After further refinements to its application, Santa Barbara Charter School appears poised to win renewal of its charter from the Santa Barbara Unified School District.
School district administrators and trustees have been concerned over test scores, lack of ethnic and racial diversity, and education plans.
Emilio Handall, the district’s assistant superintendent of elementary education, recommended a conditional approval at an October meeting, but district officials were concerned by the implications that the charter could be revoked if a condition wasn’t met.
Since then, Handall has been meeting regularly with Santa Barbara Charter’s education director, Bev Abrams, and operations director Dave Weisman to write more comprehensive plans for the charter-renewal application.
With his feedback, the school is submitting a more complete education plan, he said.
“Every new draft that I get, it’s getting better and better,” Handall told Noozhawk.
Dozens of parents have been attending Board of Education meetings to praise the school’s supportive environment and small classes, and 10 teachers came to the Nov. 12 meeting to support the charter-renewal effort.
The charter renewal was scheduled for a decision this week, but the deadline was pushed out a month so the district will decide its fate at the Dec. 10 trustees meeting.
Board member Ed Heron asked if Abrams or Weisman saw any potential roadblocks, and both said no.
“We’re ready to move forward,” Weisman said.
The K-8 Santa Barbara Charter School is located on the Goleta Valley Junior High School campus at 6100 Stow Canyon Road, and just celebrated its 20th anniversary.
— Noozhawk staff writer Giana Magnoli can be reached at gmagnoli@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
