(Deming) – The state Public Education Commission rejected the applications for two new charter schools in Luna County.
Both applications were  denied unanimously by commission members, following the
recommendation of the  state Public Education Department’s staff members. 

Organizers have been trying for several years to get the  state to approve a charter school in Columbus which would serve 7th  through 12th grade students living in southern Luna County,
including  American citizen students living in Palomas, Mexico. 

Supporters said the school would have featured a  non-traditional school year, longer school day and partner organizations, and  would have allowed parents to be more involved in their children’s  education.

And organizers petitioned for another charter school in  Deming. The Academic Opportunities  Academy would have been a self-paced, individualized, multi-grade educational program serving grades 1-12 using a detailed curriculum mapping  database. 

Both groups said they would appeal the commission’s decision to State  Public Education Secretary-designate Hanna Skandera.