Superintendent got portion of charter revenue
Steve Van Zant’s contract included charter stipend
he charter schools that Steve Van Zant ushered in while at the helm of the Mountain Empire Unified School District paid off in multiple ways to the former superintendent, while setting the stage for animosity and litigation that would linger for years throughout San Diego County.
Written into Van Zant’s contract was a stipulation that he personally receive 5 percent of the revenue brought in from every charter authorized by the school board, according to documents obtained by The San Diego Union-Tribune.
On top of his $130,000 salary running a district with barely 2,800 students at the time, Van Zant earned between $19,000 and $25,000 a year from what amounted to a charter school commission, according to Mountain Empire financial records. Van Zant profited yet again when some of the charters went on to hire his EdHive consulting firm, which charged as much as $100,000 to provide back-office services among other billable offerings.
Van Zant’s financial interests in growing charters has raised new questions about the arrangements amid a countywide charter school growth spurt. How charter schools are authorized has drawn scrutiny across California, with legislators and state officials considering ways to restrict the process.
The 13 independent-study charters authorized under Van Zant from 2008 through 2013 helped the superintendent professionally by delivering revenue to the cash-strapped district that was still recovering from the state’s fiscal crisis. By approving charters to operate in other districts, Mountain Empire could claim a percentage of the charter’s revenue for oversight and other services without any significant threat to its enrollment or state attendance funds.
Under Van Zant, the district earned as much as $500,000 a year from charter schools.
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Van Zant, 53, has declined repeated requests for an interview through his attorney Garland Peed. Mountain Empire’s seven school board members have been unavailable for comment.
Kathy Granger, who replaced Van Zant as superintendent of Mountain Empire, said there are no plans to approve new charters.
“What's going on with charters now, I would say the board is probably more aware now because of my leadership style,” Granger said. “Certainly as I’ve learned new things, I’ve been surprised about the way things were rolled out or created here.”
Van Zant is due in Superior Court on Thursday for a readiness hearing related to a felony conflict-of-interest Superintendent got charter commission | SanDiegoUnionTribune.com:
