NOLA Public Schools: Two charter networks violated state law on background checks | The Lens

NOLA Public Schools: Two charter networks violated state law on background checks | The Lens

NOLA Public Schools: Two charter networks violated state law on background checks

James M. Singleton Charter School failed to conduct criminal background checks for some of its employees and employed someone ineligible to work at the school because of a criminal conviction, according to a Wednesday letter to the school from the NOLA Public Schools district warning that the school’s practices on background checks violated state law. The district letter also said that the Louisiana State Police could not confirm the validity of a number of background checks in the school’s files.

The district issued a separate letter on March 10 citing KIPP New Orleans Schools for employing someone ineligible to work in a school because of a past criminal conviction. 

Schools are legally required to complete employee background checks to ensure they do not hire someone who’s been convicted of or pleaded no contest to one or more of a list of crimes outlined in state law. Many of the violations are serious or involve children, such as murder, assault, kidnapping, child desertion and carnal knowledge of a juvenile. Others involve prostitution or manufacture or distribution of drugs.

On Tuesday, a spokesman with the New Orleans Police Department told The Lens that the incidents are related but did not elaborate further.

“We’ve been advised that the principal of James Singleton School was instructed by school CONTINUE READING: NOLA Public Schools: Two charter networks violated state law on background checks | The Lens

Police investigating alleged embezzlement at Warren Easton Charter High School | The Lens

Police investigating alleged embezzlement at Warren Easton Charter High School | The Lens

Police investigating alleged embezzlement at Warren Easton Charter High School

Warren Easton Charter High School’s annual financial audit has revealed a $70,000 discrepancy in the school’s student activity funds, and the New Orleans Police Department is investigating the matter as a theft by a former employee.

The incident, reported to police in December, occurred between March 2019 and July 2020, according to the school’s annual financial audit released Monday. The audit does not reveal the name of the employee accused of stealing the money but says that the person is no longer employed by the school.

“The Business Manager of the School fraudulently absconded with $70,842 of Student Activity Funds,” the audit states.

Asked whether any arrests had been made, an NOPD spokesman wrote, “We have not been made aware of any arrests at this time in this investigation.” CONTINUE READING: Police investigating alleged embezzlement at Warren Easton Charter High School | The Lens

NOLA Public Schools warns Rooted School over grading scale

Rooted School, a charter high school located at Touro Synagogue on St. Charles Avenue, found itself in hot water with the NOLA Public Schools district earlier this month over a grading scale it has used for the last four years and that its founder and CEO says the district was well aware of.

But earlier this month, a top district official issued a warning letter to the school, saying the way it grades is a violation of NOLA Public Schools policy. 

Since opening in 2017, Rooted founder and CEO Jonathan Johnson said the school has used an “ABCF” grading scale — notably absent is the just-passing D. At Rooted, anything that would have fallen into the district’s D on the grading scale is an F. 

“Essentially our philosophy was — and still is — that D does not constitute passing,” Johnson said in an interview on Friday, explaining that grades are a strong indicator of how students perform in college. 

Johnson said the district has known about the grading scale for several years CONTINUE READING: NOLA Public Schools warns Rooted School over grading scale