What Does Charter School Status Mean for Barrow County Students?

After the state Board of Education approved its application to become a charter school system April 13, Barrow County Schools will now begin an implementation phase.

Barrow is one of 10 school systems in the state to obtain this status.

"We are proud of the commitment to innovation that our school system continues to display in meeting the needs of our students and the community," Wanda Creel, Barrow County Schools superintendent, said in an e-mail announcing the approval.

Claire Miller, assistant superintendent for teaching and learning who headed up the application process, corresponded with Barrow Patch via e-mail on what this change will mean for schools and students.

Patch: What does this mean for Barrow students?

Claire Miller: Becoming a charter system is necessary to support the district's priorities and long-term goals of Barrow County Schools and each system charter school. The Barrow charter system will materially distinguished itself from the system's pre-conversion model in several ways.

First, there will be an intense focus on effective written and oral communication, problem solving, critical thinking skills, effective use of technology and developing 21st century literacy skills. There are already a number of academic innovations currently utilized in the Barrow County School System. The school system currently provides credit recovery through E2020, provides students a non-traditional high school setting at a Performance Learning Center and is currently implementing a non-traditional high school.

Barrow County Schools is in the process of developing a Charter Career Academy to focus on identified career pathways and STEM subjects. Barrow is also involved in various research initiatives with individual professors and long-term product evaluations on the leading technologies considered essential to 21st century learning. One such program is the "Direct-to-Discovery" series and it leans heavily on HD video conferencing to connect middle and high school teachers and students directly to professors at major research universities. The idea is to stimulate student interest in STEM subjects by leveraging the next generation of network based K-12 outreach to engage students in the excitement of science discovery.

A system charter will provide flexibility and innovation that will allow the district to expand these programs to reach all students.

Patch: What should parents know about this change?

CM: Barrow County Schools has always been aware of the importance of parents and community in developing the full potential of the school system. The Barrow County School District's three-year charter system petition preparation process involved BOE members, central- and school-level administration, teachers, parents, business community and students. Committees were formed to study and make recommendations on each part of the petition — governance, education program, assessment/goals, finance and operation. Stakeholders participated in four public hearings, PTO and school council meetings, BOE meetings, school faculty meetings and community events to learn about the charter process. The local media also assisted in disseminating information to stakeholders. The school district provided an avenue for electronic feedback following each event as well as when the charter was posted on the system website for review.

Input from all stakeholders will continue to be an important component in evolving into a charter school system. Parents and community members will be surveyed and invited to all open meetings. School governance teams will be an extension of stakeholder involvement and will ensure that the district meets the needs and public interests of the population it serves. As a charter system, Barrow County Schools' stakeholders will play a more prominent role in the education of the students in Barrow County.

Patch: In what way will this change most affect the schools?

CM: The Barrow charter system will materially distinguished itself from the system's pre-conversion model by its intense focus on the identified skill areas, use of measuring tools to determine teaching and learning success, and school-level governance to determine, create, implement and assess the most effective path for achieving these shared goals.

One of the main differences between what is currently in place and what will be in place under the charter system is the implementation of School Governance Teams.