At the urging of teachers and parents, representatives of the Sacramento City Unified School District (SCUSD) have agreed to engage in mediation with parents and the Sacramento City Teachers Association/CTA/NEA to settle pending litigation regarding Sacramento High School.
The lawsuit brought by parents and teachers alleges the district illegally gave Sacramento High School to the St. Hope organization as a charter school.
The first closed-door mediation session is slated for tomorrow, Tuesday, November 25, at 10:00 a.m. It will bring representatives of parents, SCTA, the district, and St. Hope together with a retired judge in an effort to reach an agreement that will end the legal dispute.
Parents and teacher representatives will be available to talk to reporters after the mediation session. (Reporters and desks: Use the contact numbers above to arrange for interviews.)
"Parents and teachers believe strongly that a settlement is the best way of providing our students with the best learning environment," said Marcie Launey, president of the SCTA. "We all want a settlement that will support students, parents and teachers."
Parents and teachers remain steadfast in their objection to the district's alleged unilateral violation of state law that gave Sacramento High to the St. Hope Corporation. A reasonable settlement could site the St. Hope charter at a different location.
"We believe a reasonable settlement will prevent any further disruption on the Sacramento High campus this year. We hope the settlement will ultimately re-open the site as a comprehensive high school for all students in the residence area," said Patrice Rogers, a parent litigant.
A mediated settlement could result in the withdrawal of both litigation to revoke the St. Hope Charter at Sacramento High and the contempt charges pending against SCUSD trustees. The trustees are facing charges that they violated a court order that prohibited them from authorizing a second St. Hope charter application prior to a court ruling on the original complaint. That contempt hearing is slated for January 2004.
The 3000-member Sacramento City Teachers Association is a chapter of the 335,000-member California Teachers Association, which is in turn affiliated with the 2.7 million-member National Education Association.