Montour ponders Propel high school plan
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After Alex Archey of McKees Rocks completes eighth grade at Propel Montour next spring, he will have to leave the charter school and return to his home district, Sto-Rox, for high school.
His mother, Elena, would rather keep her son in Propel Montour, where arts and academics are stressed more than sports, and where she believes that the atmosphere is safer than at Sto-Rox High School, her alma mater.
About 100 students, parents and staff members from the charter school in Kennedy attended the April 28 Montour school board meeting to seek approval for expanding the school to include grades nine through 12.
Charter schools are publicly funded, independent schools. Enrollment is free to families, but each charter-school student's home school district must pay the tuition, which often exceeds the cost of educating the student within the regular school system.
All nine Montour school board members agreed to Propel's request for a five-year renewal of its charter for kindergarten to eighth grade through June 2016.
But district officials said they were not ready to vote on extending the charter to include high school.
"We'll take it under advisement and discuss this further, and we'll let you know," Montour board President Ron Smith said.
Superintendent Donald Boyer recommended deferring the high school decision for several reasons: Montour does not have any information on the scope of Propel's request; Gov. Tom Corbett's proposed budget removes all state funding for charter schools; and the state Senate proposes to implement a voucher plan and to make changes that would take charter school decisions away from local school districts and put them in the hands of state appointees.
"For now, we're not comfortable in recommending [approval of the high school charter]," Mr. Boyer said.
Most of Propel Montour's approximately 400 pupils come from the Sto-Rox and Pittsburgh school districts. Only 17 students live within the Montour School District.
Even so, the decision on whether to extend Propel's charter lies with the Montour school board because the charter school is located within the Montour School District, on Bilmar Drive near Interstate 79 at Steubenville Pike in Kennedy.
First Published May 12, 2011 5:19 am
