CHATSWORTH, Ga. — Some students don’t care about football or band, says Danny Dunn, site administrator for the Mountain Education Charter High School in Murray County.

“They don’t care about cheerleading or clubs. They don’t care about the arts. They don’t want to socialize. They don’t care about any extracurriculars or anything like that. They just want to earn their credits and get their diploma,” he said.

Some of those students have found a home at Mountain Education, a charter high school that operates on the campus of Murray County Schools’ North Murray High School. Charter schools are public schools that are given freedom from many state and local rules and regulations in return for meeting certain measures of achievement.

“We are a nontraditional public high school,” Dunn said. “This is its (Mountain Education Charter High School’s) first year of operation here in Murray County. But it has been in operation (in Georgia) since the 1990s in other counties. We are actually the 16th site.”

Dunn said Mountain Education has about 3,000 students at all sites combined and about 100 at the North Murray campus. 

School meets from 4:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday year round with a dinner break from 6:30 to 7.

“During the school year, we take the same holidays Murray County Schools takes — winter break, spring break,” Dunn said. “But we go straight through summer.”

“We have some kids who work and don’t get here until after 7. We have some kids who come for the first half, eat supper and leave,” Dunn said.

What classes are offered at Mountain Education?

“We offer all the English, all the science, all the math, all the social studies, all the special education,” Dunn said. “We offer English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL). We offer PE as an independent study under a PE teacher who comes in for students who need a PE credit. But we don’t offer career and technical education except for business.”

Classes are conducted by computer, which students say is a big advantage over traditional classrooms.

“I find it easier to focus here,” said Christian Elrod, a 12th-grader. “I can work faster. I’m only two classes away from graduating.”

But each classroom also has a certified teacher.

“The students work at their own pace, but they are very good at advocating for themselves if they do need help,” said history teacher Ashley Summers.

Who attends Mountain Education?

“Many of our students work. Many of our students have dropped out of school previously. We take students up to (age) 21. We will even take students over 21 if they are just a few credits away from graduating,” Dunn said. 

But not all of the students have dropped out of school. Some are just attracted by the opportunity to learn at their own pace. Dunn said those who are truly motivated can push through their coursework in less than four years.

“Roughly, 15 or 20 of our students are under 16. Because of compulsory attendance laws, if they are under 16, a parent has to come with them (each night) and sign them in, and they (the students) have to stay until the end of the night, and the parent has to sign them out at the end of the night. If they are 16 or older, they can come and go as they please. There’s no minimum amount of time they have to be here. Of course, if they aren’t here, they aren’t going to accomplish anything.”

ESOL teacher Brooke Young said Mountain Education students tend to be highly motivated.

“They can progress at their own pace, and when they see that they can move ahead quickly it does motivate them,” she said.

Student Adriana Clark says that’s part of the appeal of Mountain Education. 

“You can get things done faster,” she said.

The school has a graduation coach and a counselor on the campus every night. And each student is assigned a mentor who tracks his or her attendance and progress

“We aren’t confined just to Murray County students. We have two students from Whitfield County,” Dunn said. “We have room for more students from Dalton and Whitfield County.”

Tim Mount has been involved with Mountain Education for nine years. He was site administrator in Gilmer County for seven years. He helped open the Bartow County site last year, and he came to Murray County this year to help open the site there.

“I tell parents and students that schools are like a community or a church. Some people like big cities. Some people like small towns. Some people like a big church. Some people like a small church,” he said. “Mountain Education is for students who, for whatever reason, did not thrive in a traditional classroom.”