A skeptical board of trustees listened Tuesday to a brief proposal from a Southern California conglomerate that wants to start up an online charter school in the district.

Marco Salazar, the acting executive director of Global Tides, a nonprofit organization created by Charter School Development Systems (which is owned by Ed Futures) that hopes to open a statewide online charter school by September of this year, told trustees his company needs their approval to complete the business plan for the proposed school.

The proposal would create “the first California online (kindergarten through 12th-grade) charter school,” Salazar said.

The company first approached the California State Office of Education seeking approval of the charter school, but was told, “No, you can’t do that,” Salazar told CUSD.

Because of state law, if a charter school is approved in a particular county, the school can then accept students from geographically adjacent counties. Global Tides has submitted its proposal to several school districts in 14 of the state’s 58 counties.

“We took a map of the state like a jigsaw puzzle and selected 14 counties to hit the entire state,” Salazar said. “We are in need of your cooperation.”

The proposal would create an online virtual public school, which Salazar said would target students who are not performing well in traditional classes or are having attendance problems. The company says it would want to work with school districts that approve the charter school to identify the students for its programs.

Board Chairman John Yerman immediately brought up the issue that all the trustees say they have: “It would cost us to do that.”

Salazar admitted the proposed online academy would cost the approving districts the revenues – generally referred to as ADA, or average daily attendance – they would receive from the students that might enroll in the Global Systems school that live within their boundaries.

“How do you make sure the actual student is taking a test and not the parent?” asked trustee Evan Garamendi, a former classroom teacher in the district.

“We don’t know,” Salazar answered. “That is part of the work needed (to be completed) before September.”

The board noted that the proposal says the charter school would adopt the state’s standards and its graduation requirements may require students to take classes that the University of California and California State University systems require from potential students, but questioned how all those classes could be offered, primarily because specific subject credentials are required for certain high school classes.

“We’re not a school yet,” Salazar said. “We have to make sure our classes are acceptable to the UC and CSU systems.”

Trustee Sherri Reusche asked how the virtual school would complete the physical education requirements set by the state. Salazar suggested programs available in cities that have active YMCA programs, but trustees told him there are no programs with the organization in the county.

“Students would need to accommodate,” Salazar said.

“What about music programs?” Yerman asked. The CUSD board has long committed itself to supporting music classes at all of its schools. “If I want to play the saxophone, someone’s going to teach me online?”

“Yes,” Salazar said.

The school would also apply for a WASC accreditation, an acronym for Western Association of Schools and Colleges, which is the lengthy process by which schools are granted accreditation in one to six-year terms.

Superintendent Mark Campbell said after the meeting that a WASC accreditation process could take three years from the onset of the process, during which a committee visits schools, meets with teachers and administrators and closely examines curriculum. The committee then presents recommendations for action, granting an applying school an interim accreditation, during which the applicant has up to three years to implement the plan and show improvement.

Another worry for trustees was how the proposed virtual school would handle special education. With its plan to have a teacher travel around the district and check up on students enrolled in its programs, special education could be very difficult to address virtually, trustees said.

“We would be responsible” for the independent learning plans special education students require, Salazar said.

“So you’re going to provide online speech therapy, for example?” Yerman asked.

Salazar said that if the online school had no teachers for special education classes, it would negotiate with the district.

“And you’d take SELPA (Special Education Local Plan Area) funds,” Reusche said.

“We could negotiate that,” Salazar said.

No action was taken at Tuesday’s meeting. The item will come up for board action at its Nov. 17 meeting.

Salazar did not remain after the board meeting to speak with anyone from the district about his proposal.

Yerman said he was not impressed by the presentation.

“I hope that’s not their A game,” he said.

If the CUSD board denies the application, the proposal – if Global Systems chooses – may move on to the Calaveras County board of education. County Superintendent of Schools John Brophy said he believes school districts that were sent the proposals will deny them, their respective county boards will follow suit and the proposal will then move to the state level for official consideration.

Campbell said Tuesday that several districts in the state have already denied the proposal.

“We don’t know these people,” Brophy said when asked why districts and counties may deny the application. “We don’t know who they would employ and they don’t know our kids.”

In other action, the board approved the district obtaining two credit cards as part of the State of California Purchase Card Program. The cards would be used to make reservations for district officials who are traveling to seminars or conferences and for some purchases of supplies for the district, said Mike Merrill, assistant superintendent for fiscal services. He said that in the past he has places similar charges on his personal card, but with the shaky financial situation in Sacramento he felt more comfortable with the district having its own cards.

The charges will be paid monthly, with no carryover from month to month.

Trustees will meet in a special study session at the district offices at 9 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 14.

Contact Mike Taylor at mtaylor@calaverasenterprise.com.

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