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School board backs superintendent’s request to close Osceola County charter school

OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. — An Osceola County charter school is at risk of being closed after the school board backed the superintendent’s request to shut it down.

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The American Classical Charter Academy has been in existence for just a short time and, already, the Osceola County School Board had voted to begin the process of closing it.

A termination letter from the superintendent says the school is in financial trouble, writing that an audit showed that in 2021, expenditures at the end of that year were more than $600,000 in the red.

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The superintendent went on to say that management has not been meeting their financial obligations in order to fund payroll and operating expenses, and that the rent is so far behind that the eviction process is already underway.

The letter also states that there is a lack of training and currently only 10 of the 28 instructional staff hold a valid teaching certificate and has had six principals in a year.

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Parents said they don’t want to see the school shut down since their children are doing much better than they were in public schools.

The school did not respond to Channel 9′s request for comment, but the district said the charter’s board has filed an appeal.

A judge will have 60 days to make a decision and the school will have that time to try and fix the issues. If not, the school will officially close in July.

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Shannon Butler

Shannon Butler, WFTV.com

Shannon joined the Eyewitness News team in 2013.

Adam Poulisse, WFTV.com

Adam Poulisse joined WFTV in November 2019.