New Village Charter School

OAKLAND CHARTER SCHOOL MUST CLOSE ITS DOORS / Eighty students displaced for next school year; April 27, 2000; San Francisco Chronicle (CA)

OAKLAND -- After limping along for three years with seesaw enrollment and 100 percent teacher turnover, the New Village charter school in Oakland is calling it quits.

Two weeks ago, all four teachers and the principal resigned, paving the way for the Alameda County Board of Education's vote Tuesday that revoked the school's charter contract…

Success Academy (two campuses)

CHARTER SCHOOL LEFT $1.2 MILLION DEBT; SUCCESS ACADEMY IN ST. PAUL LEFT A TRAIL OF FINANCIAL DEBRIS, AN AUDITOR'S REPORT FOUND; December 30, 2000; Star Tribune (Minneapolis, MN)

Before losing its charter and closing its doors last spring, the Success Academy charter school in St. Paul racked up more than $1.2 million in debt, according to an independent auditor's report filed with the state Friday.

The academy, which operated two sites serving almost 600 elementary-school children, left a trail of financial debris in its wake. The list of debtors includes staff members, who are owed $301,196 in salary and related expenses; vendors, who are owed $194,000, and taxpayers…

The K-6 school grew rapidly, but not as quickly as the enrollment projections it submitted to the state…

Of the $742,726 owed to taxpayers, $608,000 resulted from the school overstating its enrollment and failing to meet the state's expectations for its extended-year program. In addition, the St. Paul School District's position is that it overpaid the school for special-education costs by $134,000. However, Success Academy officials contest the state and district's claims and will appeal, according to the report…

…auditors found a number of irregularities and highlighted the limitations of their review in their cover letter to the association:

"We were unable to verify the completeness or accuracy of the liability balances as the School did not maintain office staff or an accounting function after July 2000. Also, we were unable to obtain written representations from management of the School as required by auditing standards generally accepted in the United States of America," the letter says.

Officials with the state Department of Children, Families and Learning are talking with staff members at the attorney general's office about seeking reimbursement from the now-defunct school. But Katie Shea, the department's director of finance and management services, isn't optimistic about recovering the money.

"There's no clear remedy as far as we can tell," she said, adding that the charter-school law did not anticipate management-company arrangements such as Success Academy's.

Walter French Academy

After several years of poor performance and financial mismanagement, Walter French Academy's charter was revoked in July 2004 and the school was closed. State Senator Virg Bernero called Walter French Academy "the poster child for the abuse that is possible under the current [charter school] structure — or lack thereof."…

WALTER FRENCH REDEFINES MISSION -- GROWING PAINS EASE FOR LANSING ACADEMY: Area Charter school weathers changes in order to survive; May 7, 2000; Lansing State Journal 

A kindergarten class wasn't in the plan when Walter French Academic opened in 1996.

The academy was Lansing's first fling into the new world of junior and senior high charter schools. Applicants typically were at least 11 years old, and computer literacy was preferred. After all, Walter French was billed as a high-tech alternative to Lansing's traditional public schools.

But today, 5-year-old frolic with crayons and counting beads. And the school this year dropped "Business and Technology" from its title. The changes have helped the school nearly erase a $3 million deficit caused by startup problems in 1996.

When schools close for the summer in a few weeks, Michigan's charter school industry completes its first five years. Many of those schools, including Walter French, have altered course since debuting as an alternative to traditional public districts…

But some parents say the schools wind up with the same problems as traditional districts. They view the schools as strapped for cash and faced with too many diverse needs to be as effective as promised.

"The concept is good, but I wonder if it's working," said Brenda Petite-el, a Lansing woman who recently pulled her son out of Walter French Academy. "It's not from a lack of effort. But there have been struggles."…

Walter French is a dramatic and somewhat extreme example. The school ran up a $3 million deficit mainly because of opening a week late in 1996. Key equipment had not arrived in time for the scheduled start of classes.

Enrollment plummeted from 650 on opening day to about 400 at the end of the school year. As students left, state financial aid vanished…

Walter French's initial mission was to have all its students geared toward computer technology and business applications. The school still has an internship program with General Motors Corp., and is developing programs to match students with their potential careers as early as seventh grade.

The school has 230 computers for its 600 students, and started a certification program for Microsoft technology in 1998-99. The program was suggested and largely run by the students -- a freedom 1999 Walter French graduate Paul Curtis doubts he would have had at a traditional school.

"Teachers didn't take us for granted," said Curtis, now a Spring Arbor College freshman. "It was a very trusting, open environment."

But just 56 percent of Walter French students took computer technology classes in 1998-99. Some students aren't interested in the subject; others are not academically prepared for it…

A former student launched a petition drive at the school in late February, protesting enforcement of the school's dress code and the school's limited extracurricular offerings. The letter, sent to the Lansing City Council in March, was signed by more than 70 students.

"I definitely think improvements are being made," said Noemi Delgado, a Walter French sophomore. "But there is too much emphasis on the dress code, and not enough on the extracurriculars."

School officials counter that charters don't have the money and weren't designed to offer as many extracurricular activities as traditional schools. They say most of the students didn't know what they were signing, and most didn't know the petition was headed for City Council.

But the incident, sparked by student defections and suspensions for fighting and dress-code violations, reflects that Walter French still has issues. Enrollment has fallen from 641 at the start of this school year to about 600 in April.

Some parents discover their children aren't any happier at charters than they were at traditional schools. Others grow resentful of the dress code or other disciplinary measures.

"Some parents can't hack it, and some kids can't hack it," said Magdalena Renderos, who has four children enrolled at Walter French. "You are going to have your problems like at any other school."…

New Covenant Charter School

NOTE: These battles consume hours and hours of court time and legal costs, all at the public's expense.
JUDGE DENIES SCHOOL'S REQUEST; NEW COVENANT LOSES EFFORT TO STOP CLOSING, BUT SEEKS ANOTHER COURT DATE, July 1, 2010, Times Union (Albany, NY)

ALBANY -- A state judge has denied an injunction to keep New Covenant Charter School from closing on July 31.
Teachers and parents hoped to keep the Arbor Hill charter school open until at least Sept. 24 by requesting the injunction from Supreme Court Justice Joseph Teresi on Wednesday. The group filed suit against the State University of New York and the Board of Regents, which oversee charter schools.
After arguments in the judge's chambers, Teresi denied the request, said attorney Peter Henner, who represented the parents and teachers group...

The attorney said his group was considering "all possible options."

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SUIT FIGHTS CHARTER SCHOOL'S CLOSING; SUPPORTERS ARE SEEKING AN INJUNCTION TO KEEP NEW COVENANT OPEN, June 29, 2010, Times Union (Albany, NY)

ALBANY -- Teachers and parents from New Covenant Charter School filed a lawsuit Monday to try to prevent the school's closing.
The parties will be in state Supreme Court on Wednesday to discuss whether an injunction should be granted renewing the school's charter for another five years. The suit was filed against the board of trustees of the state University of New York and the Board of Regents, both of whom oversee charter schools.
"They held New Covenant to an impossible standard," said Peter Henner, the attorney who filed the lawsuit. "New Covenant has done better than the Albany school district. They've had a tremendous turnaround in the last three years."
The lawsuit is being brought by the New Covenant Charter School Education Faculty Association and its president, Vanessa Volino, a teacher, and four parents: Gloria Nelligan, Bobbi Hyler, Kelly Brady and Maria Sifontes...

Henner said the SUNY board of trustees did not consider the improvement the school had made.
"They are doing as well as could be expected," he said. "They didn't give us credit for the really neat things New Covenant has done."
Sixty-seven percent of students taking the English Language Arts exam passed the test, he said. While that was a higher percentage than in Albany's public schools, he said, SUNY's board did not consider it good enough to allow the school to have its charter renewed. The trustees had set a goal of 75 percent of students passing the exam...

For two years in a row, SUNY's Charter Schools Institute had recommended the school be closed because it had not met academic benchmarks and because of its financial troubles. The Institute had noted that New Covenant's expenses outstripped revenues by $1,700 per student...

Bondholders of the school building stand to lose about $16 million when New Covenant is shuttered if the property remains vacant. Henner declined to confirm or deny whether bondholders are funding the lawsuit.

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SUNY TRUSTEES VOTE TO CLOSE NEW COVENANT CHARTER SCHOOL (Albany), March 23, 2010, SUNY News

New York City - The State University of New York Board of Trustees voted today to close the New Covenant Charter School located in Albany, New York at the end of the current school year.
Today’s decision marks the conclusion of a lengthy review process that included months of analysis by SUNY’s Charter Schools Institute, a community meeting at New Covenant, and two public sessions of the SUNY Trustees’ Charter Schools Committee. New Covenant will continue to operate until the last scheduled day of school, on or about June 21, 2010.
New Covenant Charter School was the second charter school to open in New York State in the fall of 1999. The school has had a difficult history, including an initial charter renewal in 2004 wherein the school was ordered to eliminate instruction in grades 7 and 8 due to low performance; a vote by the school’s own board of trustees to close the school due to fiscal instability in 2007; and two consecutive non-renewal recommendations by SUNY’s Charter Schools Institute. The school currently serves just over 600 students, the large majority of whom are residents of the City School District of Albany...

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NEW COVENANT CHARTER SCHOOL LIKELY CLOSURE - "SYMBOLIC" INDEED, February 24, 2010, The Chalkboard (New York Charter School Association)

The Albany Times Union today reported (here) on yesterday's vote by the SUNY Charter Schools Committee to close New Covenant Charter School at school year's end. This is likely to be reaffirmed and made final by the full SUNY Board next month…
The persistent problems for New Covenant have been lessons learned for SUNY as an authorizer and for charter school operators throughout Albany and statewide. Though SUNY couldn't bring itself for years to hold New Covenant properly accountable for what can only be described as a blind spot, it has held other schools accountable. Back in 1999, the mistakes made in the approval and opening of New Covenant--that is, it opened too quickly and too large--were subequently [sic] corrected. After 2000, SUNY never again allowed for either mistake to be made with charter school proposals. In addition, for years, Edison Schools, Inc. managed New Covenant and several other charters in New York. Today, Edison manages only one school, Harriet Tubman in the Bronx, and has no prospects for more charters in New York any time soon.

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CHARTER SCHOOL'S SUCCESS MAY NOT BE ENOUGH; NEW COVENANT HASN'T MET ACADEMIC TERMS, THOUGH TEST SCORES ARE MUCH BETTER, December 18, 2009, Times Union

ALBANY -- Years of academic improvement may not be enough to save the New Covenant Charter School.
Despite rapidly rising test scores, the school has not met all the academic terms of its last-ditch reprieve, according to a preliminary report from the State University of New York Charter Schools Institute. That could result in the institute recommending to the SUNY Board of Trustees that the school be closed when they vote next month.
School officials this week pointed to a marked improvement in student scores on the state's standardized English and math exams since Victory Schools Inc. took over the troubled institution in 2006…
When the institute recommended the school's closure last year, it cited a poor financial outlook. The school also carries a tremendous debt load of about $16 million on its building and equipment and has a pending lawsuit from previous operator, Edison Schools, seeking almost $3 million in unpaid management fees…
New Covenant was one of the state's first three publicly funded, privately run charter schools. It consistently has failed to meet required benchmarks for state standardized tests and has struggled to keep students…

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CHARTER SCHOOL'S PROBLEMS YIELD CAUTIONARY TALE, August 18, 2000, New York Times

When Gov. George E. Pataki visited the newly opened New Covenant Charter School in Albany last September, he lavished it with praise, proclaiming it a model of the kind of educational change he intended when he pushed a charter school bill through the State Legislature nine months earlier.
In the months after Mr. Pataki's visit, however, New Covenant descended into apparent chaos. Its fourth-graders scored among the lowest in the state on standardized English tests; the for-profit company overseeing the school's academic program resigned; two principals came and went, as did one-fourth of the school's 500 students.
Aaron Dare, founder of the school and president of the local Urban League chapter, whom Mr. Pataki hailed during his visit as ''a visionary,'' quit the New Covenant board after two state inquiries accused him and the school of multiple violations of state education law, including misappropriation of tax dollars.
Now, with three weeks to go before the scheduled start of the new school year, state regulators have threatened to revoke the school's charter, and it is uncertain when, or even if, New Covenant will open again...
That such a spectacular failure could occur practically in Mr. Pataki's backyard, at a school in which he took a close interest, speaks of the difficulties -- in oversight, administration and academic achievement -- in starting a charter school.
Some critics contend, however, that New Covenant's failures were not simply bad luck but rather a direct result of an unnecessary rush last year by Mr. Pataki, a vocal champion of charter schools, and his political appointees to open new schools without time for adequate planning and training. New Covenant received its initial approval a mere three months before it opened...

Last week, the board asked state authorities to allow Edison Schools in Manhattan, the country's largest for-profit operator of public schools, to replace Advantage Schools, an education company based in Boston, as manager of New Covenant's academic programs in the coming year...

Steven F. Wilson, the chief executive of Advantage Schools, said inadequate facilities were among the primary problems with the school. ''We knew our program couldn't successfully operate'' in the portable classrooms, Mr. Wilson said. In its application, the school's sponsors, including Mr. Dare, said that a new, permanent site would be ready in mid-February of this year.
By then, however, the Urban League was having financial difficulties that were beginning to weigh on New Covenant's operations. The school leased its temporary space from a for-profit subsidiary of the Urban League known as the Commons, and last year, the Commons was also in financial trouble. It had made a $2 million loan to a financial company for which it was constructing an office building, but in December, that company collapsed and was unable to pay back the loan. At the same time, an Albany construction company that had performed work on the trailers being used by the school was demanding payment.
According to an inquiry conducted for the SUNY trustees by Richard J. Bartlett, a lawyer in Glens Falls, N.Y., $89,000 in state education money that was supposed to be paid to Advantage was instead forwarded to the Albany construction company by Mr. Dare in December, on behalf of the Commons. Mr. Bartlett said the act violated Mr. Dare's financial responsibilities to the school.
Mr. Bartlett wrote in his report that while Mr. Dare's actions did not ''rise to the level of criminal conduct,'' Mr. Dare should resign from the school's board. Mr. Dare said yesterday that his departure was not related to Mr. Bartlett's report...
Edison has pledged more than $3 million toward the construction of a $10 million building for the school...