Howard and Lillian Lee Schools Charter School loses partner

National Heritage Academies announced Tuesday that it would no longer be part of Carrboro’s first approved charter school, raising questions for the school’s board about how to move forward.

The proposed Howard and Lillian Lee Scholars Charter School, which was scheduled to open in August, may be delayed as a result of the management company’s decision to back out.

“We have the utmost admiration for Howard and Lillian Lee, the members of the school board and the many others we have partnered with in the community to try to bring this school to life,” said Nick Paradiso, vice president of partner services and government relations for National Heritage Academies, in a press release.

Danita Mason-Hogans, board member for the school, said the board was told the decision was not due to controversy or lack of interest in the school.

National Heritage Academies will do an internal review of the situation before providing an explanation to the charter school, she said.

Mason-Hogans said despite the setback, the board is still committed to opening the school, which was just granted its charter on March 14.

“We’ve had an overwhelming positive response from the community at our community meetings,” she said.

But the school has met opposition from groups such as the local NAACP and Friends of Bolin Creek.

“There’s a financial impact to consider, too,” said Jeff Nash, spokesman for Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools. “If the school opens and gets 500 of our kids, that’s a big chunk of our money.”

Nash said some of the district’s funding from the county would be redirected to the charter school based on its enrollment.

He said while Durham has had success with charter schools, he doesn’t think a charter school would succeed in the Chapel Hill-Carrboro area.

“What parent would take their kid out of a school in a top-scoring district to try a new school they don’t know anything about?” Nash said. “What would they offer that you can’t get at our — dare I say — world-class school system?”

But Mason-Hogans said the board is only trying to give students another education option.

“I think that might be a misconception that we’re against the school system, but we’re not,” she said. “We don’t believe one size fits all, so we like to give students a choice.”

She said the board will meet next week to determine its steps forward.

“Although we were kind of surprised and disappointed by National Heritage’s decision, our commitment remains firm,” Mason-Hogans said. “We believe in what we’re doing, and we’ll find a way to make it happen.”

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