Glendale Unified considers charter school

Two weeks before Glendale school officials are expected to hold a public hearing to weigh input from local residents about whether they agree or disagree that a proposed Glendale charter school should open, six people addressed the board during a meeting Tuesday night, and only one spoke against the school.

Of the six who spoke, all were parents of Glendale Unified students, but only one parent, Ingrid Gunnell, was not in favor of the charter, saying the district’s programs are adequate.

The lead petitioner behind the charter-school proposal is Glendale resident and parent Hilary Stern, and the school would provide dual-language immersion programs in Spanish, German, French and Italian for students in grades kindergarten through eighth grade.

Five other parents spoke in support of the charter school, with one father, Daniel Denny, saying it would provide a “unique public-school choice” for parents, while others said it would help alleviate demand from parents to send their children to Glendale Unified’s Franklin Elementary, which offers dual-language immersion classes in the same four foreign languages as the proposed school.

Glendale school officials said they have been reviewing the proposal, and a survey they posted on the school district’s website seeks input.

However, school board members, so far, say they cannot discuss the charter school yet.

“We do not have the information available to us to start having that discussion,” said Christine Walters, school board president. “If we look tight-lipped, it’s because we don’t have enough to talk about yet.”

The school board spent Tuesday night listening to advice from their attorney, Janet Mueller, who spoke about some of the grounds on which charter schools can be denied, the elements that must be included in a charter school proposal and how Glendale Unified would need to oversee the charter school, if the board approves its establishment.

The school board is expected to decide whether or not to approve the charter school during its Dec. 15 meeting, about one month after it plans to hold a public hearing on the matter on Nov. 17.

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Kelly Corrigan, kelly.corrigan@latimes.com

Twitter: @kellymcorrigan