By JESSICA HARDING
Staff Writer
RED BANK — Two groups are at odds over the future of the Red Bank Charter School (RBCS).
Some members of the Red Bank community feel as though the charter school encourages segregation, while others believe it is inclusive to any and every student.
There are currently 200 children enrolled at RBCS, with an estimated 20 per classroom. According to Principal Meredith Pennotti, the school covers the same areas as a public school would: special education, basic skills, academic subjects and ESL.
In February of 2016, an expansion of the RBCS was denied by the Blue Ribbon Commission. At the end of this month, the state Department of Education will decide the fate of the school and whether it will be granted a five-year renewal.
According to some Red Bank residents in opposition to the school, RBCS is doing much more to fuel segregation than help it.
As specified by parent Wayne Woolley, several parents have spearheaded and joined the Fair Schools Group (FSG), which is dedicated to requesting a fair playing ground and would like to see the state Department of Education close the charter school.
Woolley has two daughters at Red Bank Middle School and has made it clear that he thinks the charter school is doing severe damage.
“Every day the charter school remains open is another day the vast majority of Red Bank’s children are deprived of their constitutional right to equal access to educational benefits.”
He went on to say, “The public schools serve every child in Red Bank. The charter school serves a student body that’s whiter and more affluent than the public schools.”
The FSG has contacted the Latino Coalition of New Jersey (LCNJ), a civil rights organization located in Freehold that was formed in 2003. The coalition came on board in January of 2016 as the groups filed a civil rights complaint against the school.
RBCS parent Felipa Pastrana is not familiar with this coalition and is in favor of the school staying open.
“I want it to be known by the entire Red Bank community that many Latino parents at RBCS fully support the school,” she said. “We have never heard of this coalition.”
Pennotti states that Pastrana is not the only parent who has heard little to nothing about this group’s existence.
“The coalition claims to be the voice for Red Bank residents, but a lot of parents do not know who they are.”
Frank Argote-Freyre is the director of the LCNJ. He strongly disagrees with Pennotti’s view of the group.
“Just because our group is from Freehold does not mean our advocacy is limited to one town. We are treated like outsiders because we are from Freehold,” he said.
Pennotti claims that many people dismiss the school because they have not taken the time to actually visit and learn about it. She also believes there is a lack of knowledge in the community about the school so they brought a public relations representative on board.
Bruno Tedeschi was hired as a representative from Jaffe Communications Inc. According to Pennotti, he is needed in order to help put the truth out there via social media and conventional ways.
As specified by Pennotti, the RBCS is run by a lottery system. The 2016 weighted lottery gives preference to economically disadvantaged children.
“People have a problem with the idea of a charter school because it is somewhat different,” she said. It challenges the status quo, which makes people feel uncomfortable.”
LCNJ Deputy Director Lazaro Cardenas does not think the lottery system has done any good for the parents of Red Bank.
“The lottery was implemented to show the school is improving, but it does not make a difference. The school’s performance is worse than the public school’s. If it stays open, it will be a disservice to the children and will lead to further isolation in their lives.”
RBCS parent Rodolfo Ramirez on the other hand believes the school system operates fairly. His children have had very good experiences while attending RBCS.
“The RBCS has so far done an amazing job of educating my boys and is a gift to the Hispanic community of Red Bank.”
According to Ramirez, the school goes out of its way to make sure every family in Red Bank knows about the lottery and does not understand why LCNJ is claiming it does not.
“The claims by the Latino Coalition, a group unknown to me, are outrageous. It is unfortunate that this group was not available to Latinos of Red Bank 20 years ago when I first moved here and the school system was at its worst.”
Argote-Feyre stated that the only outrageous thing in this situation is how a school like this still exists.
“The school has had a 20-year track record of not having some demographics present,” he said. “It contains whiter and wealthier students.”
Pennotti thinks that parents need to become more aware of things going on in the Red Bank school system before they make assumptions about RBCS.
“The entire district is underfunded. We are not the cause of the problem — that exists whether we stay open or not.”
For more information, visit fairschoolsredbank.org or redbankcharterschool.com.