The push to acquire charter school status for J. Frank White Academy has been given a preliminary ‘thumbs down’ by the Claiborne School Board who, under state law, has the legal standing to do so if certain criteria by the applicant is not met. Upon first reading, the board has apparently found areas of concern with the application submitted by Lincoln Memorial University (LMU) on behalf of the Academy.
Connie Holdway, director of schools, said during the monthly work session that the granting of charter school status would create “a profound fiscal impact” upon the school system and would not be in the best interest of the students, district and community.
The application committee, made up of members of the school board, put together a written response to the charter application. One of the major concerns noted in the response is the lack of provisions for transportation of those more rural economically disadvantaged students – something the document states is the premise of the application.
During a brief break in the work session, board member Sam Owens said the lack of any special education students enrolled at the Academy was another major concern.
“The Claiborne County Board of Education values the contributions provided to community children that have or are attending the private school, J. Frank White Academy. However, according to (Tennessee Codes Annotated) §49-13-106 (c)(1), J. Frank White Academy is ineligible to convert to a charter school status,” reads the final conclusions of the response, in part.
Those on the application committee pointed out in the response three ‘legal’ reasons for voting against the charter application. The first had to do with the proximity of H. Y. Livesay Middle School, one of three district campuses designated by the state as a rewards school, to the Academy.
The Tennessee Department of Education has never identified a school within the Claiborne County School District as a priority school, or one that is earmarked for special attention due to its low scores — a second reason for denying the application, according to the response.
The third reason has to do with the district’s academic scores.
“Claiborne County students have scored higher in grades 3-8 Reading and Math assessments than bordering Tennessee counties for the past four years according to state and SCORE reports. The Claiborne County School District has established a strong academic foundation and is expected to continue in an upward trajectory,” reads a portion of the final conclusions of the response.
During the regular meeting, the school board unanimously denied the application, as submitted, agreeing it does not meet state standards.
The application committee used the Tennessee Department of Education Charter School Scoring Rubric to critique the application. Areas of strength, omissions and concerns were noted within each subsection.
Holdway said during the work session that LMU will have 30 days to address the concerns and amend the application. If and when this occurs, the school system will then have 30 days to approve any amendments submitted by the University.
The process could take some time to conclude, due to the allocation of extra time for additional reviews and appeals.
Final approval will be determined by the Tennessee Board of Education.
Reach Jan Runions at 423-254-5588 or on Twitter @scribeCP.
