Macon Charter parents meet with Renaissance co-founder

On Monday, Parents at Macon Charter Academy spoke directly with a representative of the management firm that has been entrusted with the school's future.

Dominique Taylor, managing director and co-founder for Renaissance School Services, said the company's role in the school reflects the definition of the word "renaissance" as a renewal or rebirth.

"So usually when we come to a school, it's with the idea that we're going to renew the academics and the operations and so forth," Taylor said.

Renaissance has been analyzing the school's finances, operations and academics since coming on board in December, Taylor said. Enrollment, down to 510 after initial projections of 700 students, is at the center of the school's financial issues, she said. Personnel and other contracts were based on the original estimate, leaving the school $30,000 short each month because school funding is based on student count.

"We're going to have to make some changes in the budget and expenditures," Taylor said.

From an operational standpoint, parent Michelle Davis brought up security as a concern. The front door and others remain unlocked at times, and while visitors are generally expected to go through the front office, more could be done, she said.

Davis noted that she walked directly into the school while children were still there during the day Monday.

"And I just thought to myself, 'I could be anybody," Davis said.

That ease of access didn't escape Taylor's notice when she arrived, and she said security would be among the first things Renaissance would address.

"This day and age, we can't just allow anybody to come in the building without looking to see who it is," Taylor said.

Academically, parents have consistently expressed concerns that the school would go away from its initial goal of being a pipeline to Central High School's International Baccalaureate program. Renaissance has maintained Patrice Thurman as the school's IB director, and Taylor described the curriculum for the program as "challenging and rigorous."

"We stick with the mission that was developed in the charter," she said.

Another theme that has been continuous as parents and community members discuss the school has been the history of the Pleasant Hill neighborhood, where MCA is located. Dentist Thomas Duval grew up there, and he asked Taylor for her thoughts about incorporating local history into the curriculum.

"Pleasant Hill has a long, long, long, rich history, and I firmly believe that history could be used to motivate these children," Duval said.

Taylor indicated that history could be included but that it would need to be meshed properly with the IB curriculum.

"But of course, we'll make it a factor for the kids to learn about their local history," she said.

The Macon Charter Academy governing board will next meet on Jan. 19 at 6 p.m. in the school's auditorium.

To contact writer Jeremy Timmerman, call 744-4331 or find him on Twitter@MTJTimm.

This story was originally published January 11, 2016 at 7:03 PM.