First meeting held by charter board

The State Charter School Board met for the first time Monday, marking the hand-off of charter-school approval from the State School Board to a new governor-appointed board.

The seven-member board was appointed after the passage of a charter school governance bill that called for the creation of a board charged with approving new charters.

In the past, charter school hopefuls applied with their districts and then could appeal to the state board. But under new law charter, applications can go directly to the charter board. However, the option of applying for a charter through a given school district still stands.

Nonetheless, the charter school board is not entirely autonomous. Their decision on charter applications is not the end-all be-all as applicants can still appeal to the state school board. Even so, board members feel they will be a help to both entities.

Twenty-six charters charter schools in Utah will be up and running by this fall, and the board already has close to a dozen schools waiting in the wings for approval.

The board consists of two business representatives, Brian Allen and Sonia Zisumbo; three charter school representatives, Anne Peterson, Eric Smith and Scott Smith; and two members nominated by the state school board, David Moss and Barbara Killpack.