District 88 School Board

ends charters' sponsorship

Recommends 1-year non-renewable agreements

By KREMENA TODOROVA

Journal Staff Writer

NEW ULM -- The District 88 School Board on Thursday voted to end its current sponsorship of the charter schools in Lafayette and Hanska, and offered to start negotiations on one-year, non-renewable sponsorship agreements for next year.

Officials stressed the proposal to continue sponsorship for a year was only intended as a "breather" that would give the charter schools a chance to find another sponsor.

Board members took turns to emphasize that the decision to end support was prompted solely by a need to conserve the local district's administrative resources -- and not any intention to undermine the charters.

"If we renew the agreement, we'd be stretching even more thin our administrative resources," said board member Susan Nierengarten, in comments restated in one form or another by every board member present. "We'd be taking away from our own district."

Board members also stressed that there should be more to sponsorship than putting the district's name on a piece of paper . Sponsorship should involve closer financial and academic oversight of the charters than the district is currently able to provide.

"We'd like to be a good sponsor," said board member Tim Babel. "We simply do not have the staff hours to commit to being a good sponsor."

In comments addressed to the board, Sheila Howk, lead teacher at the Lafayette charter school, acknowledged she was surprised by the action, given what she described as substantial enrollment growth at her school and its willingness to comply with recommendations made by the sponsoring district.

Howk urged exploring options that would allow continuing sponsorship while also lightening the burden on the sponsor-- such as "hiring out" evaluations and paying independent experts with grant money.

Howk also argued -- unsuccessfully -- for deleting the term "non-renewable" from the decision.

"Non-renewable" refers to the current agreement and does not in any legal sense preclude a new contract in the future, board member Nierengarten said in response. But "non-renewable" does signal this board's intention not to revisit the matter beyond the one-year mark, Nierengarten also said.

It is rare for a sponsoring district to end its commitment because of its own limitations -- rather than a charter school's failure, said Steve Dess, Executive Director of the state Association of Charter Schools who accompanied Howk to the meeting.

He also urged New Ulm officials to remain open to alternatives, stressing the importance of staying atuned to local communities' needs.

Dess stressed it would be hard for the charters to find a new sponsor. While charters can be sponsored by colleges, the state Department of Children, Families and Learning or non-profit organizations, this is rarely the case. Colleges often shy away from commitment for fear of clashing with school officials; the DCFL is "tapped out"; and non-profits generally sponsor charters with larger budgets.

A school district gets nominal funding (about $8 per charter school student) for monitoring charters. Combined enrollment at Lafayette and Hanska is currently about 90 students.

According to the school board's decision, the new one-year agreements should require the charter schools to enhance their curriculums to better reflect the state's graduation standards and assessment requirements; review and analyze test data and change instructional delivery in response to test scores; and cooperate with the sponsor in meeting timelines and specifications.

The current sponsorship arrangements were voted, and have been in effect for, three years.

Dan Ragan, director of the Hanska school, lso attended the meeting.

Ragan did not address the meeting but provided written information indicating compliance with some earlier recommendations by the sponsoring district.

Members of the public were also in attendance.

In other action the board:

* Approved a new contract for clerical staff, calling for 25 cents an hour raises next year, and 30 cents an hour raises the year after; a slight increase in the employer contribution to health insurance; and adding two personal days, three holidays and three meet/confer days (the latter starting in 2003-2004).

* Opened bids for busing services for the next four years, with the possibility of two one-year contract renewals, in line with state regulations that require a bidding process for busing.