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 And it marks the first time DPS has rescinded a charter because of poor academic performance, a move experts say is important if the state wants a shot at winning millions of dollars in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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