Young Scholars of Central Pennsylvania

YOUNG SCHOLARS CHARTER SCHOOL FACES SCRUTINY OVER TIES WITH ISLAMIC LEADER: FEDERAL AUTHORITIES EXAMINING POSSIBLE EMPLOYEE KICKBACKS, ACCORDING TO REPORT; March 22, 2011; Centre Daily News (State College, PA)

The Young Scholars of Central Pennsylvania Charter School in Ferguson Township is one of more than 100 charter schools across the country that are the part of a federal investigation, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported Sunday…

The investigation is not linked to terrorism, according to the article, reported by a staff writer at The Philadelphia Inquirer and by a New York-based correspondent of Il Sole 24 Ore, the leading daily financial newspaper in Italy…

Ruth Hocker, the former head of a Young Scholars parents group, said federal authorities interviewed her in early 2010. She said they identified her because she had filed several Right-to-Know requests with the school…

“Our greatest concern was the secrecy of the administration, the unwillingness to communicate with parents,” she said, “and then, most of all, the obvious preference they were giving to hiring Turkish teachers who were uncertified over American teachers who were more qualified.”

During the 2009-10 school year, the State College Area School District paid $1.3 million to Young Scholars for 128 students…

In July 2010, the State College Area school board members agreed to renew Young Scholars’ charter, but said the school had fallen short of its previous charter in four areas: teacher certification, experience of lead teachers, certification of administrators and compliance with the transparency requirements of the federal Sunshine Act…

 

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Chiron Charter School

FORMER CHARTER SCHOOL OFFICIAL FACES 7 FELONY CHARGES; September 6, 2006; Star Tribune (Minneapolis, MN) 

The former top administrator at a defunct downtown Minneapolis charter school has been charged with seven felony counts of misusing more than $300,000 in public money.

Kristin Laxton was accused of overreporting the number of students to bring the school extra money, using federal grants for purposes outside the law, and paying herself more salary and reimbursement than she was due.

The Hennepin County complaint filed late last week is one of the largest theft cases made against a Minnesota charter school. It accuses Laxton of three counts of theft, two counts of forgery and two counts of making false complaints to a public body. Much of the complaint is based on an investigation conducted by the state auditor's office, which sent its report to the county last fall under its responsibility to forward any matters involving misbehavior by public officials…

According to the complaint, the school was paid $238,170 more than it was due for the 2004-05 school year. The complaint alleges that Laxton inflated student counts both by reporting students whom auditors couldn't find on attendance logs and by reporting that students attended for longer than they did…

The redacted version of the auditor's report, made public late last month, suggests potential culpability by others for amounts they were paid for paychecks or other reimbursement to which they were not entitled. Peter Cahill, deputy county attorney, said the investigation into Chiron is continuing. The state's worst charter school scam involved Right Step Academy. A federal judge recently sentenced founders William and Shirley Pierce to prison time and more than $489,000 in restitution of state aid for their role in the fraud.

The report issued by the Minnesota State Auditor is @ http://www.osa.state.mn.us/reports/spi/2006/chiron_06_report.pdf

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Urban Pioneer Experiential Academy

SCHOOL BOARD REVOKES S.F. SCHOOL'S CHARTER / URBAN PIONEER'S FINANCES IN DISARRAY, OFFICIAL SAYS; August 27, 2003; San Francisco Chronicle (CA) 

The San Francisco school board revoked the charter of Urban Pioneer Experiential Academy on Tuesday night, shutting down the alternative high school that ran a wilderness program in which two students died.

The 4-3 vote came one week before Urban Pioneer students were due to start class…

Superintendent Arlene Ackerman had asked the board to revoke the charter because of financial problems identified by a consultant she brought in to review the books.

"The fiscal and programmatic irregularities . . . are of such a magnitude that they bring into question the school's ability to manage its financial, business and academic affairs and its very solvency," Ackerman wrote in a letter to the board Friday.

Her concerns stemmed from a report prepared by the Fiscal Crisis and Management Assistance Team, which showed the school's checkbooks were unbalanced, some employees were not paid for the month of June, and the school lost about $250,000 through June 30.

The report also showed the school's budget didn't have a beginning balance, allotted less than $2 per student per month and showed no money for janitors, testing or staff development…

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Rochester Leadership Academy Charter School

PARENTS ANGRY OVER SECRET CHARTER SCHOOL SETTLEMENT; March 22, 2010; 13WHAM.com (Rochester, N.Y.) 

A lawsuit between a charter school forced to shut down by the state and the company that managed the school has been settled, but few people know what happened to the settlement money.

The Rochester Leadership Academy Charter School was one of the first in the region when it opened in 2000…

By 2005, student performance had not met targets, and the state closed the school.

“We were very upset and disappointed. There was a lot of crying. There was a lot of kids, parents in disarray again,” said George Moses, who sent his daughter to RLA…

Last fall, the RLA board of directors filed a lawsuit against National Heritage Academies, the company that ran RLA. The suit claims NHA was responsible for the school’s failure and breached its contract with RLA.

The two sides settled the case earlier this month. 13WHAM News obtained the settlement, which has a confidentiality clause. The agreement says NHA would pay RLA $175,000. The RLA board would direct the funds to a non-profit of its choosing.

13WHAM News was unable to find out where the money is now and which non-profit would benefit. RLA board president John Walker did not return two calls for comment. RLA’s attorney also did not return a call. An NHA spokeswoman said the company could not comment because of the confidentiality agreement, but said the company has met its legal obligation…

Moses said he also asked Page what happened to the funds. Moses said Page told him the funds were supposed to be directed to NEAD. Page did not comment, citing the confidentiality agreement he signed as part of the settlement. Moses said NEAD may now take legal action to obtain the funds…

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Charter School of Science and Technology

STATE'S LARGEST CHARTER SCHOOL FACES A CRITICAL YEAR; August 23, 2002; NY Times 

The academic year is off to a rocky start at the Charter School for Science and Technology, the state's largest charter school. Earlier this month it announced that it was dropping its 9th- and 10th-grade programs for this year, forcing 122 students to scurry to find other schools. The beginning of classes has been delayed by nine school days, to Sept. 4, to give teachers and administrators more time. The science tables have not been installed for laboratory work. The job of principal remains unfilled.

The school and its management company, Edison Schools Inc., are trying to rebound from a year of disappointing test scores, classroom behavior problems and turnover of students and teachers. The school and Edison hope that by delaying the high school programs and sharpening curriculum, they can improve academic performance in kindergarten through eighth grade...

A strong showing in Rochester is increasingly important to Edison, whose stock price has plummeted in recent months after a series of setbacks. Last week, officials in Georgia voted to end Edison contracts for two elementary schools in Macon. The Dallas school superintendent has said he wants to cancel his district's contract with Edison. In Philadelphia, the company received a contract to run only 20 city schools rather than the 45 it had hoped for.

The Philadelphia experience has led Edison to redouble its efforts to run large charter schools like Rochester's, said John Chubb, Edison's chief education officer, who met with board members and teachers today to outline plans to improve achievement. ''We're more than happy to do large clusters in urban areas,'' he said, ''but the politics of that is very challenging.''

Signaling Rochester's importance, H. Christopher Whittle, Edison's founder and chief executive, visited last week. Performance is critical this year, its third, since Edison makes the review of its five-year charter depend chiefly on a school's performance in its third year.

''By your fourth year, you have to look like you've created a school that deserves to stay open,'' Mr. Chubb said. ''You want to create a model school, not just a school that can hold onto its charter.''…

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Brooks-Debartolo Collegiate School

LEADERS OF HIGH-PROFILE CHARTER SCHOOL MAKE A CASE TO STAY OPEN; May 27, 2010; St. Petersburg Times (FL) 

TAMPA — The principal of one of the county's most prominent charter schools touted her academy's accomplishments Wednesday, saying the Brooks-DeBartolo Collegiate School is not a sinking Titanic…

But it was low Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test scores that forced Swagger and one of the school's founders, former Tampa Bay Bucs linebacker Derrick Brooks, to meet Wednesday with board members…

State law requires districts to give a charter school 90-day notice of its intent to terminate a contract, said board attorney Tom Gonzalez. That's why Brooks-DeBartolo was given an opportunity to plead its case.

The school board is waiting on this year's FCAT scores to determine its next step. Those results are expected to be released next month.

"We'll be on pins and needles," Swagger said. "But we're confident the students will represent us and the district well."…

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P.S. 1 Charter School

P.S. 1 DIDN'T MAKE THE GRADE, BUT CAN ANYTHING REPLACE DENVER'S LONGEST-RUNNING CHARTER SCHOOL? January 14, 2010; Westword News (Denver, CO) 

…Founded in 1995, P.S. 1 serves 237 middle- or high-school students who have struggled elsewhere — academically, socially or both. One out of ten was pushed out of his or her old school, while one in seven dropped out. One out of every five kids at P.S. 1 has a history of repeated school suspensions, and one in three is involved with the courts. The academic challenges are just as daunting: 25 percent of students qualify for special education, and 75 percent are behind in reading and math.

"One hundred percent of our population comes because another school hasn't worked for them," says P.S. 1 principal Laura Laffoon.

But P.S. 1 hasn't worked, either, at least according to Denver Public Schools. In late November, the DPS board voted to shutter the school, where test scores have been dismal for years. The decision, which will take effect in the summer of 2011, was part of an effort to turn around low-performing schools; DPS is also closing other schools, including Skyland Community High School, another struggling charter serving at-risk kids. And it marks the first time DPS has rescinded a charter because of poor academic performance, a move experts say is important if the state wants a shot at winning millions of dollars in Obama-administration grants set aside for school reform…

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Ashe Culture Center (11 schools)

“Charter school sponsor clashes with Ohio Department of Education.” The Plain Dealer (OH), 7/31/2011

CLEVELAND -- The Arts Academies -- two troubled charter schools, in Cleveland and Lorain -- have shut down.

But tying up all the loose ends is proving far from easy as the schools' operator and their sponsor, the Cleveland-based Ashe Culture Center, continue to point fingers at each other and the Ohio Department of Education.

At the same time, Ashe and the Education Department are duking it out over whether Ashe deserves to continue as a sponsor, with the fight joined by lawyers all the way up to Ohio Attorney General Mike Dewine...

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STATE TRIES TO OUST CHARTER SCHOOL SPONSOR, ASHE CULTURE CENTER; March 6, 2010; The Plain Dealer (Cleveland, OH) 

For the first time, the state is moving to pull the plug on a charter school sponsor for not properly overseeing the spending of taxpayer money.

Ashe Culture Center, located on East 40th Street in Cleveland, plans to appeal the non-renewal at a hearing scheduled for March 23.

The nonprofit organization sponsors 11 Ohio charter schools, most of them in Cleveland. Charter schools receive state funds but operate independent of districts. For their monitoring role, sponsors get up to 3 percent of the state money that goes to each school…

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6 CHARTER SCHOOLS SPONSORED BY ASHE CULTURE CENTER DECLARED UNAUDITABLE; November 24, 2010 The Plain Dealer (Cleveland, OH) 

The financial records of six Cleveland-area charter schools are in such bad shape that the Ohio auditor's office says they cannot be properly checked.

All of the schools declared "unauditable" on Tuesday are overseen by the Cleveland-based Ashe Culture Center, which is facing revocation of its sponsorship authority by the Ohio Department of Education.

Four of the unauditable schools (Arts Academy West, Elite Academy of the Arts, Lion of Judah Academy and Marcus Garvey Academy) are in Cleveland, and one (The Arts Academy) is in Lorain.

The sixth school, Greater Heights Academy, had campuses in Cleveland Heights and Cleveland but shut down abruptly in November 2008 because of money problems. The auditor's office is trying to untangle financial dealings at Greater Heights as far back as 2006.

The five unauditable schools that are still open received more than $5.5 million from the state last year to educate over 700 students.

Sponsors get up to 3 percent of the state money for their role in monitoring academics and finances at the privately operated, publicly funded charter schools…

The pressure escalated in September when the Education Department charged that Ashe failed to act on evidence of improper test-taking at Marcus Garvey Academy.

A scoring company had found a high percentage of answers on state tests were erased and changed from wrong to right, but Ashe concluded there was no evidence of wrongdoing and considered the case closed. The Education Department did not agree and still has the scores under review…

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Choir Academy of Chicago Charter School

SONGS FADING AT CHOIR ACADEMY: $500,000 DEFICIT FORCING CHARTER SCHOOL TO CLOSE; November 20, 2008; Chicago Tribune (IL)

In the cramped main office of the Choir Academy of Chicago Charter School a photo shows off beaming choir students singing in the grassy infield of U.S. Cellular Field as fans crowd the stands behind them…

The snapshots will stand as highlights for the 7-year-old school, whose leaders Thursday told more than 30 parents and their children that a $500,000 budget deficit is forcing them to close the doors at the end of the school year…

The coed school, modeled after New York's Boys Choir of Harlem Academy, had been struggling for at least a year. Last May, it had to enlist school leaders, teachers, and parents to raise funds to pay for teacher health benefits and salaries.

The financial problems stem partly from a move made last year from a nearby Catholic school to its current location at 3630 S. Wells St., where it shares space with Abbott Elementary School. After the move, enrollment dropped from 200 students and now stands at 140 students, Muldrow said.

The enrollment drop meant the school lost some state funding…

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The Institute for Excellence Charter School

WINSLOW CHARTER SCHOOL FOUNDER INDICTED; Feb. 28, 2011; Courier-Post (NJ) 

The founder of Camden County's only suburban charter school has been accused of attempting to defraud the school in an indictment handed down Wednesday by the state grand jury following an investigation by the state Attorney General Office's Division of Criminal Justice...

In January 2010, the [the state Department of Education's Office of Fiscal Accountability and Compliance] released its findings, listing allegations of misuse of funds and governance practices. It concluded that most of the allegations were out of its jurisdiction and forwarded them to the Attorney General's Office, noting specifically that the fictitious invoice "may constitute a violation of the School Ethics Act and criminal statute."…

The OFAC's review also found that staff members observed [name omitted] and another board member going through student files, that board members regularly visited the school unannounced, that [name omitted] routinely borrowed money from staff members and that she used the school copy machine to run off fliers for a private tattoo party...

(redacted on 9/13/2012 per request )

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Crescendo charter schools (six schools)

“Charter school group's chief blamed for 2010 cheating scandal.” Los Angeles Times (CA), 8/17/2012

The meeting at Crescendo Preparatory South was progressing as usual when the acting principal dropped a bombshell: She had been given copies of the upcoming standardized tests. The teachers were to study them, take notes — and make sure the kids got it.

Some of the eight instructors were troubled by what seemed to be an order to cheat. One burst into tears.

So began one of the most brazen cheating scandals in the nation. Ultimately, all of Crescendo's schools in South Los Angeles, Gardena and Hawthorne were shut down, its teachers let go and 1,400 students forced to find new schools.

Only the rough outlines of the 2010 scandal were made public, but dozens of interviews with former Crescendo employees and officials — as well as a review of previously unreleased documents — portray an environment so poisoned by demands to excel on state proficiency tests that many submitted to a plan to boost the scores of schools that were already doing well.

Two separate investigations blamed Crescendo's founder and chief executive, John Allen, who was driven, as one official said, by a desire to be "better, better, better, best." Allen has declined all interview requests and maintained his innocence in court documents.

Former Crescendo principals are still grappling with how they were drawn into violating a fundamental tenet of their profession, and teachers are left questioning their own actions and an educational mission in which they believed so deeply...

 

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“L.A. Unified board votes to shut down charter schools accused of cheating.” LA Times (CA), 3/1/2011

The Los Angeles Board of Education voted to shut down six charters schools that were accused of widespread cheating on last year's standardized tests.

The executive director of the six schools, operated by the Crescendo organization in South Los Angeles, Gardena and Hawthorne, had ordered principals and teachers to prepare students for the exams using the actual test questions. Several teachers at the schools had blown the whistle on the alleged cheating.

District staff had previously recommended re-authorizing the charter schools for another five years, citing the schools' strong test results, including on last year's tests, which the state has thrown out. District staff also cited actions taken by Crescendo's leadership to address the cheating allegations. On Monday, that recommendation was revised by incoming Supt. John Deasy, who asked the board to authorize an investigation, after which he would decide whether to ask for a one-year renewal…

The revocation process may take several months, likely allowing the school to continue operating through the end of the year…

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L.A. UNIFIED SET TO RENEW CHARTER CONTRACT DESPITE EVIDENCE OF CHEATING: The director of Crescendo charters, which operates six campuses south of downtown L.A., directed principals and teachers to let students study the actual exam questions on important standardized tests; February 28, 2011; LA Times (CA) 

The performance of Crescendo charter schools was nothing short of remarkable — annual gains on state tests that were sometimes 10 times what other schools would consider strong progress.

Too good, perhaps, to be true.

Last year, administrators and teachers at the six schools south of downtown Los Angeles were caught cheating: using the actual test questions to prepare students for the state exams by which schools are measured.

Nonetheless, on Tuesday, the Los Angeles Board of Education is scheduled to act on a staff recommendation to reauthorize Crescendo's charter, giving the organization another five years to operate. Senior L.A. Unified officials said they are satisfied that Crescendo's governing board took appropriate steps after the cheating was uncovered.

"We did feel when we raised the issues … that the board did respond appropriately and took some swift action," said Jose Cole-Gutierrez, the district's director of charter schools.

In the end, no one was fired, not even John Allen, the founder and executive director who orchestrated the cheating, then denied it had taken place until confronted with overwhelming evidence, according to district documents and officials…

The case underscores a periodic dilemma: What kind of transgression is egregious enough to shut down a charter school? Last June, the co-founders of Ivy Academia in the west San Fernando Valley were indicted on charges of stealing $200,000. They have denied wrongdoing. In December, the founding principal of NEW Academy Canoga Park pleaded guilty to embezzling at least $1.3 million and was sentenced to five years in state prison. Both schools remain open because of their apparent academic success and popularity…

At Crescendo, according to L.A. Unified's account, Allen ordered principals to have teachers break the seal on the state tests and let students practice with the actual test questions…

Allen received a six-month unpaid suspension, then returned to work, demoted to director of facilities. His salary as executive director had been $161,333…

Two of the six Crescendo charter schools are up for a five-year renewal at Tuesday's meeting: Crescendo Charter Academy in Gardena and Crescendo Conservatory in Hawthorne.

The district's recommendation is based largely on high test scores before 2010. Some teachers told district staff that they'd also heard of cheating in 2009, but the district could not confirm those allegations…

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Columbus Academy of Literacy and Mathematics

LOCAL CHARTER SCHOOL WITH BUDGET TROUBLE CLOSES TODAY; February 18, 2011; The Columbus Dispatch 

A Columbus charter school that has been open only a few months will close its doors for good today. It simply can't afford to stay open any longer.

Nearly 90 students who attended the Columbus Academy of Literacy and Mathematics must find new schools to finish out the year.

The school, known as CALM, opened last fall in a wing of a North Side church. At its peak, the elementary school had 109 students - not enough to support its operation, said its sponsor. Most of the students live within Columbus City Schools boundaries.

The literacy and math academy was solid academically, said Todd Hanes, assistant superintendent at the Educational Service Center of Central Ohio, which authorized and oversaw the school.

"There's not that misdeed" that has forced an abrupt end to some other charter schools, Hanes said. "This was a sad situation."

Charter schools need about 120 students to afford a principal, intervention specialists or special-education workers, and teachers for each grade, Hanes said…

"It was so devastating for families and teachers and myself," said Principal Heather Regis. "We hate how this has affected the families."

The school was founded by two women who once were affiliated with Chase Academy for the Communication Arts, a Columbus charter that closed suddenly last February and suffered enrollment and financial woes. Celia Jones, who was fired shortly before Chase closed, is listed in state business filings as an incorporator of the CALM school…

Hanes said he knows a midyear closing is difficult, but it was the responsible thing to do. The other options were to let the school accumulate debt or make deep cuts.

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Promise Charter School

“San Diego Unified Closes Charter School Amid Violations.” 10News (CA), 8/3/2011

SAN DIEGO -- About 200 students will have to find a new school before the new school year begins after the San Diego Unified School District voted on Tuesday to close the Promise Charter School in Chollas View.

The school district said the Promise Charter School mismanaged its money, failed to comply with its charter and violated several state laws including laws requiring the school to report instances of child abuse.

Earlier this year, an investigation by the 10News I-Team exposed several reports of inappropriate behavior between former teacher Jose Valencia and his preteen female students...

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“District Takes Step Toward Closing School.” Voice of San Diego 8 Jun 2011

The San Diego Unified school board narrowly decided Tuesday night to take the first step toward shuttering Promise, a Chollas View charter school where a district investigation found a long list of violations, from keeping faulty financial statements to running afoul of open meeting laws.

The K-8 school has been bitterly split into two camps of parents and teachers — those who back the principal and those that don't. But one message rang out from everyone Tuesday night: Don't close our school.

Even parents who backed a school district investigation that found Promise had violated state laws on conflicts of interest, failed to follow rules on student suspensions, and a long list of other problems, said they didn't want to dissolve it. Despite turmoil, Promise ranks in the top 10 percent among schools with similar challenges statewide...

Attorney Paul Minney said Promise would gladly pay for an outside mediator to bring parents and teachers together to work through disputes. But the school district concluded that Promise had still done too little to remedy the problems, blaming some on past leaders and simply denying others.

The school board voted 3-2 to send a letter to Promise that would trigger a hearing where the school could make a case for why it should stay open...

The controversial step toward closing Promise comes as San Diego Unified has reassessed its relationship with its charter schools, tightening its oversight and offering charters-in-the-making less help. Promise has been ground zero for its debates over charter freedom and accountability. Such shutdowns are rare: The last time a charter school was shuttered by San Diego Unified was five years ago, though others have dissolved on their own after being warned of problems...

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CHARTER SCHOOL SHUTS OUT INVESTIGATOR; March 3, 2011; Voice of San Diego (CA) 

…San Diego Unified has been investigating Promise Charter, where a group of parents and teachers say Principal Jose Orozco has intimidated parents who disagree with him on school decisions by barring them from campus and harassing their children. Orozco and his supporters have denied the allegations and stood behind his choices.

The school district launched an investigation into the concerns last month, interviewing parents and staff and poring through documents. In a letter to the charter school board, Moises Aguirre wrote that when he came to the school in February, Orozco demanded that he leave and escorted him out.

Aguirre, who helps oversee charter schools for San Diego Unified and is assisting the investigation, wrote that keeping him out of the school was a violation of state law and grounds to revoke the charter.

"This conduct obstructs the District's ability to meet its oversight obligations and will not be tolerated," Aguirre wrote…

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PARENTS DEMAND INVESTIGATIONS AT TWO CHARTER SCHOOLS; February 2, 2011; Voice of San Diego (CA) 

Parents and teachers at a small charter school in Chollas View are demanding that San Diego Unified launch an investigation of their school after the principal and new board members made a string of controversial decisions.

The Promise Charter School board changed dramatically last summer after some of its existing members, including the principal, voted to eject members and later added new ones.

Parents and teachers upset with the leaders allege that Principal Jose Orozco has intimidated parents who disagreed with him on everything from scheduling to staffing by barring them from campus and telling them to leave the school, and harassed their children by questioning them about their parents.

Fourth grade teacher Vicky Toscano said after one teacher was fired and others were told to reapply for their jobs, teachers have been afraid to question irregularities at the school, such as allegedly enrolling students who are too young for kindergarten. Teachers at the school have petitioned to form a union…

The same demands were made by teachers and parents from Tubman, another charter that has been in turmoil. Tubman teachers recently joined the San Diego teachers union and have fought the firing of a teacher, alleging she was discriminated against as a labor leader.

"Charter schools cannot be mini-dictatorships that exist on the dime of the public taxpayer," Barrera said. "And we need to make sure that we guard against that."

Charter board members are often chosen by other board members, not elected like a school district board. While some charters opt to have representatives who are chosen by the parents or teachers, voluntarily putting it into their own rules, it is not required by law. That means that charter boards can sometimes veer from what parents or staff want, and it can be hard to say who speaks for the school…

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Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science, and Technology

VIOLATIONS OF FEDERAL LAW PUSH STATE TO MONITOR GWINNETT SCHOOLS CHARTER LOTTERY, DISCRIMINATION ALLEGED AT GWINNETT SCHOOL; February 15, 2011; Atlanta Journal-Constitution (GA) 

For the second time in four years the state is investigating the enrollment process of the Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science, and Technology after complaints the elite charter school illegally screened applicants.

The complaints stem from the charter school's 2011-12 application, which appeared on the Gwinnett County public school's website for weeks as parents rushed to enroll. The application asked for math grades, test scores, gifted education and disability status, English language comprehension -- all so a student could gain entry into a public charter school that by law must have open enrollment.

The application also said the school would not provide services for those with disabilities or offer English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) classes.

“Public schools have to provide those services,” said Louis Erste, state charter school division director. “ That is why you can’t put that on your forms. You would be breaking the law if you used the information to exclude the students.”…

Erste said he has no evidence Gwinnett intended to screen students. But in a document obtained through open records, the AJC found associate state superintendent Garry McGiboney admonished GSMST in late January for its application: “Our initial review indicates your current application does not comply with state or federal law or ... your charter contract."…

Tony Roberts, CEO of the Georgia Charter Schools Association, is not so certain. He visited the campus a few years ago when it was under its inaugural administration. Roberts said he was asked for advice on weeding out applicants who couldn't handle the rigor…

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Dakota Academy

JUDGE'S RULING PERMANENTLY CLOSES DAKOTA ACADEMY: THE JUDGE SAID THE SPONSOR TERMINATED ITS CONTRACT CORRECTLY AND THAT IT HAD "GOOD CAUSE" TO DO SO; August 27, 2007; Star Tribune (Minneapolis, MN) 

A Burnsville charter school will permanently close its doors after a judge's ruling that its sponsor correctly terminated its contract with the school.

Under state law, charter schools need sponsors to operate. Late last week, a Dakota County judge ruled on behalf of Dakota Academy's sponsor, Crossroads College of Rochester, and the Minnesota Department of Education, saying not only that the correct procedure was followed in ending the contract, but that Crossroads can "more than sustain its position that it had good cause to terminate its contract."…

The relationship between Dakota Academy and its sponsor started going south before the school even opened last fall, when Crossroads put the school on probation. Crossroads terminated its contract with the school in December because it said it was having problems getting financial data and other information from founders, Hennepin County District Judge Harry Crump and his wife, Faith…

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TROUBLE MOUNTS AT DAKOTA ACADEMY; THE BURNSVILLE CHARTER SCHOOL, FOUNDED BY HENNEPIN COUNTY DISTRICT JUDGE HARRY CRUMP AND HIS WIFE, MAY CLOSE THIS SUMMER; May 22, 2007; Star Tribune (Minneapolis, MN)

Hennepin County District Judge Harry Crump and his wife, Faith, founded a Burnsville charter school to provide an innovative way to reach students who weren't being served in public schools. But less than a year after opening, Dakota Academy may have to close its doors amid allegations by its sponsor and a charter-school evaluation group that it failed to provide access to financial records and violated the state's Open Meeting Law at a March 26 meeting during which two new board members were appointed.

The sponsor, Crossroads College of Rochester, a small private Christian school, plans to pull out on June 30. Although Dakota Academy officials say they're seeking a new sponsor, if the school doesn't find one, state law requires it to close…

Many concerns about the school are detailed in an April report from the Minnesota Sponsor Assistance Network, a group that evaluates charter schools. The report says the school board held an unannounced, closed meeting on March 26 to appoint two new members, a potential violation of the state's Open Meeting Law. The report also says the school hasn't fully used its financial software, so that officials can't tell if they are on budget. The school has also gone through five academic directors, the report said, which suggests "either ... the hiring process needs significant improvement or the manner in which the academic director is treated has gone awry." Faith Crump declined to comment on the staff turnover, saying it was a personnel issue.

Parents learned in March that the school was losing its sponsorship. After calls from them and a meeting with the state Department of Education, Crossroads agreed to reconsider withdrawing its sponsorship if certain conditions were met. That included a financial audit and the resignation of the board and Faith Crump by May 11. Neither happened. Teachers at the school have also raised concerns about management. Seven of the school's 10 teachers signed a March 30 letter to Faith Crump, asking her to resign. The school hired a new executive director Thursday, and Crump said she'll spend two weeks shifting her duties. Then she'll have no further role with the school, unless the board hires her as the business director, she said. Faith Crump said the school is in discussion with several potential sponsors. Parents and students are watching the upheaval at the school with mixed emotions…

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Summit Charter School

ORLANDO-AREA SUMMIT CHARTER SCHOOL MUST FIX PROBLEMS OR CLOSE; April 08, 2008; Orlando Sentinel (FL) 

A Maitland charter school paid four administrators more than $520,000 last year and, even though the school was deeply in debt, allowed lavish and uncontrolled spending by two of those administrators, according to an audit by the Orange County school district.

The six-page audit, completed last month, found that Summit Charter School had defaulted on credit-card payments and almost ran out of money to pay its teachers and other bills…

According to both the audit and Claire Olds, a co-founder and the chairwoman of Summit's board of directors, none of the spending -- including the salaries, the travel and other irregularities -- had been approved by the school's eight-member board…

On March 4, the board suspended with pay three of the school's top officials, including Summit's president and co-founder Alan Smolowe. Also suspended were Steven Palmer, the principal; and Holly Wilkey, an office manager. Wilkey is Palmer's sister.

The audit showed that Palmer's salary was $217,654. Smolowe, who is also president of consulting firm Rothschild Development Corp., was paid $175,000. By comparison, according to school district attorney Frank Kruppenbacher, the average Orange County principal earns $83,000 a year...

Palmer's salary more than doubled since 2004, according to the audit, although it is not clear why. Palmer, identified by the school's Web site as an award-winning educator and former Holiday Inn food-and-beverage director, earned an average of $206,000 during the past three years.

The school also paid Wilkey $45,500 a year, while a bookkeeper, Yashmin Moledina, earned $122,000…

*Smolowe and Palmer bought two cars through the school -- without board approval -- and later traded them in for a $47,000 truck.

*The two men racked up "questionable expenditures" of more than $15,000 for meals, hotels, airlines and other travel expenses. Because there were no receipts, the auditors said, "we could not determine if any of the trips were for the benefit of the school."

All of this information, school district officials said, was difficult to ferret out because bookkeeping records were altered and Summit's tangled finances included eight accounts in four banks…

Summit's troubles are not unique among the state's 300 charter schools. A 2007 Orlando Sentinel investigation showed that many operate with little oversight and accountability. The stories showed, among other things, that about half of the state's charter schools had operating deficits or questionable business relationships with founders or board members. Florida authorized charter schools in 1996 as an alternative to public schools. Charter schools operate under a contract with local school districts and are funded with state money…

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Origins Montessori Charter School

DISTRICT PROBE CLOSES ORANGE CHARTER SCHOOL: THE FACILITY WAS MISMANAGED AND LACKED FINANCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY, OFFICIALS SAY; July 04, 2007; Orlando Sentinel (FL) 

The Orange County school district has shut down a charter school after officials said they found evidence of serious financial mismanagement and abuses of state education law at the beloved Orlando elementary.

Among the alleged irregularities: Origins Montessori Charter School appears during the past school year to have accepted state money for students who were not enrolled at the school and assigned students to two teachers who were not on the employment rolls, school-district officials said.

Officials also found that during the past school year, Origins Montessori could not account for $27,945 the school reported spending on training. Nor could it account for money the school collected for student lunches and from eight fundraising events, according to the district.

Julie Sanborn, the school's director, denied any wrongdoing…

Chandler said the district had been watching Origins and alerted Sanborn several times during the past few years that the school was in danger of violating state education laws…

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Cornerstone Prep

“LAUSD to recommend closing of charter school.” LA Times (CA), 2/24/2011

Officials will recommend the rare closing of a Los Angeles charter school for poor academic performance, the L.A. Unified School District has confirmed.

Cornerstone Prep, an elementary school in Florence, appeared Wednesday on a new list of 30 charter schools statewide that have consistently performed poorly.
The database, which included top-performing schools, was compiled by the California Charter Schools Assn…

Although charter schools are authorized by local school districts or other education agencies, they are managed independently and free from some restrictions that govern traditional schools.

This freedom comes in exchange for increased accountability, according to state law. But that accountability is not well-enforced, said Jed Wallace, chief executive of the charter association…

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Seven Hills Charter School

SEVEN HILLS CHARTER SCHOOL FAILS TO MEET BENCHMARKS, FACES PROBATION; February 26, 2011; Telegram & Gazette (Worcester, MA) 

WORCESTER —  The state commissioner of elementary and secondary education has recommended that Seven Hills Charter School be put on probation, according to a memo he sent to the state board.

The state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education is scheduled to vote on Seven Hills' charter Monday, and Commissioner Mitchell D. Chester recommends that the board impose several conditions on the charter's renewal, including that it demonstrate that it is an academic success by December 2012.

Mr. Chester's concerns include that the school has not met federal and state improvement benchmarks (called adequate yearly progress) in any subject since 2005, although some subgroups of students have met their goals in some subjects. The department's review of the school also found that eight teachers (one-fifth of instructional staff) were fired or left at the end of the 2009-2010 school year (including all of the fourth- and fifth-grade teachers) and that the school has had a different governance model for each of the last five years, although it has had the same leader throughout those years. During the 2009-10 school year, the school's board of trustees, which is supposed to have nine to 25 members, dwindled to four, three of whom quit the following year, when eight more joined….

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Brighter Choice charter schools in Albany (three schools)

ALBANY ORDERS CHARTER SCHOOL SIGNS DOWN: BANNERS ACCUSING CITY TREASURER OF RAISING TAXES ARE TOO BIG, OFFICIALS SAY; March 2, 2011, Times Union (Albany, NY)

Several large signs slung from three city charter schools this week targeting Treasurer Kathy Sheehan violate the city's sign law and were to come down Thursday, city and school officials said.

"Any organization has a right to express a political opinion. However, the size is an issue," said Bob Van Amburgh, a senior aide to Mayor Jerry Jennings. "If they want to express a particular opinion, that's fine, but they're going to have to change the size."

City code limits the size of temporary political signs to 16 square feet in a commercial district, Van Amburgh said.

The signs accused Sheehan of voting to raise property taxes -- a reference to the vote by a city economic development panel, Capital Resource Corp., that denied the Brighter Choice Foundation and a related nonprofit access to up to $42 million in tax-free bonds…

The signs -- which read "City Treasurer Kathy Sheehan just voted to raise your property taxes" -- were hung from the Brighter Choice School for Boys on North Lake Avenue, the Brighter Choice School for Girls on Central Avenue and the Albany Leadership Charter High School for Girls on Hackett Boulevard on Tuesday…

"I don't intend to respond," Sheehan said. "I've heard this type of tactic referred to as street theater. Economic development for the residents in the city of Albany is far too serious an issue for me to engage in street theater."

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