Bradenton Charter School

“Manatee charter school scheduled to close.” News 13 (FL), 4/21/2013

MANATEE COUNTY -- About 100 Manatee County students will need to find a new school for next year.

After 13 years, the Bradenton Charter School is closing.

Karen Carpenter Chair of the Manatee County School board said the school is closing because the school failed to meet standards particularly in the area of curriculum and governance.

But parents like Dana Russell say the school is a safe place for children to learn. Half of the kids have learning disabilities and many others have been bullied.

“If they go to public schools they are going to be lost. But here they get one on one. I believe they need this school,” said Russell.

The Manatee School Board is planning to discuss the future of the charter school during Monday’s school board meeting.

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“Parents oppose closing of Bradenton Charter School.”Herald-Tribune, 4/21/2013

... Problems listed in the report include an unstable governing board, no detailed curriculum, no assessment monitoring plan, no ESE or ESOL certified staff, no food sanitation policies and lack of documentation on staff members. Bradley explained that some areas of concern are the same from the school's last review five years ago...

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Mosaica Education

“Charter Founder Profits; Students Struggle.” East Atlanta Patch (GA), 12/11/2012

From its headquarters one block south of Wall Street, Mosaica Education claims to operate with a simple mission: “To empower students to learn and achieve – every child, every day.”

This for-profit charter management company was founded in 1997 by Sandy Springs resident Gene Eidelman and has since expanded to a network of 90 schools, generating more than $125M in annual revenue.  For several years, Inc. Magazine has ranked Mosaica as one of the fastest growing companies in urban America.[i] 

Unfortunately, students attending schools managed by Mosaica have not seen their educational trajectories rise with the management company’s revenue.  Instead, Mosaica’s students around the country consistently underperform their peers...

During Mosaica’s short tenure on the national stage, it has found itself immersed in a series of scandals across the country.

The Lafayette Academy Charter School opened in the fall of 2006, paying Mosaica $773,000 for the first year of a five-year management contract. Less than 10 days into the school year, the charter’s governing board started “noticing problems.” In a lawsuit filed against Mosaica, the governing board alleged that the management company failed to align its curriculum to Louisiana standards, failed to establish an after-school program for struggling students, and failed to properly organize transportation to and from the school.  On September 14, 2007, an arbitrator awarded the governing board a $350,000 judgment against Mosaica and upheld the school’s termination of its management agreement.

Two years later, Mosaica’s Howard Road Academy in D.C. was embroiled in a cheating scandal when a student announced to her exam proctor that she knew all the answers to the DC-CAS standardized test because she had been given the test to practice the day before.  The Washington Post later reported that Mosaica administrators distributed tests prior to exam day for “extra practice

In April 2012, Mosaica’s STEAM Academy of Winston-Salem, North Carolina faced revocation of its charter for financial problems and low academic performance. Just before annual exams were to be administered, The Winston-Salem Journal reported that Mosaica hired Susan Willis to run the school.  Prior to landing this job, Ms. Willis was fired by her previous employer when an investigation found that she conspired to boost test scores as the principal of William Flemming High School in Roanoke, Virginia.  Mosaica claimed to be “aware of a testing irregularity,” when hiring Ms. Willis, but “didn’t think it was anything significant.”...

Just last week, the Detroit News reported that Mosaica’s newest school in Muskegon Heights, Michigan has struggled to maintain a stable staff during its first year of operations. The principal quit before classes started, and just three months into the school year, 25% of the teachers have also left the school. ...

A comprehensive analysis conducted by Arizona State University lists the first 36 schools founded by Mosaica since it began operating in 1997.  Twenty seven of those schools have since been shut down by local authorizers or have extricated themselves from Mosaica’s management.

Of the nine which survived, eight can be classified as categorical failures...

The only possible beacon of success among Mosaica’s first 36 education attempts is the Columbus Preparatory Academy. Founded in 2004, until recently, the school has struggled...saw its performance undergo a meteoric rise to the 81st percentile on the state’s 2011 tests.

Even if this single-year increase is an accurate reflection of lasting student growth at Columbus Prepartory Academy, Mosaica has demonstrated no capacity to duplicate the success elsewhere. Instead, the organization seems willing to accept a certain level of school closures, focusing instead on a strategy of opening new schools. During the time the network watched 27 of its first 36 schools close, it was able to open more than 75 new schools. As long as Mosaica opens more schools than it sees closed each year, its revenue can continue to grow...

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Einstein Montessori School

“Another failed Orlando charter 'a disaster' for students, teachers.” Orlando Sentinel (FL), 3/4/2013

It was clear to teachers at the Einstein Montessori School in Orlando that something was very wrong when school opened for business last fall.

There were no computers for student use. And although the school focused on students with dyslexia, there were no reading texts.

Teachers said there was no set curriculum and no library.

"It was a disaster," said Brittany Clifton, a first-year math teacher who took on additional duties as principal for several months. She said students weren't getting what they needed. "It should have been shut down before the end of the semester."

The charter school closed in February, two months after Orange County Public Schools warned the privately run public school that it was violating state law and its own contract with the district. It had about 40 students in grades three to eight...

At Einstein, teachers said their training was haphazard, paychecks were late from the start and payments meant to compensate them for a lack of health insurance stopped after a single check. Three teachers who left in December and January were never paid several thousand dollars they were owed, they told Orange County Public Schools officials.

Things were also falling apart in the classroom.

The principal quit to save on salaries, and two of the five teachers were forced out, former teachers said. Further defections left a revolving door of substitute instructors, according to former teachers and the Einstein Montessori board chair, Rebecca Simmons...

When approved by the district in 2010, the school's application promised an accelerated, innovative curriculum for students with dyslexia. It delivered far less, teachers said.

"The students never had any grade-level materials," said Jill Nicholson, who taught the specialized reading program for dyslexic students, known as LiPS, on which the school was based.

"We were all first-year teachers and we didn't know what we were doing," she said. "It was more like a baby-sitting service."

Computers weren't set up until a few weeks before the school closed. A promised partnership with dyslexia experts at the University of Central Florida never materialized.

And parents weren't informed what was going on...

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Georgia Cyber Academy

“Georgia Threatens To Close K12-run Online Charter School.” StateImpact, NPR, (GA) 11/26/2012 

The Georgia Department of Education is threatening to close an online charter school run by K12, the nation’s largest online education company, over issues with special education students.

The agency issued a report last week that the K12-run Georgia Cyber Academy has repeatedly failed to comply with the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and has violated student civil rights by failing to provide services required by the law.

The school has 1,100 special education students, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The 12,000-student school is the largest public school in the state.

The agency will begin the process of closing the school in April unless the concerns are addressed.

The Florida Department of Education is investigating whether K12 online programs used teachers who were not properly certified and then asked other teachers to help cover it up. In addition, company documents show student-to-teacher ratios of 275-to-1 in some K12 classes, while some Florida school districts have raised concerns about a network of K12-run online charter schools which have applied across the state...

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“Georgia DOE blasts Georgia Cyber Academy, threatens to pull charter in report.” Atlanta Journal-Constitution (GA), 11/20/2012

The Georgia Department of Education has told the Georgia Cyber Academy that it will begin proceedings in April to shut down the online charter school if it fails to address numerous issues in its handling of special education students.

Those concerns, spelled out in a report delivered to GCA on Tuesday, include failure to obtain individualized education plans special education students are taught from, problems in resolving parental complaints and failure to offer the individualized instruction special education students are eligible to receive under federal law.

With 12,000 students, GCA is the largest public school in the state. The report says GCA’s special education problems stretch back to 2009, when the scores of its special needs students were among the lowest in the state...

During an October review of GCA, department officials found “continuing and significant failures to comply with federal and state laws and regulations,” according to the report...

GCA’s charter was granted by the state, and the state board has the authority to revoke it. Some board members have expressed frustration with what they described as GCA’s ongoing problems and said they will pull the school’s charter if those problems are not resolved.

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Reading Star Academy of Excellence

“Volusia School Board votes to close troubled charter.” Orlando Sentinel (FL), 4/24/2012   

Volusia County School Board members voted unanimously Tuesday to shutter a first-year charter school after learning about 21 academic and management violations at the school.

Reading Star Academy of Excellence, a kindergarten-through-fifth-grade charter school, will shut its doors in July unless its managers ask for a hearing...

District staff told the Volusia board that Reading Star students worked in cramped rooms, and students learning English and those with disabilities didn't get proper services. The school had few books and, in general, "there was little evidence of (Reading Star) students actually reading."

Staff also faulted the school leadership for failing to sufficiently oversee about $600,000 in taxpayer dollars and failing to background check its board members and a consultant who has a criminal record.

Some of Reading Star's leaders were at the helm of the failed Imani Elementary Charter School in Orlando when it was shuttered last year because of many of the same troubles. To date, Imani has not repaid Orange County Schools for $22,000 worth of services...

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Aspire Charter Academy

“Charter school for kids with behavioral problems expelled student on first day.” Orlando Sentinel (FL), 9/2/2011

Kerlin Fedee thought she had found the perfect fit for her daughter — a school dedicated to the needs of young children with behavioral problems.

"They said they would be able to help her and would love to have her," Fedee said.

But Fedee was disillusioned quickly. Aspire Charter Academy in Orlando, which opened this fall, kicked out 6-year-old Natalie Querette on the first day.

Natalie, a first grader, sometimes bites, kicks and spits, especially in a new situation. She has autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Her mother said the principal told her at the end of the first day that the school couldn't help Natalie because she screamed, bit and hit the teacher.

Aspire is run by Pam Schenkel, who spent 18 years as a behavioral support administrator in Orange County schools.

A week before the school year began, Schenkel said Aspire would fill an unmet need within the county.

The school, for kindergarten through grade 2, would serve many children who had spent months out of school for behavioral reasons, Schenkel said.

"If the school isn't going to educate them, they feel isolated," she said of the families.

District policy calls for schools, including charters, to call together a team of adults to discuss a disabled student's placement when problems arise. This is part of the federally required Individualized Education Program for students with disabilities.

But Schenkel said the charter has its own rules. "We're just following our handbook," she said.

Fedee has been invited to present her case to the school's Board of Directors at its meeting Wednesday night.

She filed a complaint with Orange County Public Schools, although there is little the district can require a charter school to do...

After being kicked out of Aspire, Natalie spent the rest of the first week out of school. Fedee enrolled her at Waterbridge, her neighborhood school, the following Monday.

After one day there, staff began evaluating whether to send her to another elementary, Endeavor, which takes students with mental disabilities from seven southwest Orange County elementary schools. Meanwhile, the school has required her mother to pick up Natalie by 11:00 a.m.

"Apparently Aspire Charter Academy does not practice what they preach," Fedee said...

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The Green School

“Charter school, interrupted.” Chico News & Review (CA), 8/25/2011

“Sydney Cambra, who spent her sophomore year at the fledgling Chico Green School, scrambled this week to enroll at another school a week after classes had begun in the Chico Unified School District.

Cambra, who chose Chico High School, was forced to make the switch after CUSD revoked the Green School’s charter and reported it in violation of state law. Representatives at the school subsequently announced it was closing its doors to fall-term students.

Chico Unified School District says the charter high school has violated the Brown Act, California’s open-meetings law. The decision to pull the year-old institution’s charter was based also on its failure to become a candidate for accreditation after a spring visit by an accreditation committee, but it was the Brown Act allegations that dealt the hardest blow. Violations of state law trigger a cut-off in funding to charter schools that are run independently but financed by public monies...

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“Chico Green School could face losing charter.” Contra Costa Times via Chico Enterprise-Record (CA), 7/31/2011

CHICO -- A charter school that has had a series of directors, substantial turnover in the faculty and other alleged problems since it was launched about two years ago may now be facing the loss of its charter...

According to the agenda, Green School leadership will be asked to explain why the school has yet to establish a curriculum that would be adequate for a graduate to earn admittance to the University of California or the California State University system.

The school will also be questioned about allegations its governing board has failed to comply with the state's open meeting law...

The Green School, housed at 2424 Cohasset Road, was chartered in October 2009. According to its administrators, it is the only post-eighth-grade charter in the country inspired by the "Waldorf" theory of education, which aims to tailor the curriculum to the various ages of a youngster's development...

The CUSD report for the meeting includes a letter to Green School dated June 30 that says the Western Association of Schools and Colleges — the agency that accredits schools — would not accredit their operation...

The district is also charging that the 50-student school was chartered only to offer classes to ninth and 10th graders, but last year they had 11th graders enrolled.

Murray acknowledges the school had 11th graders last school year and that they have five 12th graders enrolled at present...

The school was brought before the CUSD board before, in September 2010, on many of the same allegations. At that time, the board issued a letter outlining what the school had to do to correct the problems.

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John W. Lavelle Preparatory Charter School

“Staten Island Parents: Charter School Recruits Handicap Kids But Doesn't Provide for Special Needs.” New York Daily News (NY), 8/2/2011

A Staten Island charter school hasn't delivered on promises to provide extra services for disabled kids, outraged parents charge.

Marketing materials and the charter for John W. Lavelle Preparatory Charter School in Bloomfield describe an environment dedicated to serving students with special needs...

The charter school, which enrolled 135 students in sixth and seventh grades last year, has also actively recruited students with disabilities. More than 30% of its students last year had special needs - more than twice the city average.

The school's charter also boasted that it would have extensive services for disabled kids, including a mental health clinic, a mental health director and a guidance counselor.

Yet parents say Lavelle Prep has none of these things - prompting them to barrage the school and the city with complaints....

Lavelle officials refused requests for comment. City Education Department officials acknowledged the complaints, agency spokesman Frank Thomas said.

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Capital Preparatory Charter High School

“Trenton charter high school is under State Police investigation over financial problems.” The Times of Trenton (NJ), 5/10/2011

Capital Preparatory Charter High School has surrendered its charter and is under investigation for financial mismanagement and a range of violations by the New Jersey State Police, a state Department of Education spokesman said yesterday.

The Grand Street school had been placed on two consecutive 90-day probationary periods before it gave up its charter May 2. It will close at the end of the school year. Because Capital Prep chose to surrender its charter rather than have it revoked, it cannot appeal, DOE spokesman Alan Guenther said.

In addition to the financial problems, visits to the 329-student school by DOE staff “revealed a weak educational program, lacking in rigor and not meeting the goals set forth in the school’s charter,” Guenther said...

The DOE’s Office of Fiscal Accountability and Compliance (OFAC) had found problems including a $300,000 deficit, improper expenditure of funds, severe cash-flow problems, and violation of state travel policies, Guenther said.

The agency also found Capital Prep lacked a certified school business administrator and committed “gross mismanagement of public funds,” including bid violations, payments without adequate documentation, overpayment to consultants and employees being paid as vendors, Guenther said.

The investigation was spurred by an audit revealing the deficit, said Carly Bolger, director of the DOE’s Office of Charter Schools. Charter schools must have a balanced budget.

Bolger said the school violated travel policies last year and this year by spending $46,000 to stay at The Chelsea Hotel in Atlantic City for several meetings and retreats without obtaining a waiver from the DOE...

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Great River Education Center

“GREC charter school closes.” St. Cloud Times (MN), 7/18/2011

WAITE PARK — A public charter school that has served alternative students in the area since 2000 will not reopen next school year...

The school closed after Novation Education Opportunities decided not to continue as the school’s authorizer, said Matthew Pennertz, who has served as the school’s director since March...

The school has struggled financially, and an effort to recruit students earlier this year was unsuccessful...

Novation Education Opportunities, which is based in Minneapolis and became GREC’s authorizer this year, has oversight of about 11 charter schools, the organization’s website said. Novation provided Great River with an improvement plan that was not met, Pennertz said...

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Abramson Science and Technology Charter School

“State board of education votes to revoke Abramson's charter.” The Times-Picayune, 8/3/2011

The state board of education voted to revoke its contract with Abramson Science and Technology Charter School in eastern New Orleans on Wednesday, a step that could mean new management for the school and a potential legal battle with the nonprofit group that has run the campus until now.

The Pelican Educational Foundation, which founded the charter school in 2007, lost its right to operate the school by a vote of six to one at the state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, or BESE...

...BESE decided to vote with the recommendation of acting State Superintendent Ollie Tyler, who told the board that early findings of a state investigation launched last month showed "a threat to the safety, health and welfare of students at Abramson."

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The exhibits from the preliminary investigation are @ http://www.louisianaschools.net/lde/uploads/18613.pdf

Sample excerpt from Exhibit 5, pg. 45 of pdf

False College Admittances:

"Near the end of the year many students who had not previously been accepted into any college began announcing they had been accepted into North American College. Surprisingly, students who were failing their English and Math classes and who would not graduate from Abramson on time were still being accepted to North American College. The principal used these acceptances as proof that Abramson was successful. The school that accepted these seniors who did not graduate from high school, North American College, is where Mr. Dokmen will be working this fall."

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"Records show glaring faults at school with ties to Turkish charter network.” Times-Picayune (LA) 7/15/2011 

Inci Akpinar, the vice president of a company called Atlas Texas Construction & Trading, sat down with an official from the Louisiana Department of Education a little more than a year ago and made him an offer.

..."I have twenty-five thousand dollars to fix this problem: twenty thousand for you and five for me."

At the time, Dunbar was investigating numerous complaints against Abramson Science & Technology Charter School in eastern New Orleans...

Dunbar -- having declined to take money from Akpinar -- recommended more than a year ago that the state board of education yank Abramson's charter...

But after questioning by the The Times-Picayune, acting State Superintendent of Education Ollie Tyler late Friday wrote to the state board asking it to prevent the school from opening in the fall, citing problems discovered during the original investigation and a new information about an incident between two young students that was possibly sexual in nature...

That an executive from Atlas Texas, a Houston-based contractor, would speak on the school's behalf points to the somewhat opaque connections that link Abramson with other schools and businesses founded by Turkish expatriates. Atlas has won numerous contracts in the past from a Texas-based school operator called the Cosmos Foundation...

Similar allegations have cropped up in other states where the Cosmos Foundation operates. The group runs a charter network called the Harmony Schools in Texas, where they've encountered unfounded accusations that they somehow promote Islamic extremism, largely because of an interest by some of the group's leaders in the movement begun by a Turkish religious scholar named Fethullah Gulen.

Both Cosmos and Pelican have disavowed any official religious links, though Abramson teachers on a school-sponsored trip to Turkey received pamphlets on the Gulen movement...

In an email dated Feb. 2, 2010, and signed by [four teachers] to head of the state's charter office: "Though we are fully aware of the significant amount of autonomy given to charter schools, we are now concerned that this autonomy is being abused to the point that students are being forced to engage in unethical acts."

They also reported a "general feeling of fear" among the school's staff because of what appeared to be retaliation against teachers, parents and students who had spoken up about the school's practices in the past...

But the state investigation appeared to back up much of what the teachers had written in their note...

...several students confirmed they had done little or none of the work that went into their science projects...

...[students] described practice on items that were very close to the items on the test."...

The state audit also turned up a significant lack of resources for special-needs students...

There were also complaints from teachers and students about the difficulty of communicating with some of the foreign staff...

Still, Dunbar, the state's academic advisor for charter schools, described a series of bizarre encounters as he and others carried out the audit that suggest a network of associations at Abramson extending beyond Louisiana...

Dunbar concluded in the same memo that the state board of education should revoke school's the charter...

Ultimately, the state decided to renew Abramson's charter for one year, contingent on the school carrying out a detailed corrective action plan...

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“Abramson Charter in eastern New Orleans shut down amid TP investigation into startlingmisconduct.” Times-Picayune (LA) 7/15/2011

The state's sudden shutdown of Abramson Science and Technology Charter School over revelations of a potential bribery attempt and other incidents came in part because of inquiries made by The Times-Picayune over the past few weeks.

Penny Dastugue, president of the state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, wrote to the head of the nonprofit that runs Abramson on Friday evening to say the board will close the school until the state can complete an investigation. The move came just a few hours after acting State Superintendent Ollie Tyler contacted board members to recommend that they shutter the school in eastern New Orleans while the state looks into the allegations...

Both incidents have come to light as a result of interviews and public information requests made by newspaper.

Several board members expressed alarm on Friday that information about the state's audit last year did not come before BESE ahead of a vote the board took last summer to renew Abramson's charter. The state education department recommended that BESE give the school a one-year renewal with a "corrective action plan" to address deficiencies in special education services. But the board had not seen [a] memo about the offer of money. And they hadn't seen records that provide accounts of classrooms going unstaffed for weeks at a time and potential cheating in science fair competitions...

[BESE member Louella Givens] and Linda Johnson, a BESE member from Plaquemine, also traveled to Turkey this spring at the invitation of the Pelican Foundation before the full findings of the state audit came to light.

Tevfik Eski, Pelican's CEO, denied inviting BESE members on the trip. But a copy of the invitation obtained by The Times-Picayune shows that it was signed by Eski...

Johnson said that she paid for her own flight but that some of her hotel expenses were picked up by the Texas Turkish American Chamber of Commerce...

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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

• Details about active and attempted Gulen charter schools in Louisiana.
• News story about Harmony Public Schools, AKA Harmony Science Academy schools / CosmosFoundation. 
• Information about Gulen charter schools’ H1B visa applications.

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Fulton Science Academy Middle School

(Updated 6/5/2012)

NOTE: Also see entry about Georgia Gulen charter schools HERE. 

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“Fulton Science Academy Shifts to Private.”Johns Creek Patch, 5/29/2012

The Alpharetta school's charter ends this week as it shifts from a public middle school to a private Pre-K through 8th grade school charging $8,500 annual tuition.

Fulton Science Academy Middle School's charter expires after Thursday, May 31, as the school continues its quest to reopen in the fall as a private school open to all students Pre-K through 8th grade in Georgia.

Tuition starts at $8,000 with another $300 in application and enrollment fees...

The school announced it is registered under Georgia GOAL Scholarship program, which allows state tax credits for scholarship donations...

The FSA Private School Financial Aid Application will be available its website soon. The financial aid requests will be determined starting in July 2012.

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“State Board Denies FultonScience Academy Middle School Charter; Many Sandy Springs students attend FSA. Board members criticize the school's Governing Board and management over noncompliance, bond issues.” SandySpringsPatch, 5/10/2012

Fulton Science Academy Middle School lost its appeal to the state Board of Education for a charter this morning, so the school will be closed in July.

The school's charter through Fulton County Schools expires June 30...

The school's governance and financial stability were called into question, particularly regarding the issuance of $19 million in bonds and the construction work on a new school campus.

State Board Member Dan Israel said even though bond documents say the state, county and city aren't liable for anything doesn't mean they can't be sued...

"The Fulton Science Academy Governing Board and school management have acted during the past five months as if the state charter process is an opportunity for them to strike a deal so they can have a charter. The state charter process is instead an appeal by the school to the state," [Board member Linda Zechmann] said...

"Thirty more days won't change a thing," said Board member Brian Burdette. "They had the opportunity to work with the department and that didn't happen."

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“Fulton Science Academy, State Don't Agree; While the middle school's governing board believes it has met requirements and answered all questions for its state charter application, the Department of Education still sees problems.” Alpharetta-MiltonPatch, 5/8/2012

Fulton Science Academy Middle School has spent $5.78 million to buy land and start construction of a new campus that its students seem unlikely to ever occupy. By mid-summer, there may be no school at all.

The state Board of Education will receive a recommendation to deny the school's charter petition at its May 10 meeting. A month later it is scheduled to vote on the petition.

The school's current charter with Fulton County Schools expires June 30.

The school sent a response to the recommendation for denial — "Supplemental Information for the FSA MS State Chartered Special School Petition", signed by Governing Board president Ayhan Korucu — but that may not sway the state board. (A pdf version of Korucu's plea, without supporting documents, can be found with this article.)

Lou Erste, Charter Schools Division director for the Georgia Department of Education, says the information in the May 4 letter wasn't enough to change the recommendation for denial.

"The answers provided by FSAMS in their unsolicited response to our April 30, 2012 denial letter are almost completely nonresponsive to the issues we raised in our letter," Erste said via email to Patch...

The school spent at least $2.7 million to buy land on Fanfare Way in Alpharetta. The school bought the land before the state approved the site, and started construction before a site plan and building design were even submitted for approval, all of which the state said were required.

But to pay for the land and build the school, $18.9 million in bonds were sold, and that has put its sister schools — Fulton Sunshine Academy and Fulton Science Academy High School — at risk, as all three schools are liable for the bond repayments...

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“Uncertainty faces Fulton Science Academy as state mulls charter application; Decision on charter renewal likely to come after end of school year.” Johns Creek Herald (GA), 3/29/2012

ALPHARETTA, Ga. — The fate of the Fulton Science Academy Middle School will likely not be determined by the end of the current school year, leaving parents, students and school staff in a state of flux for at least three more months.

In December, the Fulton County School Board rejected the charter school's application for a charter renewal, effectively severing the relationship between the school district and the academically successful charter school. FSA has been in operation for 10 years in Fulton County and was recently named a National School of Excellence...

With local options exhausted, FSA applied to the state Department of Education (GDOE) in December to become a state charter school beginning with the 2012-2013 school year.

According to state officials, the final decision will be made by the state Board of Education in June, once the application has been thoroughly reviewed...

The indecision over the plans for FSA also impacts local middle schools, which are looking at two enrollment projections for next school year: one with FSA students returning, and one without.

In the meantime, construction has stopped on a new school building in Alpharetta that was intended to house FSA Middle School, FSA High School and the elementary school, Fulton Sunshine Academy. The school, which is being funded by an $18 million bond, is on hold, pending the state approval of the charter. If approved, FSA officials say they anticipate construction to be complete by January 2013.

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“FSA fails to satisfy state about school site permit; Second letter to charter school says state has concerns as FSA continues to build.” Appen Newspapers (GA), 1/31/2012 

ALPHARETTA, Ga. — An application for a site approval permit from the Fulton Science Academy (FSA) still fails to meet the state's litmus test after a second attempt to submit documents was returned by the Georgia Department of Education (GDOE).

The charter middle school is moving forward with plans to build an $18 million K-12 campus in Alpharetta, but must first receive the blessing of the GDOE to put the school on the 44-acre parcel. The state sent back FSA's first application last month, requesting additional information and clarification...

Last month, FSA was denied a renewal of their charter by the Fulton County School System and is now seeking to become a state charter school beginning next school year.

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“School Board Reject State's Mediation Offer with Fulton Science Academy; Charter school's executive director responds to accusations about the school's construction process.” Roswell Patch, 1/19/2012

...Superintendent Robert Avossa told the state Department of Education that Fulton County Schools has no interest in a mediation request by Fulton Science Academy after direct negotiations that lasted four months failed...

Two vital items communicated by Fulton County Schools to the charter school were not included in the charter renewal petition submitted to the Board of Education, he said: A listing of specific waivers for school personnel, and a three-year term aligning the middle school's charter with its partner schools–Fulton Sunshine Academy and Fulton Science Academy High School–which are bound financially through an $18 million bond.

Other issues have been revealed since the local board voted against the charter renewal, Avossa said in his letter. Not only did the school issue the $18 million bond before receiving a charter renewal, it also spent a large portion of the money and broke ground on its new facilities without state permission...

Avossa said these problems are even more evidence of problems.

"This pattern of reckless, premature actions taken by the FSAMS management constitutes additional breaches of their charter contract and has also now endangered the financial health of its FSA sister schools due to their joint and several indebtedness on the bond," Avossa said in his letter.

He also said this isn't the first example of irresponsible management and disregard for the district policies by the school...

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"School board denies Fulton Science Academy MS renewal petition.” Fulton County Schools press release, 12/20/2011

At its December 20 meeting, the Fulton County Board of Education denied the Fulton Science Academy Middle School’s petition to renew in a unanimous vote. The board based its decision on the FSA governance board’s inability to meet the school system’s requirement for a three-year charter term and a blanket waiver...

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“Fitch Downgrades Fulton Science Academy, GA's Revs to 'BB-'; Rating Watch Negative.” iStockAnalyst, 12/20/2011 

...CHARTER RENWAL TENSION NOT REFLECTIVE OF INVESTMENT GRADE:

The downgrade to 'BB-' reflects Fitch's heightened concerns regarding Fulton Science Academy Middle School's (FSAMS) ability to effectively manage the charter renewal process; a fundamental credit characteristic of investment grade ratings in this sector. Last week, Fulton County School District's (FCSD, the local charter authorizer) superintendent recommended that the FCSD board deny FSAMS' current petition to renew its charter, expiring June 30, 2012. Fitch views recent events as a significant, rapid and unexpected deterioration in the authorizer relationship. This level of uncertainty over the charter renewal is more reflective of a 'BB-' rating.

CHARTER RENEWAL AT RISK:

The Rating Watch Negative reflects Fitch's concern that the FSAMS charter may not be renewed. The FCSD board is scheduled to vote on the renewal petition this evening (December 20). Based on discussions with FCSD and FSAMS staff, Fitch believes rejection of the petition is a real possibility. In that event, FSAMS' charter would be scheduled to expire on June 30, 2012...

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“Fulton County Schools, Charter Interim Compliance Report, Fulton Science Academy Middle School.” January 2011 (emphasis added) http://fsamiddle.org/images/stories/interimcompliance.pdf

Requested Actions (pp. 2-3)

While the school continues a strong academic record, it remains challenged in the areas of governance transparency and participation…

…We understand that the school is now using the services of the Grace Institute. We request that the relationship with the Grace Institute cease effective March 4, 2011, and that the original terms of the contract approved by the FCBOE be honored…

     1. According to its website, the Grace Institute does not claim to be an EMO. However, the scope of the services provided by the Grace Institute according to the contract supplied do indeed fall into the commonly accepted definition of an EMO and under the areas of governance as defined by the GADOE (personnel, finances, curriculum and instruction, resource allocation, establishing and monitoring school improvement goals, and school operations).

The renewal contract did not specify the use of an educational management organization in general nor Grace Institute in specific. As such, the relationship is not approved b either the school system or the state.

     2. According to the Federal 990EZ Form, the Grace Institute’s board of directors includes the FSAMS Executive Director (who also serves Fulton Sunshine Academy and Fulton Science Academy High School) and the principals of the FSAHS and FSA MS, among others. This represents a business practice that is not in compliance FCBOE policy prohibiting conflict of interest.

     3. There in no indication that a Request for Proposal (RFP) process was followed by the governing board in the hiring of the Grace Institute.

     4. The operations of the school reflect attendance at one conference conducted by Grace, but no transparency regarding the scope of the services provided is evident in any documentation provided by the school to date. Neither is any review period to assess the quality of the services indicated in the contract.

     5. Finally, although the contract supplied reflects that there is a fee associated with Grace services, there is no detail as to the amount of tax payer dollars gong to the Grace Institute on an annual basis nor the formula for establishing such funding levels. Neither is there an articulation of the actual per pupil fee amounts to be paid by the school nor the schedule of payments in the contract. No payments are mentioned in the Annual Audit by the independent auditor, Mr. Sam Durden, CPA. Since the Grace institute serves schools outside of Fulton County and the state of Georgia, the lack of transparency in the supplied contract makes it impossible to determine if state and local tax dollars are funding activities to benefit schools outside of Fulton County and the state of Georgia…

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The proposal for the Fulton Science Academy Middle School was submitted in March 2001 by Cosmos Science Academy, Inc. See http://www.doe.k12.ga.us/_documents/schools/charterschools/Fulton%20Science%20Academy.pdf

The founding board:

• Bekir Ozcan, Staff Engineer at Georgia Power Company
• Yucel Altunbasak, Georgia Institute of Technology, Electrical and Computer Engineering
• Serdar Tunaboylu, Electric Motor Drive Specialist at Siemens
• Erdogan Dogdu, software engineer
• Kemal Cem Gur, teacher in Turkey, moved to Georgia in 1999

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Fulton Science Academy (“Fulton Science Academy Middle School Inc.” (EIN 582512910)

Names appearing on 2004-2008 Form 990s: Ali Ozer, Ayhan Korucu, Baybars Bakay, Cevdet Akbay, Cheri Garvin, Feroz Fatehali, Fethi Gotepe, Kenan Sener, Levent Bulut, Mustafa Basgun, Mustafa Kecici, Sabrina Moore, Selim Ozedmir, Sherry Saylam [possibly related to Mustafa Z. Saylam and/or Saltuk B. Saylam], Steven Greene, Tuncay Kucuktas, and Wendi Murphy.

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From http://graceschools.us/ (accessed Oct 2010): 

“In short, Grace Member Schools are also called “Grace Schools“. However, this abbreviation is a bit misleading as the Grace Institute is not a Charter Management Organization (CMO). This usage more correctly should be read as Grace Schools Network or Grace Member Schools.”

Current members include:

• Fulton Science Academy-Middle (GA)
• Fulton Science Academy-High (GA)
• Stars Middle School (FL)
• River City Science Academy Middle and High School (FL)
• Orlando Science Middle and High School (FL)
• Sweetwater Branch Academy Middle and High School (FL)
• New Springs Middle School (FL)
• Fulton Sunshine Academy Elementary School (GA)
• River City Science Academy Elementary School (FL)
• Sweetwater Branch Academy Elementary School (FL)

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Grace Institute for Educational Research & Resources, Inc. (EIN 262674420)

• Names appearing on 990s for 2007-2009 Form 990s: Yucel Aktas, Ilbey Budak, Avni Cokavci, Selim Ozdemir, Ali Ozer, Namik Sercan, Kenar Sener. Each of these individuals has held positions at Fulton Science Academy schools

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Additional reading:

• Fulton Science Academy / TEACH / Fulton Sunshine Academy: Evidence of affiliation with Gulen Movement http://gulencharterschools.weebly.com/fulton-science-academy.html
• Florida Schools: Orlando Science Middle/High Charter School, River City Science Academy, Sweetwater Branch Academy, Stars Middle School, New Springs Middle School. Evidence of affiliation with Gulen Movement http://gulencharterschools.weebly.com/florida-schools-orlando-river-city-sweetwater-stars-new-springs.html

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Students from the Fulton Science Academy at the 2011 Turkish Olympiad Southeast sponsored by the Istanbul Center, a Gulenist organization ("That center is devoted to the practice and propagation of the teachings of Muslim leader Fethullah Gulen." See @ fgulen.com). These pageants are held in multiple regions in the U.S. and around the world. The student performers have been trained in Gulenist schools.

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