Charter schools: Public or private?

In the past month, I've written a good deal about the Cambridge Lakes Charter School in Pingree Grove.

One of the issues that emerged during that time -- one which I haven't yet addressed -- is whether the charter school is a public institution.

It's an interesting question, as there seems to be some disagreement on the subject.

And the answer is important. If the charter school is public, it should be held to the same standards of transparency and accountability as any other public institution.

Larry Fuhrer, executive director of the Northern Kane Educational Corp., the not-for-profit organization that runs the charter school, thinks the charter school is a private endeavor.

I spoke with Fuhrer last month about the topic.

"It's a private corporation. We're not accountable to the public for private transactions," he said.

One of the "transactions" we discussed was the resignation of Joshua Emmett, the charter school principal who left his job after less than two months.

When I pressed him for the circumstances of Emmett's departure, Fuhrer said, "That person is not a public employee. That person is the employee of a private corporation."

But Community Unit District 300, of which the charter school is a part, disagrees.

District 300's Web site asserts that the charter school "is a public (not private) school."

The charter school was built with a loan from private investors. Fuhrer seems to think that means Cambridge Lakes is a private school.

But taxpayer dollars are repaying that loan and the money that funds the school's daily operation comes from local property taxes and state funding.

When all is said and done, the charter school will have been almost entirely supported by public money.

In my reckoning, that makes it a public school.

Parents should be informed

Two charter school parents made a troubling claim at a recent Northern Kane board meeting.

They said they were not notified when, earlier in the school year, their children's teacher left and was then replaced.

"How can I not be notified that my child's teacher is replaced?" said Tanya Windbiel, one of the parents. "That is ridiculous."

But, again, Fuhrer seemed to think that this was not an appropriate topic for discussion, even among parents.

"Personnel matters like that will not be aired openly," he said.

That's not a personnel matter. As Fuhrer should know from his extensive business background, precision is important.

Legal protections on public employees' privacy doesn't mean parents shouldn't be notified if their kid gets a new teacher.

At least one Northern Kane board member, Cambridge Homes Vice President Jerry Conrad, seems to agree.

"That is something we'll have to get better at," Conrad said at the meeting.