Despite a $567,000 startup grant, one board official strongly opposes the idea of a new charter school in Cortez.

Montezuma-Cortez Re-1 School board treasurer Brian Demby voiced emphatic disapproval of the proposed Children’s Kiva Montessori Charter School during a board meeting Tuesday night. He said the proposed charter school would be a “stake in the heart” to the district’s already “creamed” budget, adding that the school would create additional disadvantages to students across the district.

“I’m very against the charter school,” Demby proclaimed. “It sounds rosy, but it’s not rosy for the vast majority of our students. It’s not a win-win situation.”

School superintendent Alex Carter presented the board with preliminary budget figures, revealing the charter school could potentially reduce the district’s overall revenue by more than $200,000 in the first year alone. The lost revenue is equal to funding four new staff members, Carter added.

“I don’t want to reduce the number of teachers, counselors or nurses,” Carter said.

The already secured $567,000 Colorado Department of Education Start-up Grant would be used to help fund the charter school for three years. Charter school organizer Anna Cole argued that the alternative school choice would eventually help to raise the educational bar across the district, citing the true bottom line to education is student achievement.

“We want to prove to the community that we would be a great asset,” Cole said. “The charter school doesn’t close any doors. We think it opens up a lot more doors.”

The school board must vote to approve or deny the pending charter school application by the end of the year. If they deny the application, Cole said she expects to appeal the decision to the Colorado Department of Education.

“We’d much rather work with the board than not,” she said.

If the board votes to deny the application, Carter said the state would probably approve the application in the end, meaning the district could face even more lost revenues.

“This charter school is inevitable,” he said.

The Children’s Kiva Montessori School would serve 64 children in K-sixth grades in its first year. The school is expected to grow to include a middle school program and serve more than 100 students within three years.

tbaker@cortezjournal.com