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Carroll County’s First Tuition-Free Public Charter School Proposed for 2014
Sustainable Futures, Inc. is advocating for a charter school in Carroll County.
Grassroots community group Sustainable Futures, Inc. has filed a letter of intent with the Carroll County public school district seeking to open a tuition-free public charter school, Carroll Montessori Public Charter School, in the fall of 2014.
This would be the first charter school in Carroll County and it would offer non-sectarian, tuition-free public school to Carroll County children, grades 1-5, advocates said. According to a news release from the group, the school would be operated in accordance with all local and state charter and public school regulations.
Do you think Carroll County needs a charter school? Why or why not? Tell us in comments.
The charter school would be intended to offer a free public school option that applies the Montessori philosophy, which uses multi-age groupings and an extensive curriculum taught with hands-on materials and cross-discipline learning, advocates said.
Sustainable Futures spokesperson Nicole Musgrave and media contact Elizabeth Barrett stressed that they are not in any way dissatisfied with Carroll County Public Schools.
“We are looking to provide another option to complement an already great school system," Barrett said.
Sustainable Futures, Inc. is in the process of submitting the application for the charter to the Board of Education and the Carroll County Public school system. If approved, group members do not propose to build a new facility, but instead have been developing a list of leasing options.
Sustainable Futures, Inc. is also pursuing grant options to cover start-up costs, advocates said. However, local and state funding would cover the attendance of the children, just like any other public school, Barrett said.
According to the 2012 Maryland Report, the average cost per pupil to attend schools in Carroll County is $12,208. The addition of this new school would not impact the per pupil budgets; it would simply lower attendance across other schools, Barrett said.
According to organizers, any families interested in having their children attend would apply, and admittance would be decided on the basis of a lottery. Applicants would be chosen at random until all of the spaces were filled, group members said.
A community meeting will be held at the South Carroll Senior and Community Center, 5928 Mineral Hill Road, Eldersburg, Monday, Feb. 25 at 7 p.m. to discuss the proposal and next steps of the project.
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Joanne
7:55 am on Friday, February 22, 2013
Where does the money come from to run a school such as this? I certainly hope it isn't taxes since our education budget is already stretched too tight.
Liz
9:14 am on Friday, February 22, 2013
That's a great question, Joanne. The operating budgets for public schools are based on enrollment. Currently, state and local governments spend about 12K/per pupil/per year for a child to attend a Carroll County public school. The operating budget for the proposed public charter school would be based on enrollment -- the Carroll County students who attend would, in essence "bring" their per-pupil funding with them. Bottom line -- the school would provide a great choice and a true asset to Carroll County with a net-zero effect on the education budget.
Jackie Coldsmith
9:42 am on Friday, February 22, 2013
This would be a true asset for Carroll County. Thanks to everyone who is making this happen.
Ed
6:28 pm on Friday, February 22, 2013
So Liz, why doesn't that per pupil funding follow to Gerstell, Carroll Christian, Saint John's, etc? There already is at least one Montessori school in Carroll that operates without public funding. Unless the state reformulates the per pupil funding to account for every existing private school student and dole it out based on THAT number, charter schools are unfair to both the public school system AND existing private schools.
Sille
10:23 pm on Friday, February 22, 2013
This sounds like it would be a good school and the Montessori education philosophy has proven to work well for many students, but this proposal does not pass the smell test.
1. There is no need for a charter school in Carroll County. The Carroll County Public School system is one of the best in the state and even in the nation.
2. A charter school would take students away from the public school system, which already has a declining enrollment. Our Commissioners would only increase their calls for closing a school or two if a publicly funded charter school was opened.
3. The south Carroll location would exclude much of the Carroll County student population.
4. Public money (Carroll County taxes) should not be used not be used to fund a private school (which is really what this proposal would establish).
5. We already have Montessori schools in Carroll County. This smells like an attempt by those who have or want their children in a Montessori School to have the public pay for it rather than paying for it themselves.
Ben
8:46 pm on Tuesday, February 26, 2013
There's no way this proposal would be a net-zero for the Carroll County education budget. A new school would require new teachers, all new staff, maintenance and leasing fees, etc. What you seem to be suggesting is that, by attracting kids from other public schools, the per-pupil cost would just be redistributed. But if the school attracts, say, three children from Carrolltowne, three children from Sandymount, three children from Mechanicsville, etc., those schools are not going to be able to cut teachers to make up for losing those students. So you end up spending more money to educate the same number of students.