Dove Science Academy - Tulsa

SOME TEACHERS' SALARIES NOT MEETING STATE STANDARD, September 27, 2010, Tulsa World (OK)

Because public charter schools are exempt from the state minimum salary schedule, some local teachers earn thousands of dollars less than their counterparts teaching in traditional districts.

Each year, the Oklahoma State Department of Education produces a minimum salary guideline for public school teachers. The guideline increases teachers' salaries as their teaching experience and education increase…

Some local public charter schools, however, do not meet the minimum because of budget problems, administrators said.

Kaan Camuz, the superintendent of Discovery School of Tulsa and Dove Science academies in Tulsa and Oklahoma City, said the schools negotiate contracts with each teacher individually.

Education Department data show that often, the schools' pay does not meet the state's minimum salary standards.

"We would like to pay even more to our teachers, but with the budget cuts, we have to wait," Camuz said.

According to the state's database, at least 17 teachers at Discovery and Dove are paid less than the state's minimum.

One second-year teacher with a bachelor's degree at Dove Science Academy, for example, earns a total of $27,300 - or about $4,600 less than the state's minimum salary schedule for a person with a degree and one year of experience.

Camuz, who earned $75,000, said the schools usually pay more to math and science teachers because the schools emphasize those subjects. The state data, however, show that teachers of other subjects sometimes get as much, if not more, than math and science teachers…

NOTE: The above news story is an example of teacher salary practices which have been reported at other Gulen charter schools. A former teacher at one of the NJ charter schools wrote: “The school had my credentials and previous salaries, promised the same, and then undercut the salaries of anyone who was not Turkish.” AND “Teachers without credentials were teaching and earning higher salaries than fully certified teachers. Friends of the "Gulen Movement" just happened to "pop" in off the plane and given teaching jobs--some who couldn't even explain correctly in English a concise sentence.” http://www.charterschoolwatchdog.com/and-the-plot-thickens.html

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TEEN PLEADS GUILTY TO RAPING CHILD AT TULSA CHARTER SCHOOL, June 7, 2010, The Tulsa World (OK)

A Tulsa teenager pleaded guilty Monday to raping an 11-year-old student at a Tulsa school.

Donnie D. Johnson, 18, is to be sentenced July 19.

Tulsa County District Judge William Kellough ordered Johnson, who had been free on bond, placed in the Tulsa Jail after his guilty plea.

A Department of Corrections background report will be prepared before his sentencing. Johnson has no agreement with prosecutors concerning his punishment.

Assistant District Attorney Jack Thorp said he will request prison time.

Johnson, who was then 17, was charged in December 2008 with the first-degree rape of a sixth-grade student by force and violence at Dove Science Academy, 280 S. Memorial Drive.

Johnson, who was a high school student, and the girl both attended the Dove charter school.

Johnson is alleged to have raped the girl in a school rest-room on Dec. 11, 2008. He was arrested that day…

The girl told police that “an older boy named Donnie” followed her into the restroom, pulled his pants down, pulled her pants down, and raped her on the floor, reports indicate.

A civil lawsuit was filed last year in Tulsa County District Court on behalf of the girl and her mother against Dove Science Academy Foundation-Tulsa Inc., records show.

A $100,000 settlement was reached, with the plaintiffs’ law firm getting $40,000 in compensation for its services.

A judge approved a payment of $5,000 to the girl’s mother and an investment of $55,000 in an annuity on the girl’s behalf, records show.

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“Tulsa school board ends charter with Dove Science Academy.” Tulsa World (OK), 10/27/2010

Citing concerns about services for special education students and the legality of consequences for certain behavior infractions, the Tulsa school board voted unanimously Monday to end its sponsorship of Dove Science Academy, one of the city’s longest-operating charter schools...

The school board’s charter school committee had recommended that Dove Science Academy’s request for a five-year contract renewal be denied.

Board member Ruth Ann Fate, who serves as the committee chairwoman, questioned the school’s special education and disciplinary practices and claimed that the school has failed to comply with a laundry list of terms in its contract with TPS.

“The documentation submitted by Dove regarding its special education services and programs demonstrates substantive compliance problems in the IEPs (individualized education programs) developed. … This strongly suggests that Dove is plugging all special-needs students into one system rather than making individualized decisions,” Fate said, reading from a prepared statement.

She also cited “myriad deficiencies” in Dove’s student discipline handbook, including expulsion as a consequence and the withholding of student records in certain disciplinary cases, both of which are not allowed under Oklahoma law...

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TPS QUESTIONS ACADEMY'S APPLICATIONS, July 21, 2005, The Tulsa World (OK)

Tulsa Public Schools will review the enrollment practices at a charter school that has been asking applicants for information about their academic and discipline records.

A Tulsa World review of charter school applications found that Dove Science Academy asks if potential students have ever been suspended from any school, if they ever skipped or repeated a grade, and to list their honors, awards, clubs and activities.

Gary Lytal, assistant to the superintendent for school and district accountability, said the questions are improper because charter schools are "open enrollment" schools that must admit students regardless of past discipline or academic issues.

"To me, they should not be asking those questions. I think they use a random drawing, so there would be no reason to ask those questions," Lytal said.

State Superintendent Sandy Garrett also said charter schools cannot consider such information in admitting students under Oklahoma law.

"Our charter schools in Oklahoma are public schools. Some have certain themes but none are allowed to discriminate," Garrett said.

Assistant Superintendent LaVerne Ford Wimberly said she will seek a review of Dove Science Academy's enrollment practices.

"I expect them to enroll (students) based on space available -- first come, first serve. There should not be any discriminatory practice on the part of our charter schools," Wimberly said. "I will be asking for a review to determine whether the questions are being used for the excluding of students. If they are, I will have to make some recommendations to the principal, Mr. Yuksel."

Dove Science Academy served about 410 students in grades 6-12 last year. It was one of the first charter schools to open after the passage of the Oklahoma Charter School Act in 1999.

It is located in a former church building at 280 S. Memorial Drive.

Dove Principal Zekeriya Yuksel is currently out of the country, so the principal of its affiliated charter school in Oklahoma City, also called Dove Science Academy, responded to questions about the application.

Mustafa Dove, whose name was also listed as Mustafa Guvercin on his school's Web site, said the Tulsa school has used the same application since it opened. [guvercin translates to n. pigeon, dove]

"If they are objecting, that is not a problem for us to withdraw (the questions) from the application. That's not that big of a deal," Dove said.

He said the school has always drawn more applicants than it has had openings, so it has had to conduct a lottery to enroll students every year.

"Admission to the school is not on these issues, because there is a lottery at the end of the application deadline," Dove said.

Dove said the school does conduct interviews with potential students and their parents when they apply.

"We have an interview process. We explain our expectations, if they are suspended, even if they are not -- we go through our rules - - and explain our expectations to see if their expectations match with ours," he said.

Dove also answered questions about a statement in the student handbook that reads, "Any student suspended during the school year may be denied registration to Dove Science Academy the following year."

Lytal said a suspension should have no bearing on a student's enrollment in an open enrollment school once they have fulfilled the term of the suspension.

Of the statement in the handbook, Dove said: "This is here for encouragement for the students and to motivate them not to break the rules. In five years, there is no one we can recall who we didn't accept just because of this reason.

"We are not trying to expel students; we are here to educate students. We are being successful. We have lots of success," he added.

In April 2001, some Tulsa school board members said they were concerned that Dove and Deborah Brown Community School, the only two charter schools in existence in Tulsa at the time, were limiting their admissions and rejecting students with disciplinary problems.

Tulsa Superintendent David Sawyer said then that he had received several reports of Dove students being asked to withdraw from the school and return to their home public schools to avoid suspensions.

He urged Dove administrators to "seriously review" their policy.

A recent Tulsa World review shows that the other two Tulsa charter schools' applications are similar to the Tulsa Public Schools' enrollment form.

The Tulsa School of Arts and Sciences and Deborah Brown Community School ask applicants for information including their name, birth date, parent or guardian names, contact information and last school attended.

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HIB Visa Research for Dove Science Academy

Three organizations are listed:

1. Dove Science Academy (note different address on web form), Location: Tulsa, Ok 74112

2. Dove Science Academy – Oklahoma City, Location: Oklahoma City, OK 73106

3. Dove Science Academy, Location: Oklahoma City, OK 73106 (The figures for #3 are identical to #1)

Go to http://www.myvisajobs.com/Company.aspx?ID=160236

1. Dove Science Academy (note different address on web form below)

Company Name	Dove Science Academy
NAICS Industry	Educational Services
Economic Sector	Educational Services
Most Popular H1B Visa Address	919 NW 23rd Street Oklahoma City, OK 73106
Busiest H1B Visa Contact	Mustafa Guvercin, Principal*
Sponsor Rank	1,778
H1B Visa 2009	37
H1B Visa Salary 2009	$36,259
Green Card 2009	-
Green Card Salary 2009	-
H1B Visa 2001 - 2010	185
H1B Denied 2001-2010	3
PERM Total 2005-2010	22
PERM Denied 2005-2010	9
PERM Withdrawn 2005-2008	-
Green Card 2000 - 2010	41
Total Visa Petitions	226

Green Card applications

• 2001-0
• 2002-0
• 2003-18
• 2004-1
• 2005-8
• 2006-12
• 2007-1
• 2008-1
• 2009-0

H1B Visa applications

• 2001-11
• 2002-6
• 2003-8
• 2004-19
• 2005-8
• 2006-45
• 2007-31
• 2008-20
• 2009-37

2. Dove Science Academy – Oklahoma City

Company Name	Dove Science Academy - Oklahoma City
NAICS Industry
Economic Sector
Most Popular H1B Visa Address	919 NW 23th Street Oklahoma City, OK 73106
Busiest H1B Visa Contact	Mustafa Guvercin, Principal
Sponsor Rank	8,224
H1B Visa 2009	26
H1B Visa Salary 2009	$35,045
Green Card 2009	-
Green Card Salary 2009	-
H1B Visa 2001 - 2010	48
H1B Denied 2001-2010	-
PERM Total 2005-2010
PERM Denied 2005-2010	-
PERM Withdrawn 2005-2008	-
Green Card 2000 - 2010	-
Total Visa Petitions	48

Green Card applications

• none

H1B Visa applications

• 2001-0
• 2002-0
• 2003-0
• 2004-0
• 2005-2
• 2006-3
• 2007-1
• 2008-16
• 2009-26

* In addition to being the principal of Dove Science Academy in Oklahoma City, Mustafa Guvercin also worked at other southern-state Gulen missionary schools. In 2007 and 2008, he is recorded as the C.E.O. of Abramson Science and Technology Charter School in New Orleans. In 2009, Guvercin is described as the Harmony Schools Cluster Superintendent in Austin. In 2010, he is described as Executive Director on a summer program brochure for Bluebonnet Learning Center in Houston (in which there is "no registration fee for Harmony and SST students").

Evidence of the affiliation between the Gulen Movement and the Dove Science Academy is found HERE.