ST. LOUIS 鈥 Speakers at future St. 不良研究所导航网址 Public Schools board meetings could be asked to show identification after district leaders said they felt threatened during an outburst at the last meeting.
Nearly 50 people signed up to speak at the Oct. 10 board meeting, including several activists funded by charter school groups. The meeting was paused when the crowd became upset over limits on public comments.
鈥淚t was clearly not genuine concern of parents coming to speak,鈥 said Matt Davis, SLPS board vice president, at a special meeting called Monday to address several issues including public comments. 鈥淚t was very clear that it was an organized effort of agitation. It was meant to escalate and escalate and escalate to try and see how we would react.鈥
A lawyer for SLPS said requiring identification is one possibility for changes to the public comment procedures.
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The board on Monday also approved two resolutions, one opposing the opening of a new charter high school, Believe STL Academy, and the other disputing a $35 million federal grant awarded to charter school funder Opportunity Trust.
The state board of education will vote Tuesday on Believe school鈥檚 application from founder Kimberly Neal-Brannum with support from the Opportunity Trust. The school is a replica of Believe Circle City charter high school in Indianapolis, which Neal-Brannum opened in fall of 2020.
A spokeswoman for the Opportunity Trust said Believe has 鈥渆nthusiastic support鈥 from students, families and partners including BJC HealthCare, St. 不良研究所导航网址 Community College and the Regional Business Council.
In its resolution opposing the new charter school, the St. 不良研究所导航网址 School Board cited declining population in the city and an overabundance of high schools. There are 21 district or charter high schools in the city with an average enrollment of 355. By comparison, districts in St. 不良研究所导航网址 County with similar student populations including Hazelwood, Parkway and Rockwood have three or four high schools each.
鈥淎n additional high school located in the city of St. 不良研究所导航网址 would likely be significantly detrimental to the educational benefits of the children of the district,鈥 reads the resolution.
The SLPS board passed a second resolution objecting to a $35 million federal grant to the Opportunity Trust to expand charter schools across the state. The group misrepresented its relationship with SLPS in its application to the U.S. Department of Education, the resolution states.
The school board "does not have a working relationship with the Opportunity Trust, does not collaborate with the Opportunity Trust and has opposed efforts by the Opportunity Trust to enact legislation to divert district funds to charter schools," it reads.
"They don鈥檛 want us to be successful," Davis, the board vice president, said during the meeting Monday. "I'm glad this elected school board is finally, finally, finally going to stand up for students and against these special interests."