Newpoint Schools: The Quicksand Effect

Newpoint schools in Pensacola are no more.  

Two have been closed by the Board of Education, and the third school was closed at the direction of Newpoint themselves.

The State Attorney's office is investigating these schools, one arrest has been made already, and the investigation into other aspects of Newpoint and the school district's handling of Newpoint continues, I have confirmed this via a conversation with someone intimately familiar with the investigation.

But left in the wake of Newpoint's implosion, though, is the quicksand effect--innocent bystanders caught in the mess.  

-Teachers want to be paid and feel they have been treated unfairly.  More than one former Newpoint teacher has told me they feel their reputations have been tarnished as a result of their affiliation with the former Newpoint Pensacola operation;  one has confided in me that she has applied for 12 positions within the Escambia district and has not been able to find a job.  She feels she has been blackballed. 

-Parents and students feel betrayed by this organization--and have expressed this in the media and to me personally

-Vendors and lenders are coming forward now, demanding payment. 

Now comes an action in Federal Court:  A writ of Garnishment has been filed and now the district has to answer in court, delineating what monies we still hold from Newpoint, and what it is we are owed by Newpoint.  Similar to a bankruptcy proceeding--eventually a Judge will rule on who's monetary claims take precedence and where the remaining monies should be allocated.  This writ is looking at $70K--my understanding is we're holding less than $30K from Newpoint. 

 

And then there is the issue of the former Newpoint teachers and where their monetary claims will be prioritized by the Judge.

I hope the employees, purveyors, and every other monetary claim is paid, I hope the Judge rules this way, and I hope this is made to happen before this organization (or any re-constituted version of this group)  receives one $.01 cent from any other state, city, or school board anywhere else in America.

I hope the Judge hammers them and punishes them for what they have done here in Pensacola.

The quicksand effect this mismanagement of Newpoint created will unfortunately give a black-eye to legitimate charter-school operators nationwide, and for that the damage is incalculable. 

Newpoint: North Carolina Asking Questions about Newpoint Issues Here Prior to Newpoint Schools opening There.....

...Apparently there are several pending applications by Newpoint for schools in North Carolina.

An administrator with the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction has requested the electronically available public records pertaining to Escambia County's investigation into our Newpoint schools here locally.  What was requested by this NC official, and what was provided yesterday, were the following:

1.  The redacted electronic copy of my initial package of information from a whistle-blower.

2.  A redacted copy of Tab "5" from the district's binder.

These officials are paying close attention to the media surrounding Newpoint schools both here and in Panama City.

Will the issues here lead to charter application denials in North Carolina??

We shall see.

Newpoint: "You Know Enough, You Know What You Need to Know, Now Vote!"

Because we are the body that contracts, not the district, it is somewhat unsettling to be told, "This is enough, the contract violations are enough, now vote!" 

So to articulate for the record exactly why I voted the way I did, My "NO" vote to the closure of all of the Newpoint schools was by no means a defense of Newpoint's contract violations or an affirmation of the way Newpoint ran their schools. 

It was a "NO" to the start-stop, on again, off again approach that the district has utilized here-the spiritless, feckless, almost craven way in which Newpoint was not investigated in May of 2014 for the multiple issues that were known at that time . After all, in May of 2014 we had just approved a multi-year, multi-million dollar charter contract with Newpoint five-flags the month before.  Maybe if an investigation was done then, that start-up on July 1st may have bee pulled back?  Who knows, right?  So my vote last night was by no means meant to imply I feel Newpoint is blameless, It was a "NO" for lots of reasons, partly the way this whole Newpoint mess has been handled.  

I voted "NO" because there are still unresolved allegations not yet fully known to all that staff was hindered from doing this investigation in a more timely fashion and telling the board. 

I voted "NO" because there have been dramatic, disturbing leadership failures in the district that led to this not being investigated when it should have been, leading to the School Board being left in the dark which is unacceptable.

It was a "NO" vote expressing my significant angst with the sloppy way the Superintendent failed to keep the school board appraised of the issues at Newpoint. (I guess I'm the only one who thought that was a legitimate beef, but I won't accept being treated like a mushroom.) 

It was a "NO" because I know there were allegations from a year ago that were not followed-up on that could have led to a plan to correct these issues at all the Newpoint schools, but nobody did anything to follow up sufficiently. Most importantly-- had action been taken when it should have, In May/June of 2014, student safety could have been bolstered over this past year, instead of being compromised multiple times. 

So my "NO" vote was over this whole sloppy, choppy, and frankly deficient process utilized to make a "problem" go away and disappear for what I believe to be political expediency. The process matters, and everyone--even those "EVIL" Charter School Operators--- who is facing closure deserves a full accounting of ALL allegations to be known before the governing board takes a vote. 

Otherwise we are subverting due process for expediency. That's what Third-World Banana Republics do, I don't want America, Florida, or Escambia County to be like them....