NEWS RELEASE

Contact: Jack Calhoun at 603.283.2108

October 17, 2007 for Immediate Release

Creating Viable Charter Schools in New Hampshire

Panelists to discuss NH's charter school dilemmas and opportunities

Keene, NH - Antioch University New England (AUNE) will host a panel of veteran New Hampshire charter school experts on October 25 at 7pm. New Hampshire legislator John B. Hunt and New Hampshire Department of Education's Roberta Tenney will join AUNE faculty member Dr. Tom Julius and Surry Charter School principal Matora Fiorey to discuss the promising, but challenging task of creating viable charter schools in the granite state.

The four panelists will review New Hampshire's charter school legislation and the topsy-turvy history of the state's charter-school movement, which includes under funded budgets and an uncertain regulatory climate. A question and answer period will follow the panel discussion.

Panelist Biographies
John B. Hunt is a member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives and is the co-sponsor of the initial charter school efforts in the State of New Hampshire.
Roberta Tenney is the administrator for the Charter Schools and School Choice Programs within the New Hampshire Department of Education. She guides the department's efforts to support charter school and school choice initiatives throughout the state.
Dr. Tom Julius, the program's moderator, is the director of AUNE's Experienced Educators Program and is a founding board member of the Surry Village Charter School in Surry, New Hampshire. Julius has been a national presenter of whole language, hands-on math, and integrated curriculum workshops.
Matora Fiorey is the principal of the Surry Village Charter School. The school creates a supportive, personalized, small learning environment and features multi-age and multi-grade teaching. It provides a high quality elementary school option for Surry children, as well as students from other communities within the Monadnock Region.

This program is part of the AUNE Fall Speakers Series. The program will begin at 7:00 p.m. on October 25 and will be held in the AUNE campus community room at 40 Avon Street in Keene. This program is free and open to the public, although seating is limited. For more information, please contact Jack Calhoun at 603-283-2108.

Antioch University New England, based in Keene, New Hampshire, offers rigorous, practice-oriented, values-based Master's Doctoral and certificate programs to more than one thousand students. Programs in education, leadership and management, environmental studies, and psychology reflect a dedication to activism, social justice, community service, and sustainability.

Last Updated: 3/4/10