A final operating contract — in “executable form,” according to a School Board attorney — has been sent to St. John Parish School Board members.

If agreed upon, it’s the final local step needed for Louisiana Premier Charter School to open as a tuition-free education option in St. John Parish for the 2019-20 academic year.

That might sound like an easy step, but as St. John Public Schools attorney Ty Manieri told members of the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education this week, “whether seven (St. John) Board members vote for it is another story.”

The next School Board meeting is Thursday (April 25).

There are 11 elected members on the St. John School Board, and a majority vote of that council is needed on a final operating agreement.

Should Louisiana Premier receive local School Board approval, the charter effort would still need approval from a federal desegregation judge and the Department of Justice to finalize opening measures.

Working in Louisiana Premier Charter’s favor is the School Board’s own voting record, as Board members overwhelmingly approved a preliminary agreement with nine in favor, one absent and the only dissenting vote coming via parliamentary procedure concern.

Yet, much has changed since that August 2018 agreement, which took place without an official school location.

Louisiana Premier Charter announced in early 2019 that it secured a lease with Riverside Academy to rent unused space on the private school’s campus.

According to officials with Louisiana Premier Charter and Riverside Academy, the two schools can and will operate independent of each other.

According to education officials across the state, this would mark the first time a charter school leased space from and operated on the same footprint as a private school.

School Board members have expressed concern that the Riverside location was Louisiana Premier Charter’s plan the whole time and not officially announcing the location until this year represents bad faith negotiation.

Louisiana Premier Charter officials counter that they had no bargaining power to negotiate rates with local facility landlords until receiving a preliminary agreement with the School Board, which was accomplished in August 2018.

At that point, Louisiana Premier Charter hired an independent evaluator who assessed four St. John locations, coming back with a recommendation in late 2018 that Riverside offered the best “walk-in” potential. Charter board members approved the site in January and shared it with the St. John School Board in February.

Perhaps more germane to St. John School Board members is the charter’s affiliation with Riverside and its history as a white flight school and Rebels mascot.

According to Riverside Academy leadership, the school has been desegregated for more than 30 years, employs a diverse staff and has many grade levels with 50-50 black-white student ratios.

School Board President Patrick Sanders raised these concerns during an April 11 executive committee meeting, asking pointed questions on behalf of concerned residents. He led a discussion that was equal parts informative and refreshing.

When speaking with the state education board in Baton Rouge this week, Superintendent Kevin George called the April 11 meeting “the most productive meeting we have ever had.”

He also said, “I do believe St. John the Baptist Parish can work through this issue. We want a Type 1 (charter) school. We want that charter school within our district.”

He is not the only one. There is a groundswell of St. John residents who have made known their desire for another tuition-free education option.

Louisiana Premier Charter officials say they have received more than 550 student applications and dozens of employment requests.

St. John School Board members and Louisiana Premier Charter officials have the chance to meet again in a public setting this week. It’s another opportunity to continue the public discussion that began in earnest earlier this month.

This is a new issue for our community, one that comes with much uncertainty. It can only be solved with public discourse.

Stephen Hemelt is publisher and editor of L’OBSERVATEUR. He can be reached at 985-652-9545 or stephen.hemelt@lobservateur.com.