Charter school politics may change with Santa Clara County school board appointment
In an apparent victory for teachers unions and a setback for charter schools, the Santa Clara County Board of Education has filled a vacancy on its board -- setting the stage for a possibly dramatic change in decadelong charter-school politics.
The board appointed Rosemary Kamei, of San Jose, after initially deadlocking over her and the other leading candidate, former San Jose City Councilwoman Judy Chirco.
Both were seeking to replace Leon Beauchman, a low-key but staunch supporter of charter schools, which are publicly funded schools operating largely independently of school districts and most of the state Education Code. Kamei was endorsed by presidents of 13 local teacher unions.
Trustee Grace Mah originally supported Chirco. While she said Kamei would be an asset on the board, "the question is whether she'll be able to vote independently."
Over the years, the county board has become one of the most sympathetic in the state to charters, which are vehemently opposed by teacher unions and often by school districts, for siphoning off funds and students and usually operating without union contracts.
The Santa Clara County school board has infuriated local districts by approving 20 Rocketship charter schools in one night in 2011 and by reversing district school boards' denials of other charter school applications.
Kamei, whose 39-page application packet included dozens of endorsements, said she knows of some good charter operators and wants to find out about others. "I want to be able to see for myself, and I welcome being able to learn from them."
She also said Thursday that she would like the county office of education to work more closely with school districts -- which often have seen the county office and county school board as heavy-handed.
Forty-five independent charter schools operate in the county, 20 of them under office of education oversight. They were approved by a solid pro-charter board majority that until last year included Beauchman, former trustee Julia Hover-Smoot, of Morgan Hill, Mah, of Palo Alto, and Joseph Di Salvo, of San Jose.
But Hover-Smoot lost in November to charter opponent Claudia Rossi, and Beauchman stepped down in March to pursue a master's degree. The split on the board was highlighted Charter school politics may change with Santa Clara County school board appointment - San Jose Mercury News:
