The Chesapeake Public Charter School will get another chance. The Maryland State Board of Education has overturned the decision of the St. Mary's Board of Education to reject the application of the Chesapeake Public Charter School.

At the time of the rejection, the members of the Board gave several reasons for their decision. The reasons were everything from “They will be opening their school at the same time we will be opening ours and there will be a financial squeeze” (Dr. Sal Raspa) to Board President Cathy Allen's “setting up a school with 17 students is not fair to the students who have 20 in a class.” (Parents, please tell me if your children had only 20 students in their classes last year. My e-mail is clare@clarewhitbeck.com. I would appreciate knowing what school and what grade your child was in last year. ) It is amazing that the Board of Education can approve putting 10 students in a class for the eleven month school program which was developed by the school system, but could not approve putting 17 in a class for the charter school. Oh, well. Were we expecting consistency from the Board of Education?

St. Mary's County is fortunate that the charter school process is overseen by the Maryland State Board of Education. The St. Mary's Board of Education would have deprived the community of the opportunity to see if the approach the Chesapeake Charter School is taking would break the logjam of consistent low achievement by some students who could be doing better.

Moreover, St. Mary's County is fortunate that the Chesapeake Charter School group is persistent. The group appealed the decision, exercising the rights provided by the charter school law. We can thank Roy Dyson for his work on a law that provided those rights.

As a result of the Maryland Board's decision, we'll find out whether using the environment and practical every day needs to teach every subject, having smaller classes and mandatory parent participation, and providing an individualized educational plan for each student will have the effect the Chesapeake Charter School is hoping for.

Further, this school may provide some relief for the overcrowding. It will use an existing building, probably one which is not now a school, to house about 68 students its first year. It is expected to grow. The Charter School need not be part of the harried hunt for a school site which the school system is now pursuing. Developers who own a property which might be satisfactory would do well to contact the Chesapeake Charter School team so that school can open in the 06 - 07 school year and relieve some school crowding.

Board President Cathy Allen has given the community reasons why the decision was overturned. It's the legislature's fault for not writing a more specific law. It's the Maryland Board's fault for not writing regulations to implement the law.