#ANOTHERDAYANOTHERCHARTERSCHOOLSCANDAL
Elaine Trombetta, sister of charter school founder who stole $8M in school funds, gets probation
The Beaver County woman who helped her brother hide some of the $8 million he stole from PA Cyber Charter School in a far-reaching tax fraud and evasion conspiracy has been sentenced to two years of probation, federal prosecutors in Pittsburgh said Monday.
San Jose charter school delays opening over location dispute
A new charter school that dozens of families in downtown San Jose hoped would open this fall will not welcome students in 2018 after all, leaving parents scrambling for alternatives as summer winds down.
Charter school gets contract renewed after state investigation over alleged grade tampering
After months of uncertainty over accusations of grade tampering at Langston Hughes Academy, their contract is renewed just a month before classes begin.
New Mexico Connections Academy gets a bit more time
A Santa Fe-based online charter school that received orders from the state to close this summer will get to operate for at least one more semester under a state District Court judge’s recent ruling.
She says her granddaughter’s acceptance to Philly charter was rescinded because of her special-education status
Hours after James handed over the young woman’s Individualized Education Program — the document that spells out the support and services that special-education students must by law receive — the school rescinded the girl’s admission.
As fiscal problems mount, Celerity charter network closes a school
For months after federal agents raided the offices of a Los Angeles charter school network, seizing documents and electronic records, the Celerity Educational Group tried to overhaul its image.
Odyssey Charter School parents, teachers want answers to board’s secret leadership decisions
Odyssey Charter School parents and teachers have been packing board meetings this summer to question the hiring of a new co-administrator, the convening of committee meetings with little public notice and the resignation of a board president rumored to be in line for a full-time job.
Orrick settles negligence claim on defunct charter school’s bonds
Tri-Valley Learning Corp., the charter school operator, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy to reorganize its debts in November 2016 and converted that bankruptcy to Chapter 7 liquidation eight months later.
Orleans Parish school district confirms Harney charter school held on to employees’ retirement contributions
The Orleans Parish School Board confirmed Tuesday that a charter school improperly withheld employees’ retirement contributions, which The Lens has reported could have reduced their investment gains and may violate federal guidelines.
I feel good about choosing a charter school. Except for one thing
My son attended a charter school for eight years. And every year, there was a mandatory meeting for parents at which administrators asked parents to donate $1,800 per student to help pay for the school’s renowned arts program.
Glendale charter school refusing to pay teachers bonus money earned last year
Heritage Elementary, a Glendale charter school that uses “family values curriculum,” is refusing to pay at least 20 teachers — all women — for merit pay they earned in the past academic year, the educators claim.
Mississippi charter school needs to release emails to public
The case stems from allegations that a teacher at a charter school grabbed a student with a disability and dragged him down the hall and then slung him against a wall.
Charter schools’ ‘grand bargain’ As accountability rises, so do closures
Just last month, a virtual charter school serving more than 1,800 kids shut its doors. And last year, four charter schools closed around the state, sending hundreds of students scattering to find a new place to learn.
Charter school CEOs get massive paychecks thanks to private donors
Private donors are boosting the pay of the city’s charter-school chieftains. Eva Moskowitz, CEO of the 46-school Success Academy network, received a pay package totaling $782,175 in 2016.
White Hat charter schools shrink again, turn e-school over to K12 Inc. founder
The once-mighty White Hat charter school empire continues being dismantled, with its longtime e-school – the Ohio Distance Learning Academy (OhDELA) – being turned over to the fast-growing Accel charter school network.