Dr P has his own personal, taxpayer-financed chauffeur and taxpayer-purchased new SUV, along with a hefty per diem and a healthy 6-figure salary, both provided by us taxpayers.

What could he possibly understand about this current reality you accurately point out? He furloughs teachers but keeps a personal chauffeur and Admin Bldg interior decorators on the payroll!! And many here are saying "Yes, more of that, please!" and getting angry at me for having the gall to point that out!

Simone -

Even temporary income variances can have a significant impact on resources and therefore learning opportunity. An example might be a one income household that had to reorganize to a two income household with both parents working. Prior to this arrangement a parent was home with the children and encouraged homework completion and provided assistance. With both parents at work the assistance was reduced.

The use of free / reduced school lunches is simply a surrogate measure of income level, it's not an excuse or an insult.

4Ed, why do I care what Jon Hage makes? He's not taking a dime from me nor you.
Dr. P on the other hand, is paid directly by all of us. He is thus answerable to us, the taxpayer.
What you fail to realize is that Dr. P should be working for the CCSD, not the other way around. What you call a 'vendetta' is simply a concerned taxpayer pointing out wasteful spending. As I predicted above, look at the anger when I dare to ask questions.
Question - why do you have this guy on such a high, untouchable pedestal? Are you a personal friend or family member of the super? Wait - are YOU his chauffeur??
And the only one with a vendetta is you and your obsession with a charter school that hasn't spent a dime of your money.

Dr P is part of the spending problem and none of its solution. He should be announcing cuts to his own large package of perks instead of announcing teacher furloughs.

Steely -
As a "concerned taxpayer" does it not bother you that the CCA application submitted to the CCSD had not surety bond associated with it? You'd be ok creating another Ball Ground Recycling situation where our money goes to a private entity and we aren't protected if they don't deliver? Is it OK for CCA to make money off the government but not Dr. P? You know a lot about Dr. P and his finances because it's transparent. Was the same type of transparency in the CCA application?

Pointing out the extravagant lifestyle of Dr. P that is completely subsidized by the Cherokee County taxpayer during a period where teachers are suffering furloughs is a "personal attack" only to someone with a vested interest in continuing this lifestyle.

So stop trying to deflect that attention, Mr. Superintendent!

Again, not a dime of Cherokee County property tax $$$ is going to Hage or the charter school. Your obsession with that reveals your vendetta.

John Hage is taking my Georgia income tax money and other sales tax and fees that fund the state budget.

Why can't every other school do what CCA does? Because CCA doesn't have to provide transportation, provide EVERY type of special ed service, and abide by all the unfunded mandates sent down from DC and the Gold Dome. I don't know if the CCA teachers are part of the State Merit insurance, but those costs to both the county and the employee have been skyrocketing. If CCA is not part of that system, their benefits costs may be lower. Now, I don't happen to call these "unnecessary" expenses. What do you consider "unnecessary"? And how much "unnecessary spending" in the form of management fees went to CSUSA in Florida?

Why can't every other school do what CCA does?

1. I seem to remember that they received a special bonus appropriation from the state to bridge that gap.
2. I also suspect that charter schools aren't required to maintain cash reserves like public schools are which would ease their cash demands.
3. As a new school system, CCA could also have hired new and/or younger teachers at a lower pay scale and reaped the benefit of the salary differential between an experienced teacher and a relative newbie. As an established school system with thousands of teachers, this isn't an option for CCSD unless you want to churn through teachers every 5-10 years.
4. As Holly mentioned, CCA didn't provide transportation which saved them $290,000 or more.
5. CSUSA could also have provided interim financing to carry them until the Gold Dome figures out a way to provide full funding.
6. CSUSA could have negotiated a favorable short-term lease for the facilities until CCA is either permanent or closes. For the landlord, the prospect of some rent vs. no rent is a motivator.

Basically, there are options and short-term gimics available to CCA that aren't available to CCSD.

Frank, great points. The teaching force is a huge cost in CCSD (and rightfully so, there are many experienced teachers with Master, Ed. Specialist, Doctorate degrees and National Board Certification), and obviously hiring a small teaching force of relatively new teachers (or underpaying those that have experience) is a huge savings. Will these teachers last long-term with a poor teaching salary? Ah, no. So, my guess is that the school will experience a high turn over in the years to come, which coincides with your 'churning through teachers every 5-10 year' theory. But if I had to guess, I'd say 3-5 at most.

Again, for many people this isn't a charter / no charter stance. It's the easiest argument to make: "You don't like CCA so you don't like charters". I for one think charters provide a great choice and work well with schools when they provide a unique learning experience for the children. The CCA application was basically a private school funded via state and local dollars. No unique class structures, no in-depth learning, no revolutionary thoughts such as single sex class rooms. On top of that, they did not want to transparent with their fiscal matters, something that should scare every taxpayer. The last thing we need is another Ball Ground Recycling taking our money, abusing it and being left holding the bag at the end of the day. I am for Charters, but I agree with the CBOE decision on rejecting CCA charters application. Bring the right Charter to Cherokee.