A Loudoun County charter school said a proposed change to make charters ineligible for capital improvement program funding would make it challenging to maintain and expand its facilities.
Hillsboro Charter Academy, which has 144 students and a long waiting list, is sounding the alarm about the possible consequences of the change the suburban Northern Virginia district鈥檚 school board is considering.
Under the proposal, which was discussed at a Loudoun County School Board meeting earlier this month, a charter school facility or campus would not be included in the school board鈥檚 Capital Improvement Program for 鈥渃urrent or future capital improvements.鈥�
A vote on the change could be scheduled for the end of September.
The pivot comes as the school is hoping to improve its physical infrastructure, including building new playgrounds and a new music room. Joe Luppino-Esposito, vice president of the charter school鈥檚 board of directors, said the move means 鈥渨e鈥檙e really at risk of the school just not being able to operate because the building will fall into disrepair.鈥�
草莓传媒 has contacted School Board Member Kari LaBelle, whose Catoctin District includes the school campus, for comment on the school鈥檚 concerns.
鈥淭he part where it seems like the district is falling short and saying things like, 鈥楨very school needs a new playground, except for you guys in Middleburg, because you鈥檙e the only two charter schools, so you don鈥檛 get a new playground,鈥欌�� Luppino-Esposito said. 鈥淭his doesn鈥檛 really make any sense. Those kids are no different in the third grade in our schools versus the third grade in Mountain View or any of the other schools.鈥�
The school has previously received capital funding for things such as an HVAC unit, Luppino-Esposito said, and the school board agreed to replace the roof. It鈥檚 funded from Loudoun County schools鈥� regular operating budget, and it gets paid the average per pupil figure. The division takes a 5% administrative fee, 鈥渁nd then that money is supposed to be dedicated primarily to student education, but that money also goes toward regular maintenance,鈥� he said.
Teachers at the school work for the public school division, but leadership works for the private academy. Luppino-Esposito said there鈥檚 no tuition or 鈥渟pecial permission to get in.鈥�
The school system鈥檚 Capital Improvement Program is a long-term plan for maintaining school infrastructure and covering construction costs, among other things.
Some school board members have argued against the proposal, but Luppino-Esposito said 鈥渟ome people in the district are saying, 鈥榃ell, worse come to worse, we can just close down the school and distribute the kids back to their home schools and so be it.鈥欌��
Caleb Kershner, who represents the Catoctin District on Loudoun County’s Board of Supervisors, said not funding the capital needs of charter schools could be 鈥渁 death knell, potentially.鈥� The supervisors fund the school division鈥檚 budget but don鈥檛 directly fund a specific school.
鈥淭hey are a form of a public school, so I don鈥檛 know why you would treat them any differently in terms of the funding and how you support them as you do with a traditional school,鈥� Kershner told 草莓传媒.
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