Conversion charter schools: In legal limbo

Charleston County's two conversion charter schools could be headed for a fight with the school board at the end of this school year.

The board is waiting for a court ruling on its lawsuit challenging legislation that applies only to Charleston County.  That law, Act 189, guarantees anything to local charter schools that a public school would receive, and some interpret that to extend to using space in district buildings for free. The board contends the mandate conflicts with and goes beyond what state law requires. A hearing on the case hasn't been scheduled.

Charter schools are public schools funded with taxpayer money that operate independent of school district policies and mandates.

The pending decision on the lawsuit already has affected at least one of the board's decisions. James Island Charter had a five-year lease with the district requiring it to pay $1 annually to use its buildings. The lease expired last summer, and the school requested earlier this year that it be renewed for 10 years, the same length of time as their new charter agreement with the board. Instead of accepting the school's request, the board agreed in August to extend the lease only until June 2010.

Board Chairwoman Toya Green said the board wanted to renew the lease, but it also wanted to have a full understanding of the laws it must follow before making a long-term decision. She said she couldn't predict what the board would do as it relates to the school's lease if the courts rule in favor of the district, but it's a possibility the board could make changes to the lease agreement.

"No matter what the court rules, I will happily follow it," she said. "The board would need to consider that, and that's a reality of managing the district's property responsibly."

James Island Charter Principal Bob Bohnstengel plans to discuss the issue with the charter school's board at its next regularly scheduled meeting and decide what to do in response to the county school board's decision. It surprised him that the county board opted not to make a long-term renewal, and he said it gives him pause and reason to be concerned.

"We've got 1,450 students who come here every day, and we want to make certain that we have a place to educate them," he said. "Not just any place -- this place. It has everything we need right now to deliver excellent services."  The school hasn't done anything to violate its lease agreement and he doesn't see any reason why its lease agreement should change, he said. It's not prudent for the school to have a year-to-year lease, he said.

Orange Grove Elementary Charter's building-use agreement, as well as its charter with the district, expires at the end of this school year. School Principal Larry DiCenzo said he made sure that the word "lease" doesn't appear in their agreement because that implies the district can charge the school a fee. The school doesn't pay any rent to the district.  "The taxpayers own this building, not Charleston County (school district)," he said.

The school board can wait on the courts to decide their lawsuit, but he said it's not going to change the charter school's opposition to paying for that building space. The charter school has been a good custodian of the property, and it pays the bills to clean and maintain it, he said.  "We're ready to fight that battle," he said. "We'll never back down from that."

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