Judge Rejects Sports Star’s Petition for Charter School
A charter school petition sought by former NBA player Kevin Johnson to revive his troubled Sacramento high school is invalid and must be rescinded, a judge ruled Monday.
The decision in Sacramento County Superior Court did not, however, reverse the school board’s decision to close Sacramento High as of June 30 and seek to establish a charter school in its place.
The ruling makes the future of the school uncertain.
District officials were rushing to analyze the decision Monday but said the timing might derail efforts to reform the school.
“We don’t know what the next step is,” said Supt. Jim Sweeney. “The one thing we do know is, we have a school to open in about eight weeks and we are extremely concerned with the confusion this will create.”
The school faced state sanctions after students failed to raise their test scores two years in a row. The board voted in January to close it and try to make it a charter school.
The St. HOPE Corp., founded by former Phoenix Suns player and Sacramento High alumnus Kevin Johnson, won the board’s approval to operate it as a charter school.
State and local teachers unions and some parents sued the school district to stop the charter plan, saying that teachers’ approval was needed.
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