22 violations lead to Ka‘u Learning Academy closure

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COURTESY KA‘U LEARNING ACADEMY

The Ka‘u Learning Academy website continued to accept applications for enrollment until this week, when the site was shut down following the state Public Charter School Commission’s decision to revoke its charter contract and close the school.

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The state Public Charter School Commission voted unanimously Monday to revoke the charter contract for Ka‘u Learning Academy and close the school after it was cited for 22 violations.

“I think it’s time to end,” said Commissioner John Kim.

Ka‘u Learning Academy, in Naalehu on Hawaii island, opened its doors in 2015 to students of grades three to seven. It had 93 students enrolled for the coming school year.

The public charter school faced “a total of 22 violations, including financial and operational irregularities, enrollment discrepancies, (and) failure to properly maintain student and employee records,” said a press release from the commission.

An investigation conducted by the state Department of Education last year showed that school officials “hand-picked” better- performing students to take state assessments and excluded low-performing students from those tests. The school’s 2017 scores have been rendered invalid.

The school’s expenses included a $1,000 monthly cellphone bill listed as “school business use,” but half the bill went for phone use by outside organizations, according to an independent financial audit for the fiscal year 2016-2017 and Douglas Flaherty, president of the school’s new governing board.

The school also reimbursed individuals for personal travel costs and made payments to nonprofits that were not associated with the school but had connections to school personnel, Flaherty said.

The previous board also failed to adhere to open- meeting requirements, Flaherty said.

The commission warned the school Nov. 29 that its charter might be revoked. The commission started the revocation process in April.

Ka‘u Learning Academy attempted to clean up its act by electing a new governing board. Flaherty was elected president of the board April 2 and said the old board had “a lack of internal control and oversight” but that the new board had procedures that would ensure checks and balances.

Commission members were supportive of the new board but said the school’s history warranted shutting it down.

“I don’t think you can only look forward,” said Kim.

The charter revocation means the immediate closure of the school. The school has 21 days from the decision to file an appeal to the Board of Education. After 60 days the Board of Education will issue its final decision.