What kind of relationship should public and parochial schools strive to foster with each other?

What kind of relationship should public and parochial schools strive to foster with each other? On March 17, the Baltimore Sun reported that officials at the Baltimore International Academy – a local charter school – were informed by the archdiocese of Baltimore that they could not purchase the vacant St. Anthony’s of Padua school. The charter school required more space after outgrowing its current facility on the campus of the Maryland School for the Blind. Last year, Archbishop Edwin F. O’Brien closed thirteen schools in the hopes of placing the archdiocese’s remaining schools in a strong financial position. According to archdiocese spokesman Sean Caine, the archdiocese would not sell or lease the property to a charter school because it could weaken other local Catholic schools by attracting families who otherwise would send their children to a parochial school. (Baltimore Sun, http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2011-03-21/news/bs-ed-catholic-charters-20110321_1_catholic-schools-charter-schools-baltimore-international-academy) This issue begs the question: what sort of a relationship should public and parochial schools strive to foster with each other? Other than the fact that religion informs the curriculum in parochial schools, both public and parochial schools share several of the same goals and, in many cases, serve the same demographic. It seems as though it would be very advantageous for public school leaders to reach out to their parochial school colleagues in an effort to establish some sort of a relationship and potentially share best practices. Education is a business. But every business is comprised of individuals. If these individuals would view each other as colleagues rather than “the competition” then the students in Baltimore, regardless of what school they attend, will reap the benefits.