A proposed charter school that unwillingly found itself at the center of a “culture war” in Florida’s capital city has formally appealed its rejected application to the state level.
The Leon County School Board rejected Tallahassee Classical School’s application this spring, despite a review by the district’s staff that supported its plan for a new school that would focus on teaching the great books of Western civilization.
Jana Sayler, a trained accountant who joined forces with a team of Leon County educators to start the school, said they were confident the state’s Charter School Appeals Commission would find their plan meets the requirements in state law.
“We expect that the state will approve our opening for the 2019-20 school year,” she said.
By that time, she says, she hopes the district will develop the strong working relationship with the district — which several school board members said they wanted.
The school could benefit from a subtle change in state law, which pushed charter school applications from the fall to the spring. That gives charter school applicants more time to resolve appeals without pushing back their opening dates.
The district has raised concerns about the charter school’s potential impact on enrollment, and therefore funding, of the schools it operates. Opponents have cited a wide range of other hot-button issues, from segregation to the business practices of for-profit management companies, that have little to do with Tallahassee Classical.
The Tallahassee Democrat reports that the school is drawing parallels with past appeals in other districts, where school board members sought to block new charter schools in what they described as acts of “civil disobedience.”
In the 406-page appeal, the school argues the denial notice from Leon County Schools is “void of any competent or substantial evidence to deny” Tallahassee Classical School. They argued that LCS is using the denial to make a political point.
“The school board is illegally using the charter school application process as a vehicle for civil disobedience, which cannot and should not survive review,” the TCS appeal stated.
The school board also rejected a second proposed school with a classical emphasis. But Plato Academy declined to appeal. Matthew Gunderson, the principal of its Tampa school, said the organization is looking grow beyond its Tampa Bay roots, and is targeting areas where local Greek communities desire schools with its unique language and cultural focus.
Leon County was one such community. Plato employs several teachers with North Florida roots, he said, and they saw a need for its model in Tallahassee.
He said his organization wants collaborative relationships with school boards and might consider re-applying in the future if that seems possible in Leon County. Right now, he said, “it’s a hostile kind of environment to try to do business in.”
