After more

than nine hours of negotiation on Wednesday, the Coweta

County School System and the Odyssey School group are set

to continue their negotiations next week over a proposed

charter school.

The

marathon session ended with neither side offering much

comment. The day started with Justice Center of Atlanta

mediator Randall Dobbs excluding the media from the

proceedings.

"I'm

really sorry that happened. We didn't have a problem with

y'all being in there," said Superintendent of

Education Richard Brooks.

Dobbs

explained the Justice Center was a private company and

not subject to Georgia's Open Meetings Law.

The

mediation is the first in the state between a school

system and a group that wants to establish a charter

school.

The General

Assembly passed a law in 1997 allowing charter schools.

Charter schools generally allow more parental involvement

in curriculum and also allow the schools to hire

professionals in various fields to help teach the

curriculum.

The dispute

went to mediation when the Odyssey group felt it was not

given a fair hearing by the Coweta County School Board on

April 23.

The group

took their concerns to the State Board of Education who

ordered the mediation.

After the

mediation, Brooks said he felt progress was made and

another meeting would be held late next week.

In the

meantime, Brooks said Odyssey School group organizer Jan

Buchwald is set to have a meeting with parents of the

proposed school on Monday at Crossroads Baptist Church in

Sharpsburg at 7 p.m.

In the

system's opening statement that he released to the press,

Brooks outlined a number of problems the system had with

the proposed school

One of the

system's main objections concerns the school's proposed

facility. The charter school petition states the facility

will be leased and located at 1347 Reese Road in

Sharpsburg.

The address

is also the home address of Odyssey School organizer

Buchwald, so the system concludes the building will be

located on property owned by Buchwald or a member of her

family.

Odyssey

School officials wanted the school to start in August and

said if the facility couldn't be completed, portable

facilities would be used.

The school

has a goal of opening with 100 students, but did not

provide the school system with the name of any students

who wanted to enroll.

The charter

petition also calls for the payment of $800,000 in rent

to the owner of the building over a five-year period.

School

system officials said this type arrangement is contrary

to Georgia state law and school board policies and

represents a conflict of interest.

Another

objection the system raised is Buchwald's role in the

school if it is approved. School system officials said

Buchwald also plans to be the executive director and

principal at the school.

The charter

school petition provides the executive director-principal

will be paid $541,000 over a five-year period, which the

board claims is another conflict of interest.

The system

also claims that the proposed charter school would not be

locally ruled. Three of the four initial directors live

outside the county.

Odyssey

School organizer Jan Buchwald did not return phone calls

process.

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