Madison County may lean toward charter school system in next decade

By law, school leaders must designate by 2013 which funding model it prefers.

“It does appear, for school systems our size, that a charter system is the way to go between the two,” Madison County Schools Superintendent Mitch McGhee said.

The charter format places an emphasis on the local schools having “a lot of empowerment,” McGhee said.

The IE2 system is based on achievement marks. Schools face penalties if they don’t meet those standards.

The IE2 format caters to larger school districts, like Gwinnett or Forsyth County, McGhee said.

“That’s more of a big system issue,” he said.

There’s currently a $100-per-student rate in state funding associated with becoming a charter school system. But that funding may become limited as more schools go that route.

School officials will make a presentation to the Madison County Board of Education after the Christmas holidays regarding both options.

Central officials have already seen 4-5 presentations regarding charter systems vs. the IE2 format.

The process to make the switch takes about a year to a year and a half.

“We’re going to need to start, February or March, heading down that road,” McGhee said.