Texas Ed Commissioner Abruptly Suspends Operations of SASIC Charter Schools Due to Apparent Criminal Background Check and Health Violations
On March 08, 2017, Texas Commissioner of Education Mike Morath suspended the operations of San Antonio-based charter school district, San Antonio School for Inquiry and Creativity (SASIC). Furthermore, SASIC authorities were required to attend a hearing on March 10, 2017, regarding a number of reported violations that Morath believed had not been properly addressed prior to March 08th.
Many concerns about SASIC operations were detailed in a letter sent from Texas State Representative and Chair of Vice Chair of the Texas House Committee on Education, Diego Bernal, on February 10, 2017. Bernal writes:
Recently, alarming reports of misconduct, outlined below, have been brought to my attention directly by [SASIC] faculty, staff, and parents…:These complaints include:
- Improper conduct and contact between staff and students
- Improper, unsanitary storage of food
- Serving expired, rotten food to students which resulted in student illness and absences
- Falsification of employee records and timesheets
- Failure to pay employee salaries, hourly wages, and overtime pay
- Threatening teacher and staff employment and certifications for raising concerns about the school environment and management
- Falsification of student transcripts, attendance records, and other State accountability documents
- Nepotism within the District Office
As such, I ask that you receive this letter as both a formal complaint and a request for a full investigation.
As News4Antonio reports, on February 16, 2017, Morath contacted SASIC Superintendent Sonja Nelson warning of possible funding and operations suspension and requesting evidence demonstrating that SASIC is in compliance with criminal Texas Ed Commissioner Abruptly Suspends Operations of SASIC Charter Schools Due to Apparent Criminal Background Check and Health Violations | deutsch29:
