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<br />Councilmember Olson stated that first of all, she would like to give kudos to PACT because if <br />the school weren't so popular, this wouldn't be happening. She stated that she agrees with <br />Councilmember Strommen that the Council should have been put in the loop in January so there <br />could have been an amicable conversation. She stated that, at this point, she would not support a <br />resolution. She stated that, however, she thinks about Bums Township which has recently <br />applied to become a city. She asked if PACT had been located there how their residents would <br />have been handled for enrollment. <br /> <br />Mr. DeBruyn stated that they would have been given preference because they are a township. <br /> <br />Councilmember Olson asked how enrollment would be handled next year when they become a <br />city. <br /> <br />Mr. DeBruyn stated that they would have to reconsider the preference. <br /> <br />Councilmember Olson stated that Ramseyis her home town and although she wouldn't support a <br />resolution, she does feel Ramsey students should be given preference. <br /> <br />Mr. DeBruyn read aloud a letter/statement to the Council. He stated that he feels PACT brings <br />value to Ramsey by serving as an anchor for businesses and residents within the RTC. He stated <br />that PACT was initially approached by the RTC about moving to the City. He stated that he <br />doesn't know how it can be stated that a school was not part of the plan for the RTC when he <br />saw a diagram that had the school displayed right in the middle. He stated that the school serves <br />families from Big Lake, St. Francis, Forest Lake, Brooklyn Center and Maple Grove in addition <br />to Ramsey. He stated that he feels this brings positive attention and public relations to the City <br />because there are hundreds of families a day bringing in their students and potential revenue to <br />the area. He stated that charter schools were not designed to offer preferences to students who <br />already have many educational options available to them in local districts. He stated that from <br />his understanding, charter schools were not intended to replace district schools, schools within 5 <br />miles of a community, or to give benefits to students who happen to live within a certain city. <br />He quoted Senator Tom Neuville "We didn't want people from Faribault taking advantage and <br />going to Nerstrand because they have other public school options." He stated that this statement <br />is supported by the Minnesota Association of Charter Schools whose executive director stated <br />"charter schools were never intended to serve students in a specific city". He stated that <br />choosing to attend PACT simply because it is down the street defeats the purpose. He quoted <br />Eugene Piccolo, head of the Minnesota Association of Charter Schools, "Charter schools thrive <br />when they can draw students from a widespread area. Charter schools are like public schools in <br />that, by law, they must accept any student, but they each have a unique focus that is supposed to <br />differentiate them from other public schools and it is a concern that people will want to attend <br />the school for the convenience and not the program." He stated that PACT currently services 70 <br />families from Ramsey and it is their desire to come to a reasonable resolution for this issue <br />working through the proper channels. He urged the Council not to pick sides in this issue and <br />allow the process to continue. <br /> <br />Councilmember Jeffrey stated that when they met last spring about the possibility of a second <br />school, he was critical of the numbers and the waiting lists for Ramsey residents. He stated that <br /> <br />City Council Work Session /Aprill, 2008 <br />Page 15 of 20 <br />