#ANOTHERDAYANOTHERCHARTERSCHOOLSCANDAL
BRIEFS: Changes expected for state public charter school law
Two Lowcountry lawmakers are among those who weren’t surprised by a new state audit that said one of the state’s public charter school authorizers needed fixing.
NC art teacher shared child porn with undercover agent, feds say. He’s going to prison
A one-time art teacher in North Carolina was sentenced to prison Thursday on child porn charges.
Springfield’s Sabis Charter School Board votes to sever ties with management company
Sabis International Charter School’s Board of Trustees essentially voted to end its 25+ year relationship with its eponymous management company after a meeting often turned hostile and included educators voicing multiple concerns about the company.
Hillsborough County School Board Stands Firm On Charter School Decision
The Hillsborough County School Board on Tuesday stood by its decision to not renew the contracts of four of the district’s charter schools.
There’s A ‘Mass Exodus’ Of Teachers At STEM School In Highlands Ranch. Parents, Staff And Students Say School Leadership Is To Blame
On June 15, a jury found one of the former students accused of a shooting at the school guilty on 46 counts, including murder. Murphy said sitting through the trial and verdict “crushed” her — but that feeling was only compounded in a Zoom meeting that same night where she and others described feeling powerless that no one on the STEM board, the school’s governing body, is listening to them about their deep concerns about the school.
School district could shutter Singleton Charter over $1 million owed by Dryades YMCA
The New Orleans Public School district is considering closing James Singleton Charter School because of lingering questions about how the Dryades YMCA, the organization that runs the Central City school, has used more than $1.1 million in school funds.
The 116-year-old YMCA, one of only four historically Black YMCAs left in the U.S., has run the James Singleton Charter School since 2006. It was founded by former City Councilman Jim Singleton, who is no longer involved with its governance
Staff, supporters picket at Paulo Freire Social Justice Charter School in Chicopee after two-thirds of teachers lose jobs
More than 50 people protested at Paulo Freire Social Justice Charter School on Wednesday, accusing administrators of “union busting” after the contracts of two-thirds of the educators were not renewed at the end of the year.
Teachers, parents, students, alumni and even educators from other schools joined the afternoon picket in front of theschool. They carried signs that read “Unions=Social Justice” and “Contract Now,” and chanted “Hey Gil, you’re no good, treat your workers like you should,” a reference to the school’s executive director, Gil Traverso.
O.C. Ed Board balks at punishing Costa Mesa charter school for possible violations
A Costa Mesa charter school has until July 7 to demonstrate how it will correct several operational indiscretions being investigated by county education officials as potential violations, even as the Orange County Board of Education hesitates to take punitive action.
OCDE officials allege the school reported to the California Department of Education an enrollment of 150 students for the 2020-21 school year, when a budget submitted to the county for the same fiscal year projected growth of 100 students. The state consequently overpaid the school, based on the inaccurate attendance figures.
Charter schools to create $3 million ‘fail’ fund
When the news broke in December 2019 that the American International School of Utah was under investigation for misappropriating nearly half a million dollars in state and federal education funds, it left a black eye on charter schools that hasn’t entirely healed.
Recently, advocates for charter schools came up with a kind of fix: a “Charter School Closure Reserve Account,” like an emergency rainy-day fund that would ensure that if a charter school closes with outstanding debts, they could be resolved right away.
How much reserve would be enough? They decided on a figure: $3 million.
Leadership at Lycée Français resign amid labor law, administrative pay investigations
Two top administrators and a governing board member have resigned from Lycée Français de la Nouvelle Orléans, a popular French immersion charter school, following accusations that the school leaders had violated labor laws and fostered hostile environments for other employees.
Marina Schoen, the longtime CEO of Lycée Français, gave her notice in letters to staff and the school’s nonprofit board of directors on Friday, hours after she said Jethro Celestin, the school’s chief operating officer, will be leaving to “explore other professional opportunities.”
San Diego charter school shutters doors
The school will close at the end of the month and has been working with current students’ families to help them find new schools for the fall. Most of the school’s students, who are in grades 6-12, are socioeconomically disadvantaged and are Black or Latino, according to state data.
Annette Kennedy, the school’s interim director, attributed the school’s closure to low enrollment.
“It’s just not been in the best interest of the school to continue,” Kennedy said in an interview. “It’s truly bittersweet. No one wants a school to close but, in reality, a school has to have enrollment to maintain sustainability.”
Ridge View shut down after allegations of drugs, improper restraints of kids
State officials suddenly closed a detention center for troubled children and teens on Thursday, arrived on campus after a high school graduation ceremony, and moved the children to other foster care centers.
The Ridgeview Youth Service Center, where children attend charter schools on campus and receive intensive treatment for behavioral health, has been ordered by the State Human Services Department to close by July 1.
The center was allowed to accommodate up to 500 people, but was caring for less than 50 boys.
State says former Dayton charter school leaders misspent $31,896
Administrators of the former Watkins Academy charter school in southwest Dayton have been accused by state auditors of misspending $31,896.
Auditor of State Keith Faber this week released the 2016, 2017 and partial 2018 financial-year audits for the school, which opened in 2012 and closed its 4401 Dayton-Liberty Road campus in September 2017.
The state issued findings for recovery of more than $30,000 against the school’s former superintendent, Bobbie Watkins-Tyree, for purchases “that were not supported by an itemized receipt and/or were not for a proper public purpose.”
Singleton Charter in New Orleans ordered to find new CEO; school accused of violating ethics law
James M. Singleton Charter School, the Central City school run by the Dryades YMCA, must find a new interim CEO by Friday because the current appointment runs afoul of state ethics laws, according to NOLA Public Schools.
The directive, sent in a noncompliance letter dated Monday, is the latest of a series of citations NOLA Public Schools has issued against the charter in recent months, including one investigation that led to the arrest of a high-level administrator accused of falsifying background checks for school employees and pocketing the money instead.
Utah oversight of charter schools ‘unclear,’ has gaps in accountability, audit finds
Out of 45 states with charter school programs, Utah is the only state that doesn’t require schools to renew their contracts after a certain period of time — meaning there’s a missed opportunity to ensure standards are being met, Ryan Thelin, lead auditor of the review ordered by the Legislature, told legislative leaders Tuesday during an interim committee meeting.