Cherokee Rallies to Save County's First Charter School

Saturday, 995 students won a spot at the county's first charter school.

Monday, they learned the school might not even open.

And on Tuesday morning, families gathered outside the Capitol to ask for state support for their institution.

such as Cherokee Charter Academy, ruling them unconstitutional.

The decision affects thousands of children in the state. A total of 16 schools serving 15,000 students were approved by the Georgia Charter Schools Commission, not their local school districts, Georgia Charter Schools Association spokesman Seth Coleman said.

"The fight has only just begun," said Rep. Jan Jones, speaker pro tem of the Georgia House of Representatives. "One size [education] doesn't fit everyone."

Stephanie Thomas, Christine Rea, Kelly Marlow and Erica Williams were among a group of parents from Cherokee County who made the trek to the Capitol.

"Whether our kids got in or not," Marlow said, "we are here to support."

Cherokee Charter Academy forged ahead with plans for its inaugural year knowing the case could potentially derail those efforts.

Officials announced the school would open in the fall at the site of , the Sixes Road private school that has endured mounting debt, foreclosure and other problems in the last few months. They hired . And on Saturday, the school held a lottery that determined who got in the school and who didn't. Nearly 2,500 students applied. Almost 1,000 were accepted. The results of the lottery were posted here.

Now officials are trying to figure out how they can move forward.

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