Flanner House Higher Learning Center

CHARTER SCHOOLS BOARD VOTES TO REVOKE FLANNER HOUSE HIGHER LEARNING CENTER'S CHARTER; October 21, 2005; Indianapolis Mayor’s Office press release (IN)

INDIANAPOLIS - The Indianapolis Charter Schools Board today voted to revoke the Flanner House Higher Learning Center's charter due to numerous problems the school has experienced over the past two years.

The Charter Schools Office first flagged these problems during the 2003-04 school year, and detailed them in the 2004 Charter School Accountability Report of Mayor-Sponsored Charter Schools. Problems also were cited in a recent audit by the Indiana State Board of Accounts.

The revocation was issued today and will become effective as soon as all students transition out of the school, but no later than December 23, 2005. Reasons for the revocation were detailed in a notice sent to the school on September 27. They include:

· Failure to report enrollment. The school failed to accurately report average daily membership for the 2003-04 and 2004-05 school years in accordance with state law.

· Failure to report student attendance records. The school routinely failed to maintain and report accurate attendance records, in accordance with state law.

· Graduating students who haven't met requirements. Student transcripts show that many students who received diplomas in the last two years did not meet the graduation requirements set out in the school's charter or Indiana law, typically because they either did not have enough credits or had not passed the appropriate courses.

· Poor test scores. In both years of operation, most students failed to successfully complete the required standardized test (Northwest Evaluation Association Measures of Academic Progress) in the fall and spring. Some of those who successfully completed the test actually did worse on the spring test than they did on the fall test and lost ground against both state and national norms in grades and subjects tested in both the 2003-04 and 2004-05 school years.

· Lack of certified teachers. In the 2004-05 school year, the school employed only four licensed teachers at the school, which is less than the number of teachers the school's charter requires and less than necessary to adequately staff the school.

· Failure to test students. The school failed to administer the ninth grade Indiana Statewide Testing for Educational Progress Plus ("ISTEP+") examination to any students enrolled in the ninth grade in 2004-05, as required by state law.

· Debt. The school has a debt of $142,076.44 and must forgo more than $600,000 in state money because the school could not account for the students listed in the 2003-04 and 2004-05 enrollment reports…

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Gulf Shores Academy

CHARTER SCHOOL LEADER SENTENCED FOR TAMPERING; October 15, 2009; Houston Chronicle 

The leader of one of Texas’ most troubled charter schools was sentenced Thursday to two years in prison for tampering with government records.

Linda Johnson was convicted of issuing false high school transcripts as principal of Gulf Shores Academy, a charter approved by the state in 1998.

Prosecutors with the Harris County District Attorney’s Office said Johnson granted class credits in exchange for $150 and a few class assignments.

Johnson’s attorney, state Rep. Harold Dutton, D-Houston, could not be reached for comment Thursday. He has previously argued that the Texas Education Agency unfairly targeted the school, which served mostly low-income blacks.

After a decade of academic and financial problems, the Texas Education Agency declined to renew Gulf Shores’ charter in July. The school still owes the state about $8 million for misreporting attendance, officials said.

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CHARTER SCHOOL ACCUSED OF FAKING STUDENT FILES: GULF SHORES ACADEMY ALREADY IN TROUBLE WITH THE STATE; March 27, 2008; Houston Chronicle (TX) 

Leaders of one of Houston's most troubled charter schools are accused of issuing false high school transcripts to undercover investigators with the Harris County District Attorney's Office.

Linda Johnson, head of Gulf Shores Academy, and her daughter, Marian Johnson, face up to 20 years in prison if convicted of felony document tampering. Prosecutors say they granted class credits in exchange for $150 and a few hastily completed assignments. They are scheduled to appear in court next month, officials said.

State Rep. Harold Dutton, D-Houston, said the campus, which caters to poor African-American students, is being unfairly targeted by the Texas Education Agency. Dutton, a lawyer, has volunteered to represent the charter school.

"We've been fighting for so long for this school, it would be a shame to give up at this point," he said, adding that the Johnsons did not break the law…

Gulf Shores Academy, which opened in 1998, once had more than 1,000 students and a powerhouse basketball program that produced first-round draft pick Gerald Green, who recently was traded to the Houston Rockets.

But the campus has made more headlines for its record of poor academic and financial performance. Among other offenses, the school owed the state nearly $11 million for overreporting student attendance.

The Texas Education Agency has been withholding funding to repay the debt, which now stands at about $8.5 million, officials said.

Despite the repeated missteps, the TEA has been unable to revoke Gulf Shores' charter.

In September 2006, the school became the first in Texas ordered to close mid-year. Just a week later, a Travis County judge granted a restraining order to keep the school open.

In addition to their criminal court date, Gulf Shores leaders are scheduled to appear at a charter revocation hearing in Austin on April 28.

"It's because of material violations of the charter and also academic and financial reasons," TEA spokeswoman DeEtta Culbertson said.

Because of the pending criminal charges and because the school is suing the state, the agency wouldn't provide specifics about the case.

Registrars complained

Assistant District Attorney Anna Emmons said prosecutors started investigating Gulf Shores after receiving complaints from several area high school registrars. Students who had failed classes would return after just a few days with the credits on transcripts from Gulf Shores, she said.

Two investigators were sent to the school earlier this month posing as parents whose children needed to make up classes. In both cases, Gulf Shores administrators issued credits to the parents for $150 and some class assignments that the parents handed in the next day, Emmons said.

Both investigators received the same packet of assignments — even though they were seeking credit for different classes — and they turned in the same set of sloppy, incomplete answers, she said.

Gulf Shores employees never saw the students or verified their existence, she said.

"Common sense says within 24 hours, you should not be able to receive a semester's credit," Emmons said.

The Johnsons were arrested March 18 and released on $10,000 bonds.

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