter to Oakland Academy Charter School, the Gilmer County Board of Education (BOE) officially denied Oakland’s charter application. Since last summer, Oakland has tried to re-open as a charter school after it was closed by the BOE last May. The school’s efforts came to a zenith in February when the BOE agreed to conduct a public meeting to discuss the charter petition with members of Oakland’s Board of Trustees. Facing a full-house in the old BOE building, the board spent the night asking questions to the trustees, questions which mainly dealt with funding. Although not making an official decision that night, the BOE’s comments fell on the negative side, where the board said it could not afford another school in the system. Initially, the board closed Oakland due to financial strains, which was essentially the theme of the board’s denial letter.

“The local tax digest dropped 17 percent for 2010, 13 percent for 2011,”

Superintendent Bryan Dorsey wrote in the letter, adding that

“all projections for the local tax digest indicates a decrease for 2012.”

He also explained the state implemented $2.6 million in austerity cuts for FY12, which he said would have to be absorbed by the local taxpayers. Additionally, Dorsey noted projected revenues and expenditures for the FY 12 budget were balanced by reducing the budget by 15 percent or 6.3 million dollars, implementing a 1.5 mill roll up on property taxes and reducing the school calendar to 170 days.

Later in the letter, Dorsey also noted the charter’s proposed budget

“is not financially viable.”

He explained specifically the budget reveals inadequate funding for special education programs, teaching salaries and transportation.

Another concern Dorsey and the board emphasized in the letter was the duplication of services.

“Other OACS programs touted in the petition as innovative,”

Dorsey writes,

“including project-based learning and virtual tours, are duplicative of programs already being implemented in the District.”

Other concerns voiced in the letter included items such as the method of enrollment for students, and the level of co-teaching in the classrooms (and whether Oakland’s levels would be lawfully fulfilled).

Conceivably, the items Dorsey and the board outlined are issues that can be addressed by Oakland’s Board of Trustees. After Oakland addresses these items, it can re-submit a revised version of the petition. At this point, the BOE can either approve the charter or issue another denial letter with a new set of items and begin the process over again.

In a recent conversation with FYN, Oakland Board of Trustee Chairman Isaac Lassiter acknowledged the denial letter and said an official statement from Oakland Academy Charter School would be forthcoming.