• Kathleen Sullivan: No. Rocketship has only been in existence since 2006. While I applaud the success of some of its schools, their goal to open clusters of schools in over 50 cities speaks more about a franchise than a successful school model involved with the community it serves. They have demonstrated their reluctance to even talk with local school boards when they went to the County Board of Education and requested an unprecedented agreement to open an additional 25 schools, stopping dialogue with districts they had already partnered with. Their model of K to 5 is also not the model used in our schools. A governing board which is not even in this state makes me doubt how responsive they will be to local issues.
• David Cohen: No, but I know that eventually the County Board of Education will approve the school. So, while I somewhat welcome another school in Morgan Hill, I dislike the cost involved, which will fall on the taxpayers
• Heather Crossen: No, at this time I do not support building another charter school in Morgan Hill. It is very important that all children have access to a quality education. Our public school system is already underfunded and another charter school will funnel students and funding away from the public schools that serve our community. I am concerned that this could cause further degradation of our school system, and harm the ongoing efforts to improve the quality of public education services available to all of our city’s children.
• Matt Wendt: No. My initial reaction is that competition is always a plus. However, Rocketship Charter Schools’ building of the school with bonds is premature without county approval for the charter school. I support the expansion of Gilroy Prep Charter School to Morgan Hill which will be named Navigator Charter School because it has had local success and emphasis, rather than Rocketship Charter Schools which appears to me to be a massive, out-of-state charter school network.
• Mark Grzan: No. Current research indicates that Charter schools do not out perform traditional public schools. Charter schools seem to draw upon limited public resources making it difficult for everyone. This does not seem to be efficient but rather redundant, inefficient and duplicative. There are many parts to this learning puzzle. Schools and teachers are only one part. In some instances, Charter schools are filled with low performing students which present greater difficulties that a traditional schools. Charter schools are not the answer everyone thinks they are.
• Rene Spring: I’m not opposed to it at this point. I still would like more information though from our MHUSD officials who seem opposed as well as the owners of this charter school. I am generally a proponent of providing choices of schools to parents. There is not a one-school-fits-all solution anywhere, and we need schools that help our students to be well-educated the best way schools can. It seems to me that the Rocketship Charter school could be a very good fit for our community. It is known as a school that targets low-income students in neighborhoods where access to excellent schools is limited. I find that intriguing. They seem to score high compared to many other school which is a very important factor. Let’s have the discussion in our community! Let’s ask the tough questions now! And, let’s ensure that Rocketship Charter school officials provide the answers and transparency we expect from any school coming to our city! Our decision-makers for this topic then can make the right choice for our community based upon this discussion.
• Gabriel Madrigal: Yes! I heard about people who present false addresses about where they live in order to get their kids accepted into certain good schools in Morgan Hill. I also know that classrooms in public schools are completely full and I know that not everyone can afford a good Christian education. So I don’t see why not … let them do it .
• Karen Anderson: Yes. Until the school district improves the test scores of students, itshould not be surprised that parents express their unhappiness by joining charter schools. This year’s scores were a disgrace.
• Bert Berson: I don’t know. It appears that charter schools range from the sublime to the ridiculous. I would like to hear a presentation from the company and our school board, if it has not already occurred. n Julian Mancias: No. I have not visited the Rocketship schools in San Jose but I did visit Gilroy Prep. I would prefer that Morgan Hill Unified, and the Morgan Hill community, continue to negotiate with Gilroy Prep exclusively in an effort to open a new charter school in Morgan Hill.
• Jeff Nunes: Yes. If it will offer parents in Morgan Hill another option to choose from for their childrens’ education, which I believe it will, then it deserves serious consideration and support.
