Colorado: State Tells District to “Reconsider” Walton-Dominated Charter– But Let’s Not Mention Walton. | deutsch29:
Colorado: State Tells District to “Reconsider” Walton-Dominated Charter– But Let’s Not Mention Walton.
Walmart grandson, James Walton, is substantially connected to Colorado’s proposed Great Work Montessori School (GWMS).
In October 2016, the Denver Advisory Committee (DAC) expressed serious concerns about the GWMS application, including the lack of transparency surrounding its “partnering” with a “property services company, TGNA Holdings LLC, and Walton ties to that company.
Chief among the concerns by the [JeffCo] school board: the charter’s business model. The charter planned to rely partly on grants from the Walton Foundation and on tuition, up to $1,500 per month, from parents of pre-K students, to cover the budget.
Then there’s the involvement of the Walton Foundation. Head of School Amy Malick (sp.) told The Colorado Independent that the foundation had no involvement with the charter beyond a $250,000 grant, contingent on the charter winning approval from the Jeffco board.
In fact, the school was the brainchild of Walton Foundation board member James Walton, a resident of Golden.
The Independent obtained a letter from James Walton to the Jeffco board that attempted to clarify the foundation’s involvement. …
Walton’s letter dealt with the school’s proposed location, off West Center Avenue in east Lakewood. A property for the school was purchased last month by TGNA Holdings, which also holds title to the land and building of a Walton-backed private preschool in Edgewater. …
Contrary to Malick’s (sp.) description of TGNA as a non-profit, Walton said the company is a Delaware-based single-member limited liability company. TGNA will either buy or sell property on its own behalf, he wrote.
However, while its articles of incorporation show TGNA is a Delaware company, its principal mailing address, according to documents filed with the Colorado Secretary of State, is a post office box belonging to Walton Enterprise, Inc. of Bentonville, Arkansas.
