Granite Bay's Eureka Union School District may opt for a magnet school instead of a district-led charter campus, which was proposed by community members to stop declining enrollment.
Both options are to be considered Tuesday by trustees, following new information to be presented by the district's long-range planning task force's committee on alternative education.
"Since we would be choosing to contract with the district for all services and would plan to operate under the current union contract, the plan being developed for our dependent charter school might work as well or better as a magnet school," said Heidi Dettwiller, principal of Eureka School and leader of the charter application effort.
Trustees in May approved plans to pursue opening a charter campus in 2009 that would focus on "global learning" and "lifelong learning," while encouraging innovation and creativity within the district. The long-range planning task force spent more than 700 hours in meetings to develop the proposal, which also called for the closure in 2009 of Excelsior and Eureka elementary schools in Roseville and revamping curriculum and reconfiguring grade levels at all campuses next year.
Besides cutting costs, district officials said they want to maintain and possibly draw back students enticed by educational offerings outside the district. The district reports a loss of $600,000 in state funding because of declining enrollment over the past four years.
"Because of our declining enrollment, a charter operating outside the district can really be detrimental to the district," Dettwiller said. She presented the board with the pros and cons of both options, such as a charter school having more flexibility with its budget and program but taking away from the district's average daily attendance funding.
A new magnet school would allow ADA funding to stay with the district, but it would not qualify for a $450,000 startup grant provided for the first three years of operation.
"I'm excited about the options," board President Jerri Davis said.
Trustee Dan Clift said he was excited by the opportunity to create an incubator for creativity and possibly become a "magnet district."
Trustee Debbie Holt ex- pressed concern about the public perception of magnet schools and the implication that the district isn't doing its job.
"You will be able to make an informed decision about a program and not a label," Dettwiller said. A decision about the charter application was postponed to allow the new superintendent, Tim McCarty, to take part in the process.
Call The Bee's Lakiesha McGhee at (916) 773-7630.
