Fulton School board denies charter extension to nationally acclaimed school

By D. Aileen Dodd

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The Fulton County Board of Education voted unanimously Tuesday to deny the contract extension of a nationally acclaimed Alpharetta charter school, a move that could close the school this summer.

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Jason Getz, jgetz@ajc.com Fulton Science Academy Middle School students react to the Fulton County School Board denying the school's charter renewal at Dunwoody Springs Elementary School Tuesday night in Sandy Springs, Ga., December 20, 2011. Over 230 supporters of the charter school were in attendance during the school board meeting. There were also dozens of supporters outside the hallways of the school and outside in the rain.

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Jason Getz, jgetz@ajc.com Doug Lucas, center, pleads with the Fulton County School Board to vote yes to renew the Fulton Science Academy Middle School charter at Dunwoody Springs Elementary School Tuesday night in Sandy Springs, Ga., December 20, 2011.

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The vote on Fulton Science Academy Middle School was made at the school board's monthly business meeting before a standing-room only audience of more than 230 students, parents and community members, most in support of the school, though there were some opposed. An overflow crowd of 40 others watched through the glass of Dunwoody Springs Elementary.

They left abruptly after the 7-0 vote to deny the school's contract to continue.

"We are not going to stop," said parent Lauri  Crowe Kowalski of the fight to keep the school open. "This is a big bump in the road though."

Fulton Science, a school of more than 500, appealed to the district for a 10-year contract renewal touting its academic record. It was recently named a national Blue Ribbon School of Excellence for its standardized test achievement. Fulton Superintendent Robert Avossa, however, asked the school to accept a three-year contract instead so the district could monitor its use of taxpayer money.

Fulton Science entered into a more than $18 million loan agreement to build a shared campus with Fulton Sunshine Academy and Fulton Science Academy High School, its sister schools. The schools sought revenue bonds through the City of Alpharetta Development Authority. As a result, Fulton Schools staff recommended that the schools be placed on the same contract schedule so the district could have more oversight of their mutual financial obligation.

Fulton Science governing board members did not accept his offer. School officials said they needed the 10 year contract because it would help attract students and teachers to the school and also help with business operations.

"This is something I cannot support at this time," Avossa told the board before the vote on the 10-year contract application. "Our school system has an obligation to its taxpayers to be fiscally accountable and good stewards of its money."

While the school was going through the application process, Fulton staff  investigated its finances and found problems. The charter campus paid $156,000 to a nonprofit without first putting the contract out for bid.   The school's executive director and principal served on the board of the Grace Institute for Educational Research and Resources, which contracts with schools to provide technical support, professional development and purchasing services.District officials said it created a conflict of interest.

Fulton administrators advised the school to follow the procurement process and resolve its conflict of interest. FSA's principal and the executive director resigned from the board of Grace and said they had not been paid for their work.

The school's Fulton charter contract expires on June 30.  It can apply to the the state Board of Education to become a state charter school, which will cause it to lose local funding for the education of students from Fulton County -- about half of its allocations.

If the state does not offer the school a charter contract, its students would have to return to 16 neighborhood middle schools, with some schools getting as few as one and others up to 100.

FSA parent Doug Lucas said the school should be praised for its excellence and allowed to continue. "I am very disappointed in the public school system."