CHARLESTON — The West Virginia Supreme Court wants the Monongalia County Board of Education to explain why it rejected the state's first charter school application, it said in an order.
The Supreme Court is giving Monongalia County a chance to defend its decision. Oral argument in the case is set for May 4.
John Treu, president and board member of West Virgina Academy, said they were happy with the Supreme Court's decision to issue the order.
"We’re certainly very pleased that the Court issued a rule advancing our petition to Oral Argument on an expedited basis," Treu said in a statement provided to The West Virginia Record. "We feel our cause is just and that the law is on our side in this matter. We’re hopeful that our approval will be upheld by the High Court so that we can focus our energy exclusively on building an outstanding public charter school for the many families in our community who want an alternative to the traditional public schools that are currently available."
West Virginia Academy filed the emergency petition for writ of mandamus on Feb. 11. Katie Switzer filed a motion for leave to file an amicus curiae brief in support of the petition on Feb. 23 and the West Virginia Department of Education filed a response to the petition on that same day.
The Monongalia County Board of Education also filed a motion to intervene on that day, opposing the petition.
"Upon consideration of the petition, the appendix recor, and all briefs filed, the Court is of the opinion that a rule should be awarded," the Supreme Court order states. "It is ordered that a rule does issue commanding and directing the respondents, to show cause, if anythey can, why a writ of mandamus should not be awarded."
Monongalia County Board of Education rejected West Virginia Academy's application in November. It unanimously voted against allowing the charter school, as did neighboring Preston County Board of Education.
In November, Nancy Walker, the president of the school board, said the application left a lot of questions unanswered and did not meet seven standards that were reviewed by administrators.
Charter schools were approved by the state's Legislature and signed into law by Gov. Jim Justice in 2019. They require local approval, which Garrett Ballengee, the director of the Cardinal Institute, a think tank that supports charter schools, said in November to West Virginia MetroNews was a flaw in the system.
“At the end of the day, charter schools are simply about giving an additional option to families who might be looking for something different or unique for their own child," Ballengee said. "The Monongalia County Board of Education’s decision, for now, shuts that opportunity down for thousands of students in Monongalia and Preston counties."
Ballengee said very few states have given local school boards the power to veto the schools.
“I think this points to a fatal flaw in the law itself by giving a competitor’s veto to the county school board with very few options for recourse," Ballengee said.
