#ANOTHERDAYANOTHERCHARTERSCHOOLSCANDAL
Vanguard Collegiate charter school set to close in Oct. after citing low enrollment
Students and families who attend Vanguard Collegiate are now encouraged to look for other school options through Enroll Indy and a school enrollment fair will be held at Vanguard Collegiate on Sept. 29 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
North Valley Military Institute shuts down amid widespread controversy
The North Valley Military Institute — a grades six-12 charter school founded in 2013 — voluntarily surrendered its charter and closed its doors permanently on Aug. 25, leaving nearly 800 students and 180 employees in the Los Angeles area without a place to learn and work.
Religious charter schools are the latest front in the battle over ‘school choice’
Opponents, on the other hand, say religious charters would undermine one of America’s founding principles: that government funds should not endorse any one faith over another. They also worry that religious charters will discriminate against people of other faiths and LGBTQ students in ways that would be patently illegal for public schools.
Vanguard Collegiate of Indianapolis to close next month amid declining enrollment
Vanguard Collegiate of Indianapolis will close roughly two months into the school year, citing declining enrollment. It’s the second charter school in less than a year that has announced a closure during the school year, a practice that charter school accountability experts say causes disruptions for families who then scramble to find new schools. Since the state created the charter school law in 2001, 29 brick-and-mortar and blended learning charter schools in Marion County have closed, or roughly 30% of the 94 that have opened, according to a Chalkbeat analysis.
Utah charter school agrees to remedy restraint, seclusion concerns
An OCR investigation found significant underreporting of restraint and seclusion at Spectrum Academy, a charter program serving students with autism.
Cirrus Academy Charter School placed on probation, could lose charter next year, says state board
They also alleged the school’s website had transparency problems because board meeting minutes were not easily accessible. The commission also alleged the Cirrus Academy board didn’t follow state law when adopting the school’s FY24 budget.
Michigan: 36 Charter Schools Failing
About eight months ago, the Michigan Department of Education revealed that at least 36 charter schools are failing in the state of Michigan. Many other charter schools are considered close to “low-performing.” This is not a small number of charter schools. It is not unreasonable to assume that several dozen more charter schools are in troubled waters.
Charter Schools Can’t Claim to Be Public Anymore
A recently-passed bill in North Carolina allows the charter industry to screen students and charge tuition, just like a private school.
San Antonio charter school issues menstrual passes for bathroom breaks
“To protect our ladies from being limited by these bathroom procedures, we created a system for our students experiencing their menstruation cycle to access the bathroom, nurse, and supplies sufficiently,” the email from Headmaster Trinette Keffer reads. “We only ask that our students use it responsibly.”
The Charter-School Movement’s New Divide
In early June, a state board in Oklahoma did something that seemed obviously unconstitutional: It approved a new, openly Catholic charter school. Students at the proposed St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School would receive religious instruction, and the online school would participate in “the evangelizing mission of the Church,” according to St. Isidore’s application to the state. By law in Oklahoma, and in every state where charter schools are allowed, charters are public schools—they receive government funding and some state oversight, and they cannot discriminate against students and staff. St. Isidore would apparently be public, too, raising questions about whether it violates the First Amendment’s separation of church and state.
Florence 1, former charter school back in court over money
Florence 1 school attorney Mike Montgomery argued the school has between $800,000 to $1.2 million that doesn’t belong to them, but to the taxpayers of Florence because their charter has been revoked.
Chartered territory: Failings of a two-tiered education system
The point is that private enterprise is doing in education what private enterprise always does: Companies seek out the low-cost, high-reward customers. Haas Hall and others like it are going to make a lot of money with their state-enabled, exclusive institution.
Read Spectrum Academy documents: What investigators found at Utah charter for kids with autism
What investigators found at Utah charter for kids w/ autism – one student was restrained 99 times in one school year. Another was restrained or secluded at least 40 times over two years.
Utah charter school responds to accusations of improper restraint
A report from the U.S. Department of Education Office of Civil Rights found that Spectrum Academy, a Utah charter school for autistic children, may have over-restrained and secluded students.
Monument Academy in Colorado Discriminates and Harrasses Transgender Students
This Tik Tok video shows legal counsel for Monument Academy in Colorado. MA will support parents who want to take legal action against parents of transgender students.