Sandusky Schools superintendent blasts new charter school

SANDUSKY — Sandusky Schools' leader came out swinging, telling residents a planned charter school in a former city school building is not good for families, or the district."The Monroe charter school is taking tax dollars away from the Sandusky City Schools that we did not vote for and there is no accountability or oversight," district superintendent Eugene Sanders said in a Facebook post Friday morning.The former Monroe School building on the city's east side, which has been vacant for several years, is the planned location for Monroe Preparatory Academy but will not house students until next year while it undergoes renovations and repairs.The former Monroe School at 328. E. Monroe St. in Sandusky will undergo renovations and repairs and be home to Monroe Preparatory Academy in the near future. Students enrolling in the charter school will temporarily attend classes at the old Madison school building at Madison and Lawrence streets until the work on the Monroe building is finished.According to its website, Monroe Preparatory Academy is a tuition-free, public charter school for students in kindergarten through fifth grades. The school "prides itself on having a rigorous academic program that exceeds Ohio state standards to provide children a strong academic foundation and prepare students for college and career."The school also claims to have small classes, individualized learning, highly-qualified staff and has "an extended school day in order to maximize learning time in each grade level," its website states.Sanders cited more reasons why children shouldn't be enrolled there:• "The Monroe Charter School is not part of the Sandusky City Schools and is operated by a business out of Lorain, Ohio and is not part of the legacy of our pride, tradition, and excellence."• "Charter schools have pitiful academic performance. The business that is operating the Monroe Charter School has a school in Lorain with a 20 percent graduation rate, whereas Sandusky High School has a 86 percent graduation rate."• "The school buildings they plan to use have significant safety concerns and may place your child in danger"• "Charter schools often provide misinformation or false information in order to 'make a profit' off of our children and community.""These charter schools try to take advantage of our community. We can not let that happen," he said.The former Madison School at 910 W. Madison St. will house K-5 students of Monroe Preparatory Academy until renovations and repairs are finished at the former Monroe School, located at 328. E. Monroe St. Erik Thorson, superintendent of Monroe Preparatory Academy, called Sanders' statements "inaccurate and incomplete," noting his school was allowed to open in Sandusky because Sandusky Schools is named to the "Challenged School District List" with many low performing schools."When a school district is designated 'Challenged,' a new start up community school is allowed to apply to serve students within district boundaries," he said.Thorson said that Accel Schools, who appears to manage Monroe Preparatory Academy, doesn't manage a high school in Lorain and called Sanders' comparisons to Sandusky High School's graduation rate "nonsensical."Thorson said schools like Monroe Preparatory Academy are community schools "as these schools are authorized to serve their surrounding communities," he said.Many community schools, Thorson said, have better testing data than traditional public schools. "Accel Schools manages numerous high performing schools in Ohio including Columbus Preparatory Academy, the highest performing public school in Ohio. In 2016, Columbus Prep earned the highest academic performance score in the state for the fifth year in a row, scoring 115 on the Performance Index versus an average PI score of 65 at Sandusky City Schools."The Sandusky community should be aware that Accel Schools will be using this same academic model at Monroe Preparatory Academy and now families will have more than one public educational option for their children," Thorson said.Thorson, however, didn't acknowledge any testing information on Lorain Preparatory Academy, a K-8 school in Lorain he also runs. Thorson also said tax dollars won't be taken away from Sandusky Schools."In almost all cases, the per pupil funding at district schools actually increases when students enroll in a nearby community school and the district retains all local government funds and millage for the transferred student, without educating the student. Additionally, the taxpayers of Ohio should be aware that community schools operate with much lower funding rates than traditional public schools," he said. Regarding safety concerns, Thorson said "numerous" safety inspections still need to pass before classes begin. Monroe Preparatory Academy's first day of school is Sept. 5."Students choosing Monroe Preparatory Academy will not only benefit from Accel Schools' proud track record of academic achievement, they will also benefit from an environment that is highly focused on student and family needs," Thorson said.Reach reporter Caitlin Nearhood at nearhood@sanduskyregister.com, follow her on Twitter @CaitlinNearhood and on Facebook www.facebook.com/CaitliNearhood Sandusky City Schools superintendent Eugene Sanders discusses the Straight A Fund on Tuesday, April 4, 2017 at Sandusky High School.