Appellate court ends Woodland lawsuit vs. charter school
An Illinois appellate court has ended a lawsuit filed two years ago by Woodland Elementary District 50 that could have led to the closure of Prairie Crossing Charter School in Grayslake.
Three justices from the First District Appellate Court dismissed Woodland's case in its entirety "with prejudice" Thursday, meaning it cannot be refiled.
Gurnee-based Woodland was rejected in March in its effort to have the 2014 case reviewed by the Illinois Supreme Court. That occurred after the appellate court on Dec. 31, 2015, overturned a Cook County circuit court decision that went in Woodland's favor in the case and could have forced Prairie Crossing's closure.
Prairie Crossing, which is within the boundaries of District 50 and Fremont Elementary District 79 in the Mundelein area, will now operate through 2018-19 as approved by the Illinois State Charter School Commission. The commission's decision on the choice school after a public hearing in 2014 led to the Woodland lawsuit.
Woodland has been at odds with the 432-student capacity charter school for several years over funding requirements created by the state. For example, court documents show Woodland was required to send to Prairie Crossing $2.8 million of its state aid in the 2013-14 academic year. That money paid for 309 children who lived within District 50 boundaries but were enrolled at Prairie Crossing.
Created by the state and open since 1999, Prairie Crossing's environmentally focused curriculum includes outdoor teaching and trash-free lunches. Parents of Woodland and Fremont children may enter a lottery for a spot in the choice school.
District 50 alleged in the May 2014 lawsuit that Prairie Crossing should not have been allowed to stay open because it violated its last five-year charter approval in 2009 by not increasing student diversity as directed. A month before the suit, the charter school commission voted 5-4 to renew Prairie Crossing through 2018-19.
In March 2015, Cook County Circuit Judge Thomas Allen sided with District 50, ruling the state agency erred in its decision to let Prairie Crossing remain open. Allen's ruling was overturned.
District 50 did not have any standing to challenge in court the state commission's decision to grant another five-year charter to Prairie Crossing in 2014, according to the appellate justices.
Woodland school board President Chris Schrantz said the elected officials are entrusted with the responsibility for the educational quality and fiscal stability of public education in the community. He said it is the board's duty to advocate for students and schools.
"As such, we again submitted a resolution to the Illinois Association of School Boards urging the adoption of legislation to create a new methodology for funding state-authorized charter schools that does not negatively impact the host school district," Schrantz said in a statement. "The board believes that the parents, students and taxpayers of Woodland District 50 have a fundamental right - through their democratically elected officials - to participate in the determination of local education policies that affect schools, students and finances."
Prairie Crossing Executive Director Geoff Deigan did not return messages for comment Friday.