Two part-time certified special education teachers were not enough.
Delaying a high school expansion program for three years was not enough.
Providing a three-year budget still was not enough.
Even though they met all the identified deficiencies, Superintendent Kevin Maxwell will recommend to the Anne Arundel school board Wednesday that Chesapeake Science Point Charter School in Hanover remain on probation next school year due to the “substantial amount of support” the school required to correct those shortcomings.
“I?m not disappointed at all ? I expected this,” said school spokesman Spear Lancaster. “I?m not worried about probation. I don?t need their praise, I just want to get along.”
On Jan. 23, Maxwell gave the school a month to “cure” several problem areas.
In a response, the school, which enrolls 219 sixth- through ninth-graders, abandoned plans to add a high school program and will now only enroll 198 students in sixth through eighth grades, Maxwell said.
The lone charter school in Anne Arundel County has been on probation since the 2006-07 school year.
“It doesn?t mean anything important to us because the school is succeeding,” said Michelle Taylor, president of the school?s Parent Teacher Organization. “We know that next year will be another great year. And now that we have our strong, fearless leader back, we?re even better.”
Principal Fatih Kandil was reinstated this week after being cleared after a six-week investigation by the county?s Department of Social Services.
Parents attribute the success to a high attendance rate, few disciplinary problems and high test scores.
Maxwell said there are still standards the school failed to meet, including keeping better track of record keeping and personnel issues.
He said the charter school?s governing board had “demonstrated a lack of capacity to operate the school with the degree of autonomy [it wants.]”
“Once again it took an inordinate amount of time for the school to address these concerns,” said school system spokesman Bob Mosier.
“We can be a support system for the school but we can?t be life support for them.”
