School board revokes Sierra Crest charter

When Douglas County School Board members stated their respective positions on Sierra Crest Academy late Tuesday night, it was as if they were reading a verdict in an open courtroom.

There was a hush in the Douglas High library where the meeting took place. Some parents shed tears as it became clear the Minden-based charter school didn't have the support proponents had hoped for.

The school board voted 4-2, with Keith Roman and Karen Chessell voting nay, to revoke the school's 6-year charter effective June 30. Trustee Randy Green, who teaches at the school, abstained from the vote.

"What we have in my mind are the adults on one side doing the checking and accountability, and on the other hand, a lot of problems at Sierra Crest Academy and their board," Roman said. "In between are the students and the kids, and the kids didn't screw up the record-keeping. The kids didn't screw up the accountability. The kids didn't screw up the rigor."

Roman said he was moved by "the importance of giving the kids one more chance."

"The bottom line is that they have to show improvement," he said.

Trustee Sharla Hales said she was hoping to see a more definitive plan from the school's governing board.

"The plan provided to us didn't address the issues at the heart of instruction," she said.

In a document dated June 8, Sierra Crest board members outlined what they'd accomplish upon renewal, including amending the charter, submitting a scope and sequence plan of curriculum, submitting their meeting minutes no later than 30 days of board meetings, and hiring a new administrator.

"If these criteria aren't made, it is the opinion of this board that Sierra Crest Academy should close upon completion of the 2010-2011 school year," the document read. "As these criteria are met and compliance standards are achieved, SCA shall pursue sponsorship by the state of Nevada as requested by DCSD."

Hales said she was concerned about the district office's estimation that it would take more than 1,000 administrative hours to get Sierra Crest on track next year, if the charter were renewed.

"I feel we have a duty to the taxpayer," she said. "The sad reality is that we have limited resources."

Torn on the issue, Hales said 1,000 administrative hours for approximately 1 percent of the district's population would "rob students at-risk elsewhere."

Assistant Superintendent Lyn Gorrindo presented findings from the district's annual audit of Sierra Crest, which was performed May 24.

Gorrindo said four out of eight teachers at the school had inadequate or no attendance records, violating state law. Out of the same eight teachers, she said, two provided adequate lesson plans, and one provided an agenda of topic to be covered. She said the remaining teachers did not provide lesson plans upon multiple requests.

"I expected lesson plans at least the day of the audit," Gorrindo said. "They're so far removed from the charter, I can't tell you what pieces of the charter they're following at this point."

Alisa Kuniya, who's been an administrative employee at Sierra Crest since it opened in 2004, said the district's audits should be performed by a "neutral party." She argued that the purpose of a sponsor is to provide the school with the necessary support to succeed.

"The Douglas County School District has acted more like an auditor and less like a sponsor," she said.

Counselor Lance Crowley, who has a contract with the charter school and experience with both juvenile probation and the school district, questioned where Sierra Crest's more than 60 seventh-12th-graders will go come this fall.

Crowley said between Sierra Crest and the district's ASPIRE alternative education program, the district has more than 100 at-risk students that no one program can accommodate.

He said ASPIRE focuses on credit recovery and involves a lot of computer time, something that may be challenging for Sierra Crest students.

"I would like to see a cooperative approach," Crowley said. "These kids on the street will not do well. It will be a hardship on taxpayers in other ways."

Parent Kathy Larsen agreed.

"If you cannot answer that, then keep the school open and work with us as a team," she said.

Larsen took offense to the argument that keeping the school open would cost too many hours.

"What about my kids?" she said. "Are they not worth 1,000 hours? I think these children are worth it."

Trustee Karen Chessell shared concerns about placement.

"I don't think the school district is prepared for these students," she said. "These kids not going to school doesn't serve anyone."

In revoking the school's charter, though, board members made clear that they were committing their staff to finding a home for Sierra Crest students.

"I have to feel confident the district will do everything it can to make these students succeed," Hales said. "I have to feel I can promise that huge and heroic efforts will be made to help them."