#ANOTHERDAYANOTHERCHARTERSCHOOLSCANDAL
Records show JJ Legacy’s financial struggles leading up to closure
The last day of school is supposed to be in June and not in January. “We lost a very special community,” Kristel Porter, whose son attended JJ Legacy Montessori School, lamented to WCCO. “This was a family. A very unique family. Students and teachers said goodbye on Friday as the school must shut down due to mounting debt, which administrators report is roughly $710,000.
Charter Schools Will Desert And Violate Thousands In 2024
Privately-operated charter schools have been around for 32 years. They fail and close every week, abandoning and harming hundreds of parents, students, teachers, education support staff, and principals. Neoliberals cynically call this “free market accountability.”
Minneapolis’ JJ Legacy School closing abruptly; school directors blame ‘accounting issues’
Dozens of students and their families at the JJ Legacy School in north Minneapolis are looking for a new school after the school board voted to close.
School directors said JJ Legacy owes money to the state, because of what the school blamed on an accounting error, and it can’t stay open.
A Colorado charter school network fired its management group. Now, it could face a lawsuit.
That meant that 313 employees across the four campuses — which educate more than 1,950 students in grades K-12 along with nearly 230 additional students in a home school enrichment program — were out of a job at the end of December.
Charlotte charter school spent money on helicopter tour, clothes and first-class travel, records show
Luxury travel included a $690 helicopter sightseeing flight in 2019; more than $6,000 for first-class airfare for Haskell and occasionally other senior staff, and at least $2,500 in private executive car services to get from the airport to conferences. Records show Corvian paid for a group of school administrators to spend $1,200 last year for a private van on a tour of Pikes Peak in Colorado. Like the helicopter sightseeing trip, that tour happened while the group was in town on a taxpayer-funded trip to attend a conference.
Report: Mississippi charter school renewal process ‘lacks transparency’
As for the transparency of the renewal process, the report said it “lacks clarity, objectivity and transparency by failing to set weights for each performance domain (academic, financial, and organizational) and failing to set clear standards for the length of the renewal term.”
Undisclosed financial crisis shutters JJ Legacy School. Parents will have just one week to find new schools for kids.
In an emergency school-board meeting, JJ Legacy’s authorizer said “there is no more money” and the elementary school would need to close January 12. Parents and teachers shared their grief and gratitude, but also questioned why dire financial problems had gone unnoticed.
Colorado charter schools need more transparency and accountability
Colorado charter schools have expanded significantly in the past decade, with 16% of students now attending charter schools, yet current state laws governing their operations are woefully inadequate to ensure full transparency and accountability for the public funding of charter schools. Charter schools utilize taxpayer dollars and, at the same time, charter schools allow private interests to invest in their growth and development.
Inside the unraveling of one of Philadelphia’s most successful charter schools
The board voted to approve the closure of the North Broad Street charter, which has been in operation since 1999. It did so in a way that may have violated the Sunshine Act, according to the Inquirer — because the vote happened in a private session after attendees had already been escorted out.“It was sad to see. So many people were hurt and left with no answers,” said Nia Primus, a longtime teacher who joined MCS this year. “It was not surprising, though,” she added.
Rochester charter schools serving Somali children declare bankruptcy, leaving future in doubt
A Rochester charter school organization filed for bankruptcy earlier this month after years of legal tussles over its debt, prompting concerns for its future.
The Rochester STEM Academy and Rochester Math and Science Academy, which serve kindergarten through 12th grades in one building, filed for Chapter 11 reorganization on Dec. 6. The move was in response to pressure from Kansas City-based UMB Bank, which holds more than $15 million in debt the school borrowed in 2018.
A TALE OF TWO CHARTER POLICIES
Kentucky, however, has zero charter schools and a judge there recently found that charter schools do not meet the definition of “public schools” for the purpose of state education funding.
The states have taken different approaches – and the results suggest that Tennessee just might be on the wrong track.
Thea Bowman’s charter revoked; looks to CCSJ for sponsorship
Thea Bowman’s authorizer, One Education at Trine University in Angola, cited staff turnover, poor academic performance and declining enrollment for not renewing the school’s charter last Wednesday.
Erie School District sues Erie Rise to spur ex-charter school’s dissolution, find assets
After Erie School Board voted to terminate its charter, Erie Rise closed on June 30, but has yet to wind up finances, which involve public funds. Most assets are to revert to Erie School District.
Kinston charter school facing fraud accusations
One of the issues raised in the report includes a loan of $188,000 to the school by Carr. Carr, the report estimates, will have received $155,505 in interest from the loan once it’s paid off.
Charter authorizer rejects bid from Indianapolis school with rocky academic, attendance history
The Genius School in Indianapolis has lost its bid for a charter from a second authorizer, after the Education One board at Trine University rejected its application Wednesday, citing concerns with inflated enrollment targets and financial projections.