New Deal Will Open the Door for Decades of Merit Academy Loans for Building Maintenance
Trevor Phipps
The Woodland Park RE-2 School District Board of Education has once again commanded main stage attention over its handling of the Merit Academy Charter School, with a contract decision that has ignited much criticism by many residents and even by a dissenting board member.
The divided and emotional debate on the issue of Merit Academy enhancements continues, with no sign of any letups.
Some critics have commented that under the new deal, the district could face financial peril and there may not be a RE-2 District within the near future. Proponents, though, say the contract is a good financial decision for the district and Merit Academy, which leases space from the district.
This time, the main argument hinged on the extension of the current contract with the Merit Academy. The item on the agenda for the regularly scheduled school board meeting on August 13 called for this contract to get extended for three decades. A decision to extend this contract brought opposition during public comment and from Board of Education Director Keegan Barkley.
The school board heard a presentation for school district attorney Brad Miller and then had a discussion about what the contract extension would entail. Barkley argued that the decision to extend the contract shouldn’t be made during one board meeting, but that the board needed more time to gather information.
But on the other hand, the other board members contended that a decision needed to be made so that Merit Academy could secure loans to maintain their facility. In the end, the board voted 4-1 to extend the Merit Academy charter school’s contract for the next 30 years. Barkley was the sole “no” vote.
“The decision by the school board to award a contract renewal demonstrated an ongoing commitment by board members to students, staff, and parents/stakeholders at Merit Academy,” a Merit Academy spokesperson said after the decision was made by the board. “After reviewing Merit’s past performance and in-depth reasons for a renewal, a 30-year extension was approved. The contract extension was necessary for obtaining financial loan support to be used on overdue building maintenance, safety upgrades, and facility improvements. Merit Academy is pleased with the decision as it now puts the Academy in a better position to offer the best possible educational experience for the long term.”
According to the district’s attorney, the 30-year contract extension is needed to put the charter school in a better financial position to take out a loan they have needed, since they took over the former Woodland Park Middle School Building at the beginning of the ’24-’25 school year. Miller also said that a 30-year contract was not necessarily unusual as some charter schools start with a 30-year contract (like James Irwin and The Classical Academy) instead of a smaller 5-year contract.
Since Merit Academy doesn’t own a facility, a 30-year contract will help them get the loans, that they were denied when they only had a five-year contract.
Miller also explained that the contract extension wouldn’t bar a future school board from eliminating the contract in the future. He said that the laws are the same to eliminate a charter school contract or choose to not renew a contract.
“Our statutory framework says there are basically only five reasons that you can either non-renew or terminate a charter,” Miller said. “And those five reasons are the same whether it comes up in a renewal cycle every five years, or if it comes up in two years.”
Fears Raised Over Length of Charter School Contract
As soon as the news hit social media that the district was considering extending the Merit Academy contract, a fight pursued once again. Critics of the plan argued that this is ust a way to hold the taxpayers responsible for the charter school for the next 30 years. Others welcomed it as a way to secure the future of Merit Academy.
During the most recent board meeting, many people spoke out on each side of the debate, demonstrating how divided the community has become on the issue of Merit Academy improvements. Opponents of the plan argue that most charter school contracts are up for renewal every five years.
“This document took months to develop yet the public only had access to it two days ago,” Woodland Park resident Gail Gehrig said. “There is an application renewal process required. How can you extend this contract without that process taking place?”
Barkley also questioned why the contract renewal had to happen so quickly. She said that since a new school board getting elected couldn’t eliminate the charter school contract, unless they discovered certain defects, the extension wasn’t needed right away.
Other school board members argued, however, that the contract extension was good for the district because it would remove the financial burden for the repair and maintenance costs of the Merit Academy facility from the district. Currently, Merit is leasing the school from the district, and the terms of the lease state that the school district is liable for facility and safety repairs and upgrades.
The district’s attorney and the majority of the board members maintained that the board shouldn’t wait any longer to make the decision, so that Merit could start the process to secure a loan as soon as possible. Now that Merit’s contract has been extended until 2055, they can go after loans needed to make the facility upgrades without depending strictly on school district funds.
