County Board of Education wants to know impact if a charter school opens in T.O.

While they debate whether to support a charter school in Conejo Valley Unified School District, the Ventura County Board of Education has requested information on the fiscal impact such a school would have on the district.

The CVUSD School Board decided to close two elementary schools in the 2009-10 school year to save money lost to declining enrollment and decreased state funding.

A group of parents from Meadows Elementary mobilized in an effort to keep the school open because of its unique arts curriculum. When the school wasn't saved, the group formed a plan to open a charter school at the site, called Meadows Arts and Technology Elementary School (MATES).

The school board denied support of the charter, and the county Office of Education board is now considering it. They are expected to make a decision at their Oct. 27 meeting.

"There are a number of fiscal impacts that will be felt should the appeal be approved by the county," said CVUSD Superintendent Mario Contini. "It would eliminate or reduce programs. . . . The county asked for some information on that impact."

Jeff Baarstad, CVUSD's deputy superintendent, presented the information sent to the county, which ran through three scenarios.

If a charter school isn't approved, CVUSD will save about $687,000 from the site closure and gain a lease income of $175,000, Baarstad said.

If a charter is approved at an alternate site, the district expects to save only $97,000.

If the charter is approved at the Meadows site, the district will lose about $1.5 million in per student revenue because of children leaving to attend the new school. The district will bring in teacher staffing savings of $693,000, a $75,000 rental income from MATES and the $687,000 for not having to run the site. That leaves the district with a $3,000 loss.

"People ask, 'Will the charter school cost you money?' Yes, it's true. It will," Baarstad said. "We may not lose money, but we aren't getting those savings we (planned on)."

Dorothy Beaubien, president of the school board, said the board needed to react quickly to the possibility of a new school outside the district.

"We need to talk about how we are going to deal with this, what kinds of cuts we are going to have to make if this charter is approved," she said.

The board asked Baarstad to bring back the itemized budget they tore through earlier this year. Contini reminded the board of the anticipated increase in revenue they expected as a result of the approved magnet school at Manzanita Elementary.

Additional cuts will be considered at the Oct. 21 CVUSD board meeting.