9/23/14 - Again, the hot-button issue of the planned Lindbom Classical Academy came up for discussion at Monday nightâs Brighton Board of Education meeting. Sue Ellen and Glen Ikens both spoke at the public comments portion of the meeting, criticizing the pending purchase of the vacant Lindbom School for conversion into a charter school. Glen Ikens is a Dearborn teacher who lives near Lindbom with his wife, whoâs been a regular critic of the purchase. The Brighton Board of Education has approved an offer by the American Classical Academies to buy the school and property for $1.45 million, pending completion of legal and financial aspects of the purchase. The building â at Sixth and State streets in Brighton - would then be converted into a charter school and renamed the Lindbom Classical Academy. Ikens told the board that ACA plans to have Responsive Education Solutions of Texas ârunâ the school. He said that according to Slate Magazine, the true agenda of RES-run schools is masquerading as a public school to gain tax dollars, while actually fostering an anti-science, pro-creationism, fundamentalist school agenda. However Dick Streetman, representing the Lindbom Classical Academy board, disagrees, and told WHMI its role would be âminor,â adding that the proposed school is âpublicâ in every sense of the word. The Ikens also pleaded with the board to look into rescinding acceptance of the purchase offer, saying RES is anti-public education. RES operates 65 charter schools in Texas, Arkansas and Indiana. There is a backup offer to the one by ACA, by Granger Land Acquisition LLC, which would convert the property into a senior assisted living development. However, the board has already voted to accept the ACA offer and the alternate proposal would be considered only if the ACA offer falls through. That happened with the first offer, by Robertson Brothers, whose proposal for a housing development fell by the wayside.(TT)
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