Charter school at odds with district

Ruhkala Elementary School was dedicated Thursday night to one of the founding families of Rocklin and the city's largest granite industry mogul the Ruhkala family.However, as the dedication took place, honoring the large Finnish family, about half the students and parents who go to school at the new Ruhkala campus stayed at home, upset they were not part of the festivities.When the Ruh-kala campus opened this year, it did so with about 350 Rocklin Unified K-6 graders who attend Ruhkala Elementary and Rocklin's charter school, the 310-student, K-6, Rocklin Academy.FYIWhat is a charter school? A charter is its own district with its own board and administration Independent of the school district financially Chooses its own staff and administration Is not burdened by state guidelines regarding curriculum and materials Districts must provide facilities to charters by law Students must apply Being part of the charter is a parent's choice Districts cannot assign students to a charter schoolThe academy, a charter school that is not technically a district run facility, was not going to be represented or recognized at the dedication and parents at the school are wondering why. After all, they say, the school has thrived academically and its test scores are through the roof."I don't know why the district doesn't recognize us. We're tired of being treated as what we perceive to be second-class citizens by the district," said Rocklin Academy parent Claudette Denning. "We feel like we're constantly snubbed and treated unfairly not like those who go to the district schools. We go to that school everyday. Why shouldn't we be part of the dedication?"Denning said she's getting tired of moving her son to a new campus every year; her son has attended three campuses in four years at the academy. She also expressed frustration the district doesn't include Rocklin Academy on its Web site."I will be campaigning for a candidate to replace Trustees Steve Paul and Todd Lowell from the Rocklin Unified School Board, that's how upset I am," Denning said.The district says they have to move the charter around due to growth of the academy and the district schools. As for the Web site, Superintendent Kevin Brown said the Academy has its own Web site for parents to visit to see test scores and school news."The academy is not part of our district. Why would we put it on our Web site?" Brown asked.Denning said she is joined by a large number of Rocklin Academy parents who are frustrated with their situation, and they are now demanding answers. The confusion, the district says, lies in misinformation distributed to Rocklin Academy parents from the charter's Executive Director David Patterson.According to Brown, the parents at Rocklin Academy do not understand what a charter school is and its relationship to the district. He noted the district never includes charter schools or other programs housed at their facilities as part of district functions."The charter's executive director sent a letter to parents loaded with half-truths and misinformation. Rocklin Academy is not a district school and their executive director wants to come up on stage and act like the academy had something to do with building Ruhkala. It just isn't the case," Brown said. "We invited them, like we invited the entire community to attend the dedication. They just weren't going to be represented on stage."In his letter to parents, of which The Placer Herald obtained a copy, Patterson said "I am writing to Rocklin Academy families about the upcoming dedication of the Ruhkala school site and our disappointment that Rocklin Academy has been excluded ... the dedication ceremony will include official participation by the district's school program ... however, Rocklin Academy has been excluded."Patterson, who provided little information to The Placer Herald on the record in a phone interview, went on to say in his letter that Rocklin Academy parents helped pay for Ruhkala with property taxes, Mello Roos, state taxes and developer fees. He concluded saying, "Anyone who believes that families who exercise their right to choose the educational program they believe is best for their child means they are second-class citizens is wrong!"School board member Steve Paul confirmed the board and Rocklin Academy has butted heads in the past, mostly regarding facilities issues. He also said Patterson's letter is mostly false and the district doesn't treat them like second-class citizens.Paul says it's up to Rocklin Academy to produce prestige for its families, because the school is its own district."If Rocklin Academy would work to build its own facility, all the problems would go away," Paul said, referencing the district's strong relationship with the Maria Montessori charter school, which recently obtained close to $6 million for its own facility. "We have offered our district expertise to help them obtain a grant, but they don't want to do it."Although Paul said he supports charters, he refuses to displace or remove district students from their neighborhood schools to satisfy the needs of the academy. He considers Rocklin Academy a tenant who is welcome to thrive on district facilities so long as it doesn't hinder the district's ability to thrive as well.Patterson said he looks forward to taking advantage of the opportunity to explore building a facility. "You just have to realize that that is a multi-year process," Patterson said.So what is a charter school?"From what we know, we are part of the district," Denning said. "We are Rocklin residents who pay our taxes and send our children to public school."The district, and the law, says otherwise.Charter schools, particularly in socio-economic disadvantaged areas with underperforming districts, have been lauded by many as strong educational opportunities.A charter is formed as its own school district, receiving state funds for daily attendance the same way a district school is funded.Every charter has an adoptive school district, in the academy's case, Rocklin Unified that is obligated by Proposition 39 to provide the charter with facilities consistent with what the district provides its students. The lease agreement between Rocklin Unified and the academy is free of rent, but the academy is charged for its portion of Ruhkala's utilities and maintenance cost.The charter is not mandated to follow state guidelines or adhere to state regulations regarding learning materials and curriculum. "The charter boasts about the Core Knowledge program that it operates," Brown said. "That program is not approved by the State of California and the state will not approve state monies for the district to purchase and operate a program such as Core Knowledge. That's why you start a charter, so that you aren't burdened with the same state mandates that the district is."Students must apply to attend a charter school. As a charter, the academy is allowed to accept students from outside of Rocklin. However, the district is not obligated by law to support the academy with the facilities necessary to house students outside of the district.For example, if the academy has 60 third graders where 20 are from Auburn and 40 from Rocklin, the district is only obligated to provide the academy with two classrooms based on the districts K-3 policy of 20 students per classroom. "We are giving them the space, however," Brown said. "If we really wanted to be sticklers, we would negotiate a lease agreement or tell them to find their own facility to house their out-of-Rocklin students."Patterson maintains that some of the families who attend the academy are irritated by how the district has treated the charter, and he hopes to provide them with more information on what the charter is and its role in the system of educationBoard President Todd Lowell, however, said he is a bit baffled as to why Rocklin Academy, based on the philosophical reasoning of being a charter, would want to be connected to the district."You become a charter because you want to be independent from the district," Lowell said. "The charter school has its own governing body, hires its own teachers and chooses its own materials and curriculum. When a parent opts to place their child in a charter school, they're opting to take their child out of the district. "Keith Reid can be reached at keirthr@goldcountrymedia.com.