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Lack of Students Doomed Charter: Claremont School Scheduled to Close Friday

Posted on: Sunday, 5 March 2006, 13:01 CST

By Jen Aronoff, The Charlotte Observer, N.C.

Mar. 5--The Claremont charter school set to close Friday was doomed when the partnership that had the potential to save it fell apart, officials say.

Visions Charter School had been plagued by low enrollment -- 59 students -- and a lack of money all year. But parents praised the school's individualized attention and caring staff, and faculty and board members remained optimistic the school could reinvent itself and succeed.

Instead, they learned late last week that Visions will close, and Catawba County will lose its only charter school.

"We went as long as we could," Visions board Chairman Lew Kelley said. "(But) our financial advisers called us the other day and said, 'Look, you guys can't make it. You're broke.' "

The news shocked and dismayed parents, who said they had no inkling things had gotten so bad and expected Visions to remain open until at least the end of the year.

"If they opened the school this year and were aware the funding could run out, that's unconscionable to me," said parent Jerry Miller, whose daughter is in the fifth grade.

Charters are taxpayer-funded alternatives to regular public schools, operated by independent groups instead of districts. They receive money based on the number of students they have.

The funding process serves as a form of accountability because it forces schools to behave like businesses and win customers -- in this case, students.

"If the school doesn't perform, the school closes," said Joel Medley, a consultant with the N.C. Office of Charter Schools. "(But) we certainly don't want to see schools close, especially under the circumstances of Visions right now, with eight, nine, 10 weeks left in the school year."

Such a situation is unusual, but not unheard of: Since 1997, when North Carolina's first charter schools opened, 25 have voluntarily relinquished their charters and eight have been closed by the state. There are now 97 in the state.

The closures have almost always been due to low enrollment and a lack of money, said Roger Gerber of the League of Charter Schools, a state advocacy group.

Visions opened in 1997 as Engelmann School of the Arts and Sciences and attracted more than 200 students by 2000, despite some initial turmoil. But in recent years, enrollment plummeted amid claims of sexual abuse and kids being put in closets and taped to desks, according to minutes from the state Charter School Advisory Committee.

School officials note there were no criminal charges or lawsuits from those allegations, and the staff and board are completely different now. The school's reputation, however, was shot.

Two years ago, Engelmann changed its name to Visions in a bid to start anew, and this school year its board hired director Craig Willis, a retired Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools teacher.

Willis set out to reinvent and reinvigorate the school. He made plans to boost student achievement, such as a partnership with Lenoir-Rhyne College.

He sought to broaden and increase the school's population, visiting churches and recreation centers to attract students. And he considered moving the school closer to Hickory to increase its visibility.

"It's been a good year," Willis said. "We're proud of our school."

But the director faced an uphill battle.

Visions' budget did not list a projected enrollment, but it includes an amount of public funding appropriate for about 100 students, said Karen Frazier, a state fiscal analyst.

After the start of the school year, though, the state learned Visions' enrollment was under 65, the minimum required at N.C. charters, and school representatives began meeting with the state Charter School Advisory Committee.

At its December meeting, according to the minutes, Willis told the committee that Visions had several options, including:

-- Shut down because of a forecasted $100,000 deficit by June.

-- Turn to a school management company to allow Visions to survive the year and succeed in the future.

-- Find a local benefactor within the next month.

At first, it seemed like the second option would work out. Willis formulated an action plan, and in February, Visions entered into a partnership with Imagine Schools, a nonprofit that runs charter schools nationwide.

The deal was supposed to bring enough money to survive the school year -- and a long-term solution. Imagine, Willis told the committee, was interested in helping acquire a new school building and wanted to increase enrollment to beyond the maximum listed in Visions' charter: 288 students.

Under state charter school rules, however, struggling schools like Visions cannot grow by more than 10 percent a year beyond their current population. For Visions, it would mean adding only about six students a year, making large-scale growth impossible.

Such a small school could not provide a return on Imagine's investment, and the deal dissolved. After this week, the school will be no more.

"I think it's a crying shame they would close this school with only three months to go," said Crystal Ritch of Hickory, whose 6-year-old son, Malachi, was in kindergarten at Visions. "These children don't deserve to be shortchanged because the school was short-funded."

Ritch said the news was tearing her son apart. But she didn't want to waste any time in helping him transition: Friday afternoon, mother and son went to take a tour of Clyde Campbell Elementary.

Visions Charter School

2952 N. Oxford St., Claremont.

Opened: 1997.

Closing: Friday. The state Charter School Office has yet to receive official word that the school is closing, but the Visions board is expected to make it official at its meeting Monday night.

Current enrollment: 59.

Staff: Eight, including director Craig Willis.

Projected 2005-06 budget: $578,848.

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Charlotte Observer, N.C.

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Source: The Charlotte Observer (Charlotte, N.C.)

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