87f609f17cbf4673e3de7df72250a48c.jpg

SOUTH BRUNSWICK – Charter school proposal draws massive crowd

By Mary Brienza and Charles W. Kim, Staff Writers
   Controversy over a proposed charter school in the area flooded the municipal building with more than 300 people during a Zoning Board of Adjustment hearing April 14.
   The Princeton International Academy Charter School (PIACS) went before the township’s zoning board to request a change in use for the office research zoning so the group can open the school at 11-12 Perrine Road in September.
   PIACS is a K-2 Mandarin-English immersion school that is scheduled to open with around 175 students from the Princeton Regional, West Windsor – Plainsboro Regional, and South Brunswick school districts, according to the school’s website. It will also share the 45,000 square-foot building with a private immersion school, according to the organization.
   A large crowd initially filled seats and stood in the municipal building’s main meeting room, until those standing were asked to leave the room and go to the outer lobby due to fire safety concerns.
   Board Chairman Martin Hammer said they were removed because of the fire codes that determine room occupancy. The large amount of people that attended the meeting then filled the municipal building’s lobby and even spilled a bit outside the building.
   Police were called to maintain order because of the crowd’s size. The crowd was split almost equally between those wearing blue shirts and buttons supporting the charter school and those opposed to it wearing stickers to “vote no” on the application. After people were removed from the room, there were shouts from the crowd asking that the meeting be moved to a different venue.
   Despite the size and emotions of those attending there were no reported arrests or major problems, according to police.
   Zoning board member Al Adinolfi said during a break in the meeting that PICAS applied to the board get approval for a non-conforming use since the current zone does not permit a school on that property. The zoning board is a quasi-judicial body whose decisions can be appealed, he said.
   Zoning board member Bharat Patel said during a break, that the attendance was about three times more than can fit in the meeting room, and that this is the most people he can remember coming to a zoning board meeting. The public can speak during the public portion of the meeting “until people stop raising hands,” no matter how many wish to speak, Mr. Patel said.
   Monmouth Junction resident Anna Disario said the meeting should be moved to a larger location.
   ”They should change the venue,” Ms. Disario said. “This meeting should not take place tonight so we all have the ability to participate.”
   Mr. Hammer, however, decided to continue with the meeting and allow those outside the room to view the proceedings on television sets in the lobby.
   Once underway, charter school attorney Andre Gruber asked the panel to keep “an open mind” about the application and not to weigh the pros and cons about charter schools in general, but to stick to the zoning and land use issues involved in the variance application.
   Parker Block, who is one of the co-founders of the school, said the proposed property on Perrine Road would hold the two schools because there is enough room to hold more.
   He said that although the schools share a building, they would be in a separate space and have separate staff.
   ”There’s a lot of misinformation that’s put out there (about charter schools,)” Mr. Block said. “People care about education, they are passionate about it.”
   Mr. Block said the location was picked because the school wanted to give people from more than one district an opportunity to attend, and this particular location borders the three districts.
   Monmouth Junction resident Buddy Thomas prepared a statement of six reasons he opposed the school that he wanted to say during the public forum.
   In the statement, he said there were issues with whether Perrine Road could handle the extra traffic, if students could safely walk to the building, if the building would have enough parking, and that the school allegedly discriminates against children with disabilities.
   ”No short cuts when it comes to children,” he said in the statement. “Safety matters.”
   South Brunswick schools Superintendent Dr. Gary McCartney also attended the meeting in order to ensure the safety of the district’s children that may attend the facility.
   ”Anytime we have students from our township are going to be involved in any enterprise, we want to make sure it is a safe enterprise,” Dr. McCartney said. “We’re not here to argue whether there should be a charter. We are here to make sure no one here is exonerated from safety and zoning requirements.”
   During a recent Board of Education meeting, Dr. McCartney said the district would have to hold aside some $1.6 million in funds the state claims will be used to pay to send children to this and other similar schools in this year’s budget.
   While much of the testimony concentrated on the facility itself and the engineering of the property, discussion for many outside took on the issue about whether the charter school should be there at all.
   Township resident Tamika Bailey said she enrolled her 5-year-old daughter in PIACS because she believes the school is a “great opportunity” for the children in the township and that there may be some misinformation about the proposed school.
   ”It’s an educational opportunity for her,” Ms. Bailey said. “I think it’s a matter of jumping to conclusions without proper information.”
   Plainsboro resident Elisabeth Cope expressed her support for the school and hopes to enroll her two children in the program.
   ”The building is an ideal location for the school,” Ms. Cope said. “One billion people speak Mandarin, that is a lot of opportunity (for my children.”
   On the other side, Jianhua Zhu of West Windsor, who is from China, said he felt the school is a “waste of resources” for the public schools sending students there.
   ”We already have a very good school system,” Mr. Zhu said. “There isn’t any benefit for this areas kids.”
   West Windsor –Plainsboro schools Superintendent Victoria Kniewel also attended the meeting and said she doesn’t believe the school is needed, especially in these tough economic times.
   ”This is a kind of nice to have extra, and these are not the times for nice to have extras,” Dr.. Kniewel said. “These are the times to focus your dollars and provide a comprehensive education.”
   Opposing sides watched the proceedings side by side, sometimes interrupting the meeting with jeers, cheers, and laughter. As the meeting went on, some of those who watched on the screens outside the meeting room sat on the floor.
   Board of Education member Arthur Robinson attended the meeting, and said he does not support the PIACS application.
   ”There’s a lot of disconnect in terms of knowledge presented to the Zoning Board of Adjustment by the presenters,” Mr. Robinson said. “The research isn’t there to really support the charter school.”
   Princeton resident Jean Durbin said that allowing PICAS to open, it would be putting tax dollars into a private school since the two schools will share the building are both immersion schools.
   ”Basically, (it is) taxation without representation,” Ms. Durbin said.
   Princeton resident Dina Shaw said the public and charter school were “cohabiting” and that the charter school would not be regulated.
   Eiker Road resident Giora Griffel of South Brunswick supports the charter school.
   ”(Those who are against PICAS) would oppose the school regardless of (the amount of) variances,” Mr. Griffel said. “(It is) a political issue rather than anything else.”
   He said that Princeton is the education capital of the world with a huge international community, and that PICAS will address the needs of this community.
   Mr. Griffel said the interest in PICAS indicates a desire and “thirst” to expose children to a cultural education.
   The meeting went on well after midnight, and PICAS’s request will be discussed again at the June 2 meeting of the board.