Connections to drop lawsuit

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The Connections Local School Board said it believed that the removal of the three members — Ruth Tschumy, Pualani Akaka and Takamura — would “greatly enhance the Charter School Review Panel’s ability to work with Hawaii’s charter schools in a manner that is consistent with the ideological foundations of Hawaii’s charter school movement,” according to the release.

Connections Public Charter School announced last week that it plans to withraw its lawsuit against the state’s Charter School Review Panel. The announcement was in response to the recent resignation of three members of the charter schools oversight panel.

According to a Friday press release, the Hilo charter school and one of its employees had filed a lawsuit accusing the review panel and its chairman, Carl Takamura, of intentionally violating the Sunshine Law and threatening to take away the school’s charter.

The Connections Local School Board said it believed that the removal of the three members — Ruth Tschumy, Pualani Akaka and Takamura — would “greatly enhance the Charter School Review Panel’s ability to work with Hawaii’s charter schools in a manner that is consistent with the ideological foundations of Hawaii’s charter school movement,” according to the release.