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Charter school passes a big test

The Juniper School, via 9-R committee vote, is now free to apply

Durango School District 9-R board members Tuesday conditionally approved the application of a community group to open a K-5 charter school in 2016.

The vote was 5-1, with Greg Spradling dissenting. Spradling doesn’t oppose the school, but he was worried about the procedure and what he sees as potential district fiscal responsibility if the charter flops.

A district review committee three weeks ago said organizers of The Juniper School weren’t on solid enough footing to win its recommendation. The review panel’s main caveat concerned finances.

But District Superintendent Dan Snowberger and Jackie Oros, the chair of the District Advisory and Accountability Committee, or DAAC, said Juniper School organizers have revised revenue, budget, hiring, professional development, curriculum offerings and opening-date criteria to their satisfaction.

The conditional approval must lead to formal charter negotiations that need to end in a contract by Aug. 25.

Juniper School developers agreed to delay opening of the school a year until fall 2016. The postponement allows them to apply for a charter startup grant from the state worth $250,000 and avoid frenzied development of curriculum, fund raising and contingency budgeting.

Durango School District 9-R plans to house The Juniper School on the second floor of a district building adjacent to district offices on east 12th Street. Big Picture High School, alternative education, occupies the ground floor.

Juniper will offer a Montessori approach to education tempered with project-based learning, student choice, learning contracts and hands-on projects.

School board member Kim Martin expressed concern about the financial stability of Juniper and the potential drain on 9-R. Board chairman Andy Burns needed to be assured that a charter contract is a reasonable expectation by Aug. 25, and Mick Souder asked if district money would go to Juniper with the acceptance of the application. The answer was that no district money would flow until Juniper kids begin class.

Board member Nancy Stubbs, who was a member of DAAC, said the response of Juniper organizers to district demands was exemplary. The organizers responded whole-heartedly and quickly, she said.

Among upgraded Juniper documents presented Tuesday were a revised budget, a contingency budget, curriculum and programming matrix, school calendars for 2015-2016 and 2016-2017 and a letter of support from the Colorado League of Charter Schools.

daler@durangoherald.com

The story has been changed from its original publication to reflect the correct vote total, to fix Mick Souder’s name and to clarify that a facet of learning at The Juniper School will be project-based learning.

Dec 8, 2015
Charter school fails to get grant


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