The Bylaws on file with NC Charter School Advisory Board from 2014 until August 2018 forbid the following (According to the State office, Bylaws must be submitted and approved to be valid):
1) “Any Director shall be excused from the discussion and vote on any matter involving a) self-dealing transaction b) conflict of interest c) indemnification of that Director “ - Article IV. The new Bylaws say the person can stay in the room but not vote. Parents received proof of the following with emails. Will post later. Why would Andy Francis refuse to leave during discussion of who to use for a project when his father submitted a bid? What the Board is now saying is that it is okay to do what Andy Francis has been doing according to the information and emails obtained: Only 1 or 2 bids have been obtained on the jobs that parents received, one being his father’s business; emails show that Andy Francis refers to “we” when communicating with the School Finance Officer about payment and failure to obtain a permit when required; refusal to leave the room when his father’s business was going to be discussed with the statement that he just wouldn’t vote. This is the same reasoning the Board has given as justification that everything is on the up and up. Just because it is not against the law, does it mean it is ethical? Just because you CAN do something doesn’t mean you should. This is not what we teach our children and not how we want our public charter school run.
2) “No Officer or Director shall for reason of the office be entitled to receive salary or compensation.” Article V. PAUL FOLEY has been on the Board since at least 2014 (I don’t have minutes prior to that and request for this information was not answered) AND IS PAID BY CFA TO ATTEND BOARD MEETINGS. What needs to be confirmed is how much (I was told $1000 to $2000 per meeting. If it was for travel expense, then it would be a reimbursement per visit which is different. I have sent an email to Tony Helton this am and will let everyone know the reply. According to other CFA schools, the CFA reps serve in an advisory role. Paul Foley has served as Treasurer and has served beyond the 3 years allowed in the 2014 Bylaws. The August 2018 removes this language to the Board’s advantage. Response from Tony Helton, CEO of CFA: “Thank you for your email. Our TeamCFA Board Representatives are not "paid to attend each meeting". These individuals are consultants that work with TeamCFA.
3) “Of The membership, there shall be two elected parent representatives and two elected teacher representatives who will serve two-year non-renewable term, but who may be repointed after a four year break in service as a board member.“ Article. IV Steve Herndon and Elizabeth Sabolovic started as Parent Reps in 2015. There term was extended in violation of the Bylaws. Just because the Board votes them in does not make it valid. Also, they were motioned in against protocol of announcing the intent to vote the month prior. There was no open process available to other parents. I don’t ever recall a vote announced publicly for parents to vote for this position and there is nothing in the Parent newsletters dating back to early 2015.
4) Same Article as above: Nick Longerbeam and Donna Trimble have been on the Board at least Since September 2014. Their term should have ended in Sept 2016 at the latest. Why haven’t teachers been able to vote?
5) DON’T BE CONFUSED ABOUT THE TERM DUAL CURRICULUM! Dual curriculum could mean taking courses at the Community College outside of class, taking online classes, OR what one member of the Board is promoting: replacing classes during the day.
Our Charter states, “The Board of Directors may not violate or stray from the classical curriculum to pursue other models.” There is mention of considering dual enrollment but at the university level, not community college. Keep in mind that AP classes are much more difficult than Community College classes typically. AP Credit can transfer to any University but Community College credits may not. Community College credits are accepted in schools in NC according to law. NC public universities have to accept all NC community college credits IF the student is accepted. The average student accepted to UNC Chapel Hill has many AP classes in High School.
The Board does not serve stakeholders best interest at all if they pick and choose which Bylaws to follow and ignore the ones that do not conform to their agenda! The Board states it is a “perverse irony” that I complained about wasted funds since the request of records is costing money and staff time. Did they ever think that maybe their suspicious actions may be at fault? When a Charter School Board acts in secrecy, the stakeholders have a right to know. Had they been acting in an ethical way to begin with, do you think parents would be so upset?
Plato opined that it all ends in tyranny, “but without virtue and self-control this ends in chaos; out of which a tyrant would arise.