Dear Nikki,
Thank you for your response to my email. Your son would be very lucky to
have as fine a teacher as Kristine Fitze, the kindergarten teacher, at the
Moscow Charter School. Currently two of my grandchildren are in her class.
They love school and are learning new things every day. I am sure that you
would be most pleased with the learning environment she provides and the care
and nurturing she gives her students. She is an extraordinary teacher, as are
many of the professional faculty at the school.
I am also familiar with the Anser charter school in Boise, which another
grandchild attends. The Boise branch of my family is very excited about the
quality of the teachers and the curriculum there.
I believe I said in my email that I was a strong supporter of charter
education, and indeed, I am. However, after asking for three months for an
opportunity to read the minutes of the Moscow Charter School Board of
Directors, and being told I had no right to read them, I am naturally a
little frustrated. Idaho's Open Meetings Law provides clearly for public
access to non-confidential material. Surely the folks who wrote the charter
for the school and their attorney know that. The real question, it would
seem to me, is what caused their reluctance to follow their own guidelines?
The minutes have been scanned and are now available on-line at
www.moscowcharter.com.
I raise the concern about board members or administrators with a potential
financial interest in the outcome of board decisions because Idaho Code
clearly disallows that kind of behavior. At present there may be some
ambiguity regarding the legality of spouses or relatives of charter school
employees sitting on the board of directors, and establishing salaries etc.
It is my hope that this and other related issues will be addressed in the
future. The example of Ms. Lang and Ms. Dasenbrock's business relationship
may or may not have been widely known, but it had the potential of shaping
school business decisions. In the "regular" school districts in Idaho this
kind of business relationship is clearly disallowed between board members and
administrators. It is wise, and fair, I believe, to hold charter school
boards and employees to the same standard of integrity and fairness that we
expect from all other state employees.
It is a complex issue, and I certainly don't have all the answers. I do hope
that your son can have Ms. Fitze for a teacher. She is wonderful!!!!!!
Best,
Rosemary Huskey