Most problems at Macon Charter Academy have 'worsened' in last six months, state letter says

The recommendation to terminate Macon Charter Academy's contract and close the school is based on problems that state education officials first cited in September, according to a letter sent to the school Thursday.

And "over the last six months, these conditions have persisted and worsened," the letter said in part.

The letter came from Aarti Sharma, charter schools division director, and was sent to MCA Principal Tahisha Edwards, governing board President Ed Grant, Bibb school Superintendent Curtis Jones and Bibb school board President Lester Miller.

Among the problem areas mentioned were student discipline, the lack of an effective instruction plan for all grade levels, a lack of training for employees, and failing to ensure students' and employees' physical health.

Jones said Thursday that the letter "does not bode well" for the school's future.

"If these findings are true, Macon Charter Academy has some serious problems that have continued," he said. ... "The state doesn't take these actions lightly."

Repeated attempts to reach Grant and Edwards Thursday were unsuccessful.

Thursday's letter referred to another letter sent on Sept. 24, when MCA was put on probation. At that time, school leaders were instructed to hold Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports training for teachers, which included classroom management training.

MCA reported to the state Department of Education that training had begun, but teachers said otherwise during the visit by state staff members to the school last month.

"Further, the classroom management training scheduled for March 15 started an hour late, leaving only 20 minutes of the (90-minute) training," Sharma wrote.

During that visit, state employees also observed students that were "off-task and disengaged without re-direction," and one student was seen throwing a chair at another student, according to the letter.

In addition to concerns about academic rigor, Sharma also addressed safety issues, such as failing to "secure the facility to prevent public entrance," provide a check-in process and provide proper sanitation at the facility.

Sharma also wrote that trying to recruit new students is against the terms of MCA's probation.

"MCA has continued to recruit students by advertising registration on its Facebook page, web page and in its front office," he wrote.

The school has also accumulated a debt to the IRS for $65,000 in unpaid payroll taxes.

Jones said he was surprised by the state site visit in March and did not learn of it until after the fact. He said he had visited the school this past fall and saw no evidence of some of the particulars cited in the state letter.

But the school district "has not been actively engaged" with MCA, he said, since the school hired Prestige Charter School Services as a management consultant earlier this year.

MCA is now required to provide evidence that students' parents have been notified by April 14 of its potential closure.

The DOE's recommendation for termination will be forwarded to the state school board. If the state board decides to pursue the termination, school and district officials will be notified about a hearing.

The MCA governing board has the option to vote to surrender the school's charter, and a majority of the school's parents or faculty could also finalize a termination of the charter.

Otherwise, the hearing would be held to determine the school's future.

Staff writer Oby Brown contributed to this report. To contact writer Jeremy Timmerman, call 744-4331 or find him on Twitter@MTJTimm.

This story was originally published April 7, 2016 at 6:46 PM with the headline "Most problems at Macon Charter Academy have 'worsened' in last six months, state letter says ."