Rejection energizes advocates

Philips and supporters of the EACH! school proposal have 30 days to decide if they will appeal the board’s decision to reject the all-girls charter school to the state board of education. They are also considering reapplying with the Frederick County next year.

‘‘We may decide to do both,” said Philips, a lawyer with 15 years of experience teaching students through the Potomac Valley Home School Coop. ‘‘I think [the rejection] has made more people driven. It has given people more passion.”

For Philips and other charter school supporters, the board’s 6-1 vote against the proposed school has indicated that it may be more difficult to start a charter school in Frederick County than it was in 2002, when the county became the first in the state to open one.

Philips said she was disappointed by the board’s lack of cooperation throughout the application process.

‘‘There was no congeniality, there was no friendliness,” she said. ‘‘There was no guidance.”

The EACH! charter school proposal called for a girls-only school for grades seven through 12 with a focus math, science and foreign languages.

Board members said they voted against this particular school proposal, rather than charter schools in general.

‘‘I am absolutely in favor of school choice,” said board president Katie Groth. ‘‘But I really can’t see how we can offer a choice to only half of the students in the system. ... I am all about equity and to me this is not equitable.”

Board member Michael Schaden was concerned about building safety; Bonnie Borsa discussed math curriculum; Donna Crook was worried that single-sex charter school may contradict state laws; and Daryl Boffman focused on the school’s ability to recruit under-performing and minority students.

‘‘People were coming at it from different perspectives,” Groth said.

Superintendent Linda D. Burgee was the first to reject the application on Oct. 24, saying it did not meet a need in Frederick County, lacked specific plans for budget and curriculum, and had no plan for recruiting under-performing and minority students.

Philips had 14 days to respond before her final meeting with the board on Nov. 14.

The process was different than the one used when the school board approved the Monocacy Valley Montessori Public Charter School, said board member Leslie Mansfield, who gave the sole vote in support of EACH!

At the time, there were no state laws and the board seemed more willing to guide the charter school founders, said Mansfield, who was a founder of the Montessori charter school.

‘‘The difference was that they assigned us different tasks to complete,” Mansfield said. ‘‘You would think it would be easier now that the processes are in place ... It seemed much more subjective this time around.”

For some charter school supporters, the rejection illustrated the need to have more advocates for alternative schooling on the board of education.

Tom Neumark, founder of FrederickEducationReform.com, a group of Frederick County parents, which supports the EACH! application, said it may be time to get more supporters of alternative schooling on the school board.

‘‘The board denied a terrific opportunity,” Neumark said. ‘‘They sent a message that charter schools are not welcome in Frederick County. It is clear that the board doesn’t have a full grasp of what Frederick County parents want.”

Neumark said that his group will be working to educate the public about school choices. The group is also looking for possible Board of Education candidates who are more open to these ideas, he said.

‘‘This is only encouraging parents to try harder,” he said. ‘‘The pressure now from charter school advocates is going to get even stronger.”