Charter school facing closure

After the Bonsall Union School District (BUSD) Board of Trustees encouraged a room full of people to cure the budget problems of Bonsall Charter Academy for Learning (BCAL), the budget was balanced - based on the numbers provided to the Parent Advisory Board (PAB). Regardless of that, at their Monday night meeting, some board members projected opinions still in favor of revoking the school’s charter.

PAB crafted the solution with a number of concerned parents, titled the Parent Advisory Counsel (PAC), after they learned of the school’s dire situation at a BUSD special meeting on November 28. The group was given until December 9 to solve the situation. The initial public review of the budget occurred at the district’s regular meeting on December 12.

The 17-page cure would give the district a positive balance of $19,368 at the end of the 2005-06 school year and was praised by many board members and staff. “Based upon the current plan, I don’t see where there is going to be a negative impact on the program… pending the opportunity for us to get a qualified science teacher,” said Superintendent Jef Schleiger. “They could carry out a comprehensive program and meet the needs of those students currently in attendance.”

But Assistant Superintendent Wayne Jones, who said he was impressed with the group’s work, unveiled a new challenge at the Monday night meeting, “Because of certain changes, basically in payroll… and in salary information, [those changes] brought them to a $15,896 deficit.”

Four BUSD trustees expressed deep concerns in allowing the charter to continue. Member Sylvia Tucker seemed to accept the cure. Member Lou Riddle moved to deny the cure, but there were no seconds to his motion.

“Our constituents have voted with their feet with regards to the school,” said President Tim Coen. “The fact remains that for whatever the reason, the people that live in our school district, for the most part decided that they do not support the school. They don’t want to send their kids to the school and that really, kind of, is probably the most concerning thing, to me, about the situation we’re in now. We’ve been in this place before, in regards to the budget over the last several years and we’ve had plans and things that didn’t materialize.

“I have to say this plan is the best that we’ve seen and has an incredible amount of work put into it and it looks like an excellent plan. But we still have the problem about the constituents not supporting the school and I don’t know that there’s a way to counteract that. It’s been four years. The last that I heard was 20 kids from our own district <are> in the school. And that concerns me a lot.”

Coen did not offer to define who his constituents were. Kit-Bacon Gressitt later responded to Coen’s comments and similar ones from other board members by saying, “The call for a cure did not call for politics and so we didn’t focus on that.” Coen then said he was not voting on politics and doubted his fellow board members were.

A motion was passed by four members, Riddle opposed, to continue the item to December 15, with the intention of two members meeting with the group to further discuss the issues prior to the vote. It was agreed that Sylvia Tucker and Dick Olson would be the board participants. No more than two members are allowed to attend without requiring the status of a special meeting, which would need a public notice of the event at least 24-hours in advance.

Some board members were insistent that the decision be made as soon as possible and Coen said waiting one week would be “too long.” They justified that waiting longer would further harm the school if it were to continue.

Communication seems to be a key sticking point in the issue.

Keith Way, who facilitated a majority of the gatherings leading up to the budget fix, did not learn of the November 28 meeting until the day of the event when his son came home from school and said BCAL was going to be shut down. This scenario has been repeated by many parents who are now involved.

After hearing of a possible financial problem, PAB president Edee Pitcher said she and some other members met with Laura Badillo to review the budget, but Badillo stated she only had one copy with personal notes that could not be shared. Badillo resigned from the district on November 30.

Pitcher also wonders why any other budget other than what was given to the committees after the notice was issued would be relevant. She said she met with Jones and Coen on December 7, two days prior to the deadline, to review their suggested cure and there was no mention of any figures changing.

According to Pitcher, Jones replied to Coen’s suggestion of encouraging more students to go to BCAL instead of Sullivan Middle School by saying “You are not going to take students from my other schools and mess with my budget.” Jones and Coen did not return phone calls prior to press time.

A charter school is a free public school that is operated by the district that grants it its charter, Tucker said in an interview. Typically charters can have more individuality in lesson plans for students, are not bound by all rules in the Education Code and teachers do not need to be a part of the district teacher’s association said Tucker.

Those interested in making a financial pledge or donating an item to the school can contact Kit-Bacon Gressitt at 760-522-1064 or email [email protected].

Parents assert BCAL

provides unique opportunities

• Keith Way has his three sons in the school. Brandyn, his oldest, has close to a 3.97 GPA and high SAT scores, which qualifies him for any Cal State University, including Berkley. Way says that Brandyn has been able to develop his research and theories in physics more than he ever could in a more traditional school. His freshman, Ian, came into the district with low grades and has significantly raised them. “There’s been a total change in his attitude,” said Way, who loves the debates Ian now articulates. Way believes his youngest son, Ryan, is really sharp and has been able to stay interested in school by being able to advance past his grade level. The seventh grader is currently excelling in a math class meant for kids two years older than him.

• Steve Kovsky appreciates the promised attention his son Aaron gets, as well as the unexpected improvements in Aaron’s education. Kovsky and his wife brought Aaron, who has Type 1 Diabetes and needs to take multiple shots a day, to the school after they experienced resistance from Sullivan Middle School, where an office staff member said they would help with Aaron’s shots in an emergency “if they had to,” said Kovsky. According to Kovsky, everyone at BCAL was willing to be trained and available for any of Aaron’s needs. In addition, Aaron has been more engaged in school and has been able to advance past his grade level in some classes.

• Kit-Bacon Gressitt enjoys the school for her daughter Kate because of its self-directed approach. Kate can gain credit by taking specialized classes outside of school in art and writing and gain college credit by attending Palomar. “It’s not a crowded campus like Fallbrook… is a safe, educational environment,” believes Gressitt.