A Northeast Washington school will plead its case Thursday evening as the DC Public Charter School Board decides whether to close the campus because of poor academic performance. Opened in 1998, Integrated Design Electronics Academy Public Charter School is one of the oldest charters in the District, and charter officials say it also has a “10-year history of low performance in student achievement in both reading and math,” and just more than half of students graduate. But Norman Johnson, IDEA’s executive director, says his charter was approved to serve students who may have issues with the law or truancy, making the ratings unfair. — Lisa Gartner