Reporter Nuria Martinez-Keel covers K-12 and higher education throughout the state of Oklahoma. "On behalf of the school, I wanted to apologize to him for what he went through." "This school was weaponized back previously with the prior management company and (was) used inappropriately, really, against Sen. Epic also must pay Sharp $35,000 to cover his attorney fees.Įpic's school board agreed Wednesday to pay Sharp.
Sharp was Epic Charter Schools' most vocal critic in the state Legislature while he held office.Īn Oklahoma County district judge dismissed the lawsuit and awarded Sharp $500,000 in an anti-SLAPP ruling. Ron Sharp, R-Shawnee, speaks in a Senate Education Committee meeting at the State Capitol in Oklahoma City on Feb. It has authorized Epic One-on-One since 2015.įormer state Sen. The consolidated Epic will now answer to only one authorizer, the Statewide Virtual Charter School Board, a small state agency that oversees Oklahoma's six virtual charter schools. Rose State earned $3.7 million from Epic over the 2015-2020 fiscal years. A charter school authorizer earns 3% of the school's state revenue in exchange for giving oversight and approving a charter's right to operate in Oklahoma. Oklahoma law prohibits money appropriated to one school district from flowing to another.Ī third entity in charge of Epic Blended, Rose State College, will no longer authorize the school. The Oklahoma State Department of Education confirmed its approval of the consolidation on Friday.Īnother agency overseeing Epic, the Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board, encouraged the merger as a way to avoid improper commingling of funds between the two districts. Education State Opens Investigation of Epic Charter Schools Over New Allegations by Oklahoma Watch DecemUpdated JanuAn Epic Charter School administrative office building is seen on 122nd Street in northwest Oklahoma City. "It takes a tremendous amount of administrative burden off this team trying to navigate two school districts when we were always operating really as one." We pay the highest teacher compensation in the state and provide paid health insurance, as well as Teacher Retirement System of Oklahoma and/or 401K benefits. "This is a huge step forward," Campbell said during the board meeting. Budgets for both districts have combined into one $266 million pot.īoard Chairperson Paul Campbell said Epic projects the consolidation could save at least $4 million through improved efficiency. Almost half of these 3,400 students were promoted to the next grade level the following school year, Clark said. Employees will work for one school district instead of two. About 5 of Epic's students in the 2020-21 school year, or 3,400 schoolchildren, were absent 75 of the time they were enrolled. Epic students will no longer enroll in one branch or the other.
0 kommentar(er)
