Politics & Government

Clayton Valley Charter Supporters Say They Have Already Met the District's Conditions

Charter advocates want the MDUSD board to vote on the charter petition at its Oct. 25 meeting.

On Tuesday, charter leader Pat Middendorf told the that meeting all of the board's conditions for charter approval was "impossible."

But on Thursday night, just 48 hours later, charter supporters announced that they believe they have met all 56 conditions.

Neil McChesney, co-chair for the Clayton Valley Charter Select Committee, said the conditions needed for full charter approval were submitted to the district and that a meeting is scheduled for Tuesday to go over the particulars with district staff.

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"As soon as the conditions were handed to us, we have had about 100 people, including teachers, parents, community members and even some students, organizing to meet the district's demands," McChesney said.

The conditions the district put on the charter included everything from more details about the school's funding to how student educational goals would be reached.

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When it came to the most difficult-to-meet conditions, McChesney said charter supporters worked with district staff to try to come to a reasonable agreement.

"Some of the specificity they were looking for isn't to the letter of the law," McChesney said. "But we're trying to do it the way they want us to do it. It's their ball game."

Deborah A. Cooksey, associate general counsel to the MDUSD board, said that she believed 40 to 50 percent of the conditions were met. Cooksey said Friday they have received 100 percent of the data but have not yet assessed it all. She is not sure if staff will have enough time to assess all of the information by the MDUSD board's Oct. 25 meeting.

Ideally, what Clayton Valley charter supporters want is approval from the school board at its Oct. 25 meeting. But, what they say is most important is for the board to vote on the petition, even if they reject it.

If the board rejects the petition, the decision can quickly be appealed to the Contra Costa Office of Education, where charter advocates .

"(A vote) is the critical thing," McChesney said. "There can't be any more extensions, they have had enough time. Our timeline demands it. We can't act unless we move forward on this."

The goal for charter supporters is to open Clayton Valley as a charter school for the 2012-13 school year.

You can read a full history of the fight to make Clayton Valley High a charter school .


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