>>> GREENE COUNTY
There might be a resolution to the long-running Lake Oconee Academy lawsuit against the Greene County Board of Education.
The lawsuit, filed by LOA in September 2020, accuses the school district of failing to pass through enough money to fund all of LOA’s students. The key issue is over the interpretation of LOA’s charter with the BOE about how many students LOA can enroll each year and whether or not the BOE is required to fund all of them. Over the past two years, both sides have engaged in public arguments, debate has lit up social media and a local citizens group has loudly pressured both sides to end the lawsuit. Many people feel the dispute has been a distraction from the goal of educating Greene County children.
On Oct. 5, the key education leaders and a Georgia Board of Education member met in a four-hour meeting to discuss the lawsuit.
At the meeting were BOE Chairman Mike Lynch, BOE Vice Chair Steve Kilgore, Superintendent Chris Houston, LOA Board Chairman Michael Tompkins, LOA Vice Chair Sarah Peacock, LOA CEO Otho Tucker and Mike Royal, who is a member of the Georgia Board of Education.
The next day, the Greene County School System issued a press release saying a “preliminary agreement” had been reached. It added that members of both boards still needed to discuss the proposal. LOA did not send out a press release.
As of press time Wednesday morning, both sides were still exchanging emails to nail down the wording.
Participants in the negotiations who were contacted by the Lake Oconee News would not discuss details of the proposed resolution.
Lynch did say that the two sides had been really close to an agreement in recent weeks.
“We were down to nickel- and-dime stuff,” he said LOA’s Tucker agreed. “I don’t think during the last three weeks we’ve been that far apart,” Tucker said. “I think it was just finding time to sit down and to do some talking and soul searching.”
Tucker said there was no overt pressure from the Georgia Board of Education member Mike Royal and that he was there “to pull things together.”
Under rare circumstances, the state board can recommend to the governor to remove any or all members of any Board of Education in Georgia.
Lynch agreed that Royal’s involvement was important.
“It’s the first time we’ve had someone from the state say ‘boo’ on this whole subject, which is a crime,” Lynch said. “We’re very pleased to have some involvement from someone outside the county to help us get through this.”
Most of the same group met again on Tuesday to clear up some points.
Tompkins said after the meeting that he was waiting for Lynch to email him with the exact wording of their apparent agreement.
On Wednesday morning, as emails were still being exchanged, Lynch said he was still “optimistic,” but Tompkins was more guarded.
“I believe we’re going to get there,” Tompkins said, “but it’s taking too much effort, frankly.”
If it works out, both boards could meet as early as Monday, Oct. 17, to jointly sign an agreement. Yet, until the agreement is signed by everyone, the optimism is still fragile.
If there is a breakdown, it would not be the first time. In June, the LOA board approved what they thought was an agreement between CEO Tucker and Superintendent Houston. However, Houston and the BOE did not feel an agreement had been reached.
Also, on Oct. 5, the same day that the group reached the latest preliminary agreement, lawyers for LOA filed a request for oral arguments in Fulton County Superior Court as the LOA lawsuit continues to move toward a trial.
“Nothing’s settled,” Tucker said. “Things are still moving forward. We can’t just stop everything. It’s been too long the way it is.”
Lynch knows it is not over until it’s over.
“They seem to be very confident in their case,” Lynch said, “and we’re pretty confident in ours. We may have to find out.”
If the preliminary agreement is approved by both boards and the state, it is expected that the LOA lawsuit and a formal accusation by the GCSS against LOA for allegedly violating the charter would both be withdrawn.