Georgia PTA To Host Educational Summit On Charter School Bill

The Georgia PTA will be on hand Tuesday night to discuss the upcoming referendum on charter schools voters will consider on the Nov. 6 general election ballot. 

The summit will be held Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Clark Creek STEM Academy. The school is located at 3219 Hunt Road in Acworth. 

Sally Fitzgerald, educational policy consultant for Georgia PTA, will be the guest speaker at the event and will discuss H.B. 1162, the enabling legislation that put the question on the ballot.

Voters will consider whether the state can bypass local boards of education in approving charter schools. If approved, it would amend the Georgia constitution to allow the state to approve charter schools. The Georgia PTA has come out in opposition to the amendment.

Kimberly Carson, the legislative chair for Chapman Intermediate and Clark Creek Elementary PTA organizations, said the summit serves as an "opportunity to come and learn more and get educated on House Bill 1162."

Carson, who is also the vice president of Chapman Intermediate's PTA, added discussions with some in the community propelled the need for the summit to take place. She noted some people react with a "deer caught in headlights" look whenever they first learn about the referendum. 

"I just think people don't know about it," she said. "That's the feeling I get. They don't really understand what's going on."