Orange County Board of Education (OCBE):

Please deny the charter school petition of the California Republic Leadership Academy (CRLA).

The Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District (PYLUSD) does not want or need this charter school.

In July, more than 780 people signed a petition against CRLA. In August, the PYLUSD school board voted 5-0 to deny the CRLA petition. According to the PYLUSD assessment, the petition presents an unsound educational program, and the charter school is unlikely to serve the interests of the entire community (among other concerns cited).

Don’t approve an unsound education program that won’t serve the interests of all students.

At the June 20 public hearing on the proposed CRLA charter school, we learned that of the 200+ signatures of families interested in CRLA, only 35 families live in Placentia or Yorba Linda. The majority of signatures came from areas such as Burbank, Huntington Beach, and Paramount.

Don’t shift resources to support students from outside Placentia/Yorba Linda.

At the August vote to deny the charter, CRLA Executive Director Gary Davis threatened to go to the OCBE for approval and “guaranteed” that, if denied, he would be back in PYLUSD to request “a Prop. 30 school district facility.” This could include classrooms, playgrounds, library and field space, and more.

Don’t take facilities away from our local students.

At that time, Davis also acknowledged his ties to the Orange County Classical Academy (OCCA), another charter that he helped launch. The OCBE already granted OCCA a county-wide charter, bypassing local school boards. (Last spring, more than 1,200 people signed a petition against OCCA.)

Don’t disregard local authority and control.

We are asking OCBE members Jorge Valdes, Mari Barke, Ken L. Williams, Tim Shaw, and Lisa Sparks to put students first. Listen to local parents, PYLUSD staff, and elected officials and deny the CRLA charter. PYLUSD is an exceptional, award-winning school district, with a wide variety of academic and extracurricular options for students. PYLUSD has no need for a CRLA charter that will take precious resources away from our students.

Prioritize PYLUSD students and deny the CRLA charter.