The Palm Beach County School Board, already clashing with the state over charter school rules, on Wednesday turned down three of five charter applicants.
School district staff members said they found issues in multiple areas of the plans submitted for Hyatt Christian Masters Academy and Victory Academy. They cited problems involving budget plans for a high-performing third school, BridgePrep Academy. All three schools lacked innovation, which is required by the state, they said.
The board approved two West Palm Beach campuses of the Florida High School for Accelerated Learning, which focuses on innovative pathways for at-risk students.
But charter school advocates were upset by the three rejections, which they said the state would overturn.
“They are becoming ground zero for anti-charter school action,” said Ralph Arza, who represents the Florida Charter School Alliance. “I think they’re going in that direction now, and I think it’s really sad.”
He accused the board of turning down the charter schools for financial reasons, comparing the district to a taxi company caught in a battle against ride-sharing service Uber.
School board members refuted those allegations.
“That is not at all an accurate portrayal of where we are as a school district,” Board Chairman Chuck Shaw said, adding the district is seeking to hold charter schools accountable.
Palm Beach County already has nearly 50 charter schools.
Across Florida in recent months, efforts have been made to step up charter school accountability following a rash of closures. In South Florida, nearly 40 charter schools have closed since 2012.
Some never opened their doors to students, while others closed suddenly mid-year. Some schools still owe thousands in taxpayer dollars to local districts.
In an appeal filed with the 4th District Court of Appeals last month, the Palm Beach School Board called the state’s charter school appeals process unconstitutional.
The appeal said that by allowing the state Board of Education to overturn a school board’s decision, the state is infringing on the powers of local boards to operate, control and supervise district schools.
So far this year, the school board has received 17 applications for new charter schools, administrators said. The two approved by the board Wednesday are the first to be given an OK.
bshammas@sunsentinel.com, 954-356-4528 or Twitter @britsham
