Dehesa says Inspire charter schools corporation appears to be skirting transparency laws
If the Inspire schools fail to remedy several issues, Dehesa says it may consider revoking the schools’ charters
The Dehesa School District says a corporation that has been managing the Inspire charter schools across California appears to have been skirting transparency and conflict of interest laws.
Dehesa says the corporation, called Inspire District Office, is a charter management organization and therefore is subject to such laws. The corporation, which has ties to charter schools around the state serving more than 36,000 students, denies that.
Dehesa’s Acting Superintendent Rich Thome recently sent letters to two Inspire schools that Dehesa oversees, saying that the Inspire District Office has been given too much control over what should be local school matters — such as maintaining student records, monitoring student performance and setting school board agendas.
Dehesa authorizes and oversees two Inspire schools: Pacific Coast Academy and Cabrillo Point Academy. Both schools are projected to each receive $39 million of state funding this year, based on how many students they enroll, according to their latest interim financial reports.
Inspire District Office collects 15 percent of all state tax dollars sent to Inspire schools and it is involved in what may be all of Inspire schools’ operations, Thome said in his letters.
Yet Inspire District Office has refused to release details of its finances or operations to the San Diego Union-Tribune in response to public records requests.
And when Dehesa requested invoices between the district office and its schools, Inspire said it has no invoices for the services it has provided the schools.
Thome wrote that if the Inspire schools fail to remedy several issues noted in its letters, Dehesa “will consider all available options,” including revoking the two schools’ charters. CONTINUE READING: Dehesa says Inspire charter schools corporation appears to be skirting transparency laws - The San Diego Union-Tribune
