Lawsuit alleges school fees illegal
By Donna C. Gregory NEWS EDITOR

Stephanie Crews performs as part of Clover Hill High School's show choir during a competition held earlier this year. A recently filed lawsuit is questioning if student fees for activities like choir are reasonable.

Federal and state law states that every child is entitled to a free public education, but a Midlothian attorney now claims Chesterfield County Public Schools (CCPS) is breaking that mandate.

Arthur Almore, Sr. filed a lawsuit against the school board last month on behalf of an unidentified county student, alleging the school system is charging student fees that are illegal and don't meet Department of Education regulations. The filing asks the Chesterfield Circuit Court to decide if CCPS' student fee policy adheres to the law. Almore also seeks $50,000 in damages plus court costs.

At issue is whether certain student fees are reasonable and if they keep some indigent students

from participating in school activities such as choir, band and cheerleading. While most fees are under $50, there are some that are much more expensive such as a $300 fee for the Health Science Specialty Center. As another example, students in the Auto Collision Repair and Refinish Program at the Chesterfield Technical Center spend around $175 for lab fees, uniforms, shoes, classes and tools.

Almore also alleges the school system charges fees that do not appear on the superintendent's list of approved fees.

"Students in Virginia have a right to a free public education. It is my opinion that what is occurring in Chesterfield County…is in conflict with what our legislature has defined as a free public education," maintains Almore. "Shouldn't opportunities be distributed based on merit, not on parental affluence?"

Debra Marlow, the school system's director of community relations, declined comment on the pending litigation.

The lawsuit was prompted by the school board's decision to update its fee policy earlier this fall, clarifying that schools can only charge fees that appear on the superintendent's approved list and giving principals the authority to waive fees "for any student whose family demonstrates financial need that would qualify the student under the income guidelines for free and reduced price lunch." The policy clarification went on to say, "all student fees collected for specific courses shall be accounted for in student activity funds."

"The policy revision formalized an existing approach. High school principals followed this practice already," explained Tim Bullis, the school system's assistant director of community relations.

The clarification didn't sit well with one school board member. Bermuda District representative Marshall Trammell, Jr. cast a rare "no" vote against the policy amendment.

"The real world says that whenever we make choices to participate in something, we don't get to expect someone to pick up the tab for us completely. For those activities that I consider non-academic, I don't see where it's the school system's responsibility to say we're going to help defray the cost," said Trammell

Prior to voting against the policy change, Trammell suggested capping student fees and coming up with solutions to work with low-income families who are unable to afford certain fees. His fellow board members voted without really addressing those suggestions.

"I don't think we should be in the business of saying, 'If you can't pay [the full amount], then you don't pay anything.' That's not what we should be teaching our children," said Trammell. "You have to recognize that there is no 100 percent free ride, and the taxpayers should not be expected to pick up the tab."

He was also concerned about how principals would come up with the money to cover the waived fees.

"I am bothered that principals have to find a way to suck it up in their budgets," said Trammell.

"Schools typically have used student activity funds to cover such costs," explained Bullis.

Almore says problems with student fees go back to when Dr. Bill Bosher was superintendent in the late 1990s, adding that he only filed the lawsuit "after years of talking with Dr. Bosher and other senior administrators and receiving promises that 'we're going to do this and change this,' and none of those things were ever put in place. They made those promises, and they never followed through on their promises. After 10 years of stumbling through this, some of these fees have gotten to the point where they are prohibitive."

"The school board this past September passed a new fee policy, and it's kind of ironic that this fee policy was passed as people were still mourning [Civil Rights attorney] Oliver Hill," said Almore. "Oliver Hill optimized equal opportunities for students. This policy is an affront to his legacy."