Public school advocates allege the Commonwealth Charter Academy conceals information and wastes taxpayer money, claims that an official of the school calls 'an orchestrated attack.'
Education Voters of Pennsylvania, a pro-public education nonprofit, sent a letter to Pennsylvania Auditor General Timothy DeFoor on Monday asking him to open a forensic audit of Commonwealth Charter Academy.
Photo by Jan Murphy, PennLivePublic school advocates are calling on state officials to investigate Pennsylvania’s largest cyber charter school, Commonwealth Charter Academy, claiming it conceals information from the public and wastes taxpayer money.Timothy DeFoor on Monday asking him to open a forensic audit of Commonwealth Charter Academy. The school, which is headquartered in Harrisburg and has more than 24,000 students throughout the state, was last investigated by the state in 2012. “With no state oversight of this organization’s spending for so many years, the opportunities for waste, fraud and abuse are staggering,” wrote Susan Spicka, executive director of Education Voters of Pennsylvania. April Hutcheson, a spokesperson for DeFoor’s office, said the office is auditing cyber charter schools but would not say whether Commonwealth Charter Academy is part of that audit or when the audit will be completed, as the office does not provide details about ongoing investigations. At a Tuesday press conference, Spicka was joined by Eric Epstein, founder of the government watchdog group Rock the Capital, and Tim Potts, a former Carlisle Area School District board member and longtime public education advocate, who each detailed grievances about Commonwealth Charter Academy. Their complaints included that the school: Had more than $222 million in cash on hand in April, information it excluded from public board materials.Redacted from its board materials information on 380 vendors, to whom it paid a total of more than $180K.Approved more than $50 million in construction costs in April and May. Timothy Eller, Commonwealth Charter Academy’s senior vice president of outreach and government relations, called the press conference and letter to DeFoor an “orchestrated attack” and “political grandstanding.”organizations that want to dictate to families where their children are to be educated,” Eller wrote in an emailed statement. Eller said Commonwealth Charter Academy “follows all public school laws, including annual reports and audits, and responds to all Right-to-Know requests and, as permitted by law, will withhold from public disclosure any and all information that would violate the statutorily protected privacy of our students, families and staff.”in Pennsylvania. Charter school advocates say the schools provide a much-needed alternative to public schools that fail to meet many students’ needs; public school advocates say charter schools drain money from public schools that are already under-resourced. Education Voters of Pennsylvania also sent a letter to state legislators on Monday, echoing its concerns about Commonwealth Charter Academy and asking the Senate to pass a bill that wouldschool districts must pay to charter schools per student. The proposed legislation made it through the House on June 10.Philly suburban town aims to ban gas leaf blowers, but blowback creates delays If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation.and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our
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