SPRINGDALE — The Springdale School Board has postponed an all-day work session on Tuesday because some board members will be attending today’s Arkansas State Board of Education meeting to speak against a proposed charter school.
The board will still have its regular meeting at 5 p.m. Tuesday, but the work session will be held at another time, district spokesman Rick Schaeffer said. A new date has not been decided upon, he said.
The state is considering a proposal from Dove School of Excellence, which operates four charter schools in Oklahoma, to expand into Arkansas by opening a school in Springdale. The location for the new school, if approved, is 901 W. Robinson Ave.
The state will also consider a request for a charter for Prism Education Center in Fayetteville
Dove plans to enroll up to 375 students in kindergarten through eighth grade for the 2010-11 school year. Over a five-year period, the school would add a grade level each year until it expands to 650 students in kindergarten through 12th grade.
Springdale board members who plan to attend Monday’s meeting and speak against the proposal are President Danny Dotson, David Van Bebber and Jim Bradford, Schaeffer said. Superintendent Jim Rollins also plans to attend, as do assistant superintendents Marsha Jones and Don Love.
Asking the board members to follow that up with an all-day workshop Tuesday seemed too much, Schaeffer said.
One of their main arguments against the charter school is it will not provide any services the school district cannot, Schaeffer said.
“If a charter school is going to go in, it should offer something better or do something we can’t,” Schaeffer said.
The planned presentation includes information about the Springdale School District’s demographics, test scores, technology and community partnerships.
The work session would have been one of three all-day meetings the district holds each year. The meetings are usually in April, July and November.
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