Former Gov. Jerry Brown Urges Napa County To Approve Charter School

By John Fensterwald, EdSource

NAPA COUNTY, CA — Former Gov. Jerry Brown hasn't been heard from often since retiring from public life in 2019 at the end of his fourth term as governor. But he was remote phone caller No. 1 Wednesday night, urging the school board of the Napa County Office of Education to approve the highly contested petition to establish the Mayacamas Countywide Charter Middle School.

Speaking assertively with a touch of combativeness, the longtime charter school supporter told the board that Mayacamas would be good for the families it would serve and Napa Unified, which had rejected a previous petition for the proposal.

"Charters and the unified school districts should not be at loggerheads. They should work together," Brown said. "This charter, despite the opposition of the school district, is really good for that district. It'll make them better by the innovations that Mayacamas can undergo.

"It's incredible that this enthusiasm to start a new school with all the opposition, all the pressure at this time of widespread disillusionment," he said, reminding the board that he had started a charter school as mayor of Oakland in the early 2000s on an appeal to the State Board of Education after its rejection by the Oakland Unified school board.

It's hard to know if the former governor convinced any board members. Eighty-seven speakers followed him in a nearly seven-hour hearing. Board members may have been moved more by students who said they had already suffered bullying and pleaded for a small charter school where they would feel welcome.

The board had previously denied Mayacamas' previous petition on a 5-2 vote on an appeal from Napa Unified's rejection. But this was a new version for a school that would serve students from throughout the county, and a majority of the board appeared sympathetic. On a 6-1 vote, they agreed to continue consideration at the next board meeting, implying eventual approval if further questions, including financial stability, could be answered.

"And don't worry about the money," Brown said. "If there's any shortage because of short enrollment, I will do a fundraiser and make sure they got the money. So money, no object here."

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