ANTIOCH -- Dozier-Libbey Medical High School's future remains uncertain, but Antioch Unified's stance on keeping it in the district is clear.

Trustees voted unanimously this week to deny a petition to allow the medical-themed magnet school to become an independent charter, while establishing it as a dependent charter remaining under the auspices of the district.

"As a board member, I have to look at what's best for the entire district," said trustee Claire Smith, the lone current board member in office when the school was designed in the early 2000s and opened in 2008.

"I believe the current vision as it is presented to us tonight of Dozier-Libbey has gone off track from the board's original direction and vision," Smith said.

The 23 Dozier-Libbey teachers who petitioned for the change say they plan to appeal the board's decision with the county office of education. They also question the legality of the district's petition and its stance on the use of the facility if the school becomes an independent charter.

"The board's decision didn't come as a huge surprise," said Jefferson Weber, a Dozier-Libbey teacher. "What was interesting was that it seemed like they already had a decision predetermined. I had thought there would have been a little bit more discussion."

Still, the petitions could face "a year or so or more" of litigation to get resolved, Scott Fallbrook, the district's legal counsel, said Wednesday.

The specter of Dozier-Libbey becoming a charter has divided the community.

The tension bubbled over at times Wednesday night, as emotions ran high during more than four hours of public testimony from the standing-room-only crowd in excess of 400 at John Muir Elementary. Dozier-Libbey students and teachers wearing black shirts that said "Dozier-Libbey Medical Charter" sat on one side, with petition opponents -- many employees from other district schools -- on the other, some carrying signs lampooning the school's former "no D" policy and saying the district helped make the school what it is.

Teachers want to reinstate the "no D" policy while the district has said students should get the grades they earn. Some students prefer an F over a D, because it makes it easier to retake the class for a better grade.

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Antioch trustees reject autonomy for Dozier-Libbey Medical High