Supporters of the proposed Discovery Charter School on Thursday praised the new school as a way to give parents a choice in education, as a unique outdoor learning experience, and as a healthy dose of competition for the public schools.

But the plan also raised a few critical eyebrows, mainly from representatives of the Duneland School Corporation who questioned just why the new K-8 charter school is needed when the local public schools are already performing well.

Duneland Assistant Superintendent Monte Moffett said if there is a need for a charter school in this community, one would have thought there would have been an ongoing discussion about it. But, he said, no one from Discovery has come to the Duneland Schools to raise concerns about its environmental education programs, transitional programs, or other issues cited as important for the charter school.

Why, he asked, should a charter school that could potentially cut Duneland Schools’ operating funds by $1 million or so annually be allowed when it “isn’t going to do anything better than what we do?”

But Laurie Metz, a member of the Discovery Charter School Founding Board, said Discovery is aimed at giving parents an educational choice, noting that many people can’t afford private schools. No one is saying that the Duneland Schools are poor schools, she said.

“We don’t want to change the Duneland Schools,” she said.

Judging by the comments aired and the applause received, it was clear that the audience at Thursday’s public meeting was overwhelmingly in favor of the charter school. More than 100 people attended the meeting, held at the Library Service Center.

Thursday’s public meeting was one of the last steps in the process before Ball State University decides on or about June 9 whether to grant the charter. Ball State is one of the few entities given the authority to sponsor charter schools in Indiana.

Charter schools are taxpayer funded, receiving the same state tuition support that public schools get for each child enrolled. Discovery Charter Schools projects receiving $1.86 million in state funding in its second year.

But while charter schools have to hire certified teachers and abide by health and safety laws, they are also given more flexibility than public schools and are exempt from certain policies imposed by the Indiana Department of Education.

A new school site has not yet been selected, nor has it been decided if a new building will be constructed or if the school will move into an existing structure or open a modular. Metz said the founding board has been working with several developers but won’t select a site until after learning if the charter is approved.

The goal, she said, will be to have a central location in the Duneland School community.

Larry Gabbert, director of the Office of Charter Schools at Ball State, said the university would give Discovery until the spring of 2010 to acquire a site, but that extensions could be granted if, for example, the new school doesn’t secure proper zoning or meet any other requirements.

A number of audience members who spoke live outside of Duneland, such as one Miller Beach mother who homeschools her children and a Beverly Shores mom, both of whom said they would like their children to attend Discovery Charter School because they don’t favor sending their kids to their own home schools.

Several others were employees of American Quality Schools, the Chicago based non-profit management organization selected as the operator of the Discovery School. AQS operates 11 charter schools, including several in Lake County, and is opening a new school this year in South Bend.

One recurring theme for the charter supporters was choice. Parents, they said, ought to have the ability to decide where they want their children to attend school, especially since not all children learn the same way.

Several audience members hinted that charter schools have gotten a bad rap, but that could change with Discovery, with its emphasis on outdoor environmental education, organic and locally grown lunch items, and the goal of locating in a green-certified building.

“This is a chance to put a new face on the word ‘charter school,’” said Sue Franzman.

Jim Manning, a retired teacher, said he has taught in a wide variety of school settings and has found no significant difference in the type of school. But he lauded having educational diversity, which in turn strengthens a community. “We’re not all coming from the same direction,” he said.

Another parent, from Miller Beach, noted that Discovery would be open to any Indiana resident, provided they could provide transportation. “It’s a choice for all of Northwest Indiana,” she said.

But Duneland School representatives were less than enthusiastic.

In a lengthy address, Moffett said Ball State is not proposing to open a school in a typical charter school community, where schools are struggling and outside intervention may be needed.

Instead, he said Duneland’s ISTEP test scores are consistently higher than state average, with passing scores above 80 percent. He also cited a study that found no difference in ISTEP scores between traditional public schools and charter schools.

Further, he cited proposed legislation this year that would have blocked new charter schools because of the funding impact on the local public school systems.

Duneland School Board member Janice Custer said the charter school supporters are calling for an alternative approach, even though all the programs they cited as important -- environmental education and parent volunteers, for example -- are already in Duneland.

“I’m not sure what the alternative is,” she said.

Metz countered by saying that Duneland kids only get about 12.5 minutes of outdoor time each day, a far cry from Discovery’s plans to have hands-on, outdoor learning. Custer disagreed with Metz about Duneland’s outdoor activities.

Former Jackson Elementary principal Dan Keilman, who also served as a state director of charter schools, said the Duneland Schools are high quality, as he raised a concern about how the new charter school could affect Duneland. “Let’s not destroy and negate what’s being done well,” he said.

The teachers at the Discovery Charter School would be state-licensed and would be employed by AQS and essentially work as at-will employees. “We do not have guaranteed employment,” said Timothy Ricordai, vice-president of New Schools Development at AQS.

Teachers are continually evaluated throughout the year, with the evaluations determining raises. If teachers aren’t performing, they will be fired, he said.

But just as the AQS has waiting lists for students to attend, he said, “we have a waiting list of teachers.” He emphasized that one underlying belief at AQS is that all children are capable of learning and that AQS teachers are passionate about teaching.

Custer asked how many charter schools have failed. Gabbert said there is a good possibility some charter schools will lose their charter during Ball State’s upcoming review process and that Ball State has cut one K-8 school back to K-5. AQS has also closed one school, while another charter school was closed by the Indianapolis Mayors Office, which also has the authority in Indiana to grant charters.

One audience member asked what a typical Discovery school classroom will look like, and Ricordai said it will not look like the traditional classroom, with rows of perfectly aligned desks, but with clusters of students working in collaboration.

“That’s what we provide in public education,” responded Duneland teacher Nicole Bell, who questioned just whose classroom Ricordai was describing. Another Duneland teacher, Crystal Callaway, said Duneland teachers, too, have a passion for teaching.