ROCHESTER, N.H. (AP) – The state Board of Education has approved a new charter school that will focus on the horse-riding industry.

The proposal for the Equestrian Academy, which is scheduled to open in a year, has renewed the debate over charter schools and state funding.

State board Chairman David Ruedig said he still has concerns about how Equestrian Academy officials will raise enough money to open next year. He was the only board member to oppose accepting the academy’s charter.

“I didn’t think their financial forecast was detailed enough,” Ruedig said. “But it’s a great idea, and I wish them well.”

Susan Hollins, director of New Hampshire for School Reform, a pro-charter school group, said she is confident the school will raise the necessary funds from the wealthy equestrian industry. A similar charter school in Florida raised more than $100,000 annually with little trouble, she said.

“It’s a huge industry, so there shouldn’t be any problem in finding the resources to keep the school going,” she said.

Funding proved problematic for Franklin Career Academy, which was forced to close its doors, at least temporarily, after one year of operation because the Franklin School district withheld state funding. The state Department of Education is holding $75,000 owed to the academy in escrow until the academy reopens or decides to dissolve.

State board member William Boc called the Franklin Career Academy’s situation a primary example of the problems with charter schools, especially those that lack community support. He said the academy would have closed eventually even if it had gotten the state money from the school district, because it lacked other funding sources.

“They told us they would have a viable budget, and they didn’t have one,” he said. “That is why the Franklin School District withheld the money.”

Boc opposes charter schools, calling them “private schools using public funds for a small number of selected students.”

“They serve too few students for too much money,” he said.

But Bill Grimm, head of the board of trustees for Franklin Career Academy, said it could have stayed open if the state Education Commissioner had required the Franklin School District to pay up sooner.

“With the money going to the local districts, there was no reliable way for charter schools to receive state aid,” he said. “We’re happy that the commissioner made the decision he did, because it sends a clear message to local districts.”

Grimm said it’s too soon to determine whether the academy can reopen next year.

He and Hollins also believe the state should provide more money to charter schools. The average cost of educating a pupil in New Hampshire is about $10,000. Local communities get varying amounts of state aid, depending on each town’s property wealth, but charter schools get a fixed per-pupil payment of $3,500.

“No state with charter schools other than New Hampshire gives less than 65 percent of what other public students get,” Hollins added.

There are eight approved charter schools in the state. The board recently declined to approve another proposed charter school for the Concord area that would have focused on children with poor reading skills, saying the proposal was too vague.

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Information from: Citizen, http://www.fosters.com/citizen

AP-ES-09-25-05 1352EDT