TWICE REJECTED: Hillsdale is NOT Winning Over Local School Boards
Of course, they can still appeal to Bill Lee's hand-picked Charter Commission
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Bill Lee’s buddies at Hillsdale College are relentless in their quest for Tennessee tax dollars to fund their extreme, Christian Nationalist agenda.
They’ve applied to open five American Classical Academies in Tennessee.
So far, two local school boards have weighed-in on those applications. And, well, Hillsdale is 0-2.
Robertson County roundly rejected Hillsdale’s attempt to extract local taxpayer funds:
The Robertson County Board of Education voted unanimously to deny the charter school application for American Classical Academy Robertson in a special called meeting Monday.
“I can promise you that as the chair of the charter school review committee and the committee itself, there’s been quite a few hours spent on this application,” Robertson County Schools Director Chris Causey said.
Board members voted to deny the application based on an extensive review process by and on the recommendation of the Robertson County Schools Charter School Application Review Committee, which found it lacking in its academic, operational and financial plans.
And, for the second year in a row, Clarksville-Montgomery County rejected Hillsdale:
The Board voted 6-1 to reject the application, with only Aaron Mayberry voting yes.
ACAM previously applied in 2022, but the school board unanimously voted to reject their application.
ACA has applications in Maury, Rutherford, and Madison counties as well.
But the message is clear: Local elected officials do NOT want Hillsdale charter schools to pilfer their tax dollars.
Still, it’s possible Hillsdale could be operating a charter in one or all of these districts soon.
That’s because Gov. Lee - with legislative approval - created a state Charter Commission that can override local decisions.
If this Commission decides to approve Hillsdale, the charter school will open in the local community - even over the objections of local elected officials and the taxpayers they represent.
Hillsdale ruined their brand when their president, Larry Arnn, said that teachers come from "the dumbest parts of the dumbest colleges." That is a slur you can't take back. Most people realize that teachers work hard, are underpaid, and don't deserve this. We do a difficult job. The sickening part is that he didn't mean to say this publicly. He was caught on a hidden camera. Shame on him for disrespecting teachers. Is he aware that we have a teacher shortage? Part of the reason for this shortage is because of people like him.