The future of Manatee Charter School and its 700 students may be determined Monday. 

  • School board hearing Monday may determine fate of Manatee Charter School
  • District cites low scores, poor performance as reason for possible denial of charter
  • Manatee Charter School

According to the Manatee County School District, the board does not plan on renewing the charter. 

Open since 2011, the charter school has students from kindergarten to eighth grade. All of the students qualify for free or reduced lunch with 80 percent of the students classified as minorities. 

The school, located at 4550 30th St. E., is run by Southwest Charter Foundation, which is under Charter Schools USA.

The school district has laid out its case for denying the school's charter, citing various violations including a chaotic learning environment, extreme amounts of student breaks and declining test scores. 

Manatee Charter's attorneys have argued the district is not following due process in its attempts to shut down the school. School officials said the district has caught them off guard with their decision and they will appeal if the board votes to shut them down. 

Today's hearing may be just the start of a multi-day process that could ultimately result in the board not renewing the school's charter. 

That decision would force parents of hundreds of children to find another school.