Group meets in Richmond to support charter school

A white mayoral candidate and a black civic leader say race should not be an obstacle to the establishment of a charter school in South Richmond.

"It only matters here in Richmond, where people want to make it a racial issue when it's an educational issue," said mayoral candidate Paul Goldman.

Goldman was joined yesterday by Antione M. Green, president of the Richmond Crusade for Voters, one of the city's dominant political organizations in the black community. Green also is a member of the board of directors for the Patrick Henry School for Science and the Arts, proposed at a former public elementary school building on Semmes Avenue.

"People want different options for their kids," Green said.

The joint appearance was timed to boost the school's prospects at the Richmond School Board, which is scheduled to vote Monday on whether to approve a revised contract for the Patrick Henry charter school initiative.

The first proposed contract failed last month after a supporter, 7th District School Board member Keith West, voted against it because of concerns about the restraints it would put on the new school.

West appeared yesterday with Goldman and Green, along with Torey Edmonds, who is running to fill the retiring incumbent's seat on the board for the 7th District. Edmonds, who is black, said parents in her community are looking for something better than they are getting from the city's public schools.

"On the one hand, you can't be unhappy with the school system and on the other hand shut the door to opportunities," Edmonds said after the news conference in front of the former Patrick Henry Elementary School.

The Richmond Crusade for Voters has not taken a position on the proposed charter school, Green said, but some members have voiced legitimate concerns about how racially and economically diverse the new school would be, he said. "Ultimately, it's going to be the Richmond School Board that will make the determination of how diverse the student body will become," he said.

The organization voted last month to endorse Del. Dwight C. Jones in the five-candidate race to succeed Mayor L. Douglas Wilder.
Contact Michael Martz at (804) 649-6964 or .