Texas school board also rejected Great Hearts charter school
Reasons similar to those given by Metro Schools
In the end, student populations at its existing Arizona schools were too white and affluent and its transportation plan was lacking.
That proved to be the basis behind the Texas Board of Education’s 9-6 vote to veto the state’s education commissioner and deny Phoenix-based Great Hearts Academies’ proposed charter school campus in Dallas last week.
It closely resembles the Metro Nashville School Board’s rationale during its repeated rejections of Great Hearts’ proposal for West Nashville a year ago — a parallel that Nashville’s superintendent believes is even more proof that it acted correctly despite the rift that ensued.
“I think our board made the right decision and that’s just another example of a confirmation of that,” Metro Director of Schools Jesse Register said.
Denying Great Hearts’ entry to Nashville, though, had major ramifications — financially and legislatively — and started a bitter relationship with the state that still lingers.
It culminated with Tennessee Education Commissioner Kevin Huffman fining the district $3.4 million last fall for defying a state order by not approving Great Hearts. The board had voted 5-4 to reject it
