To: William Harrison, Chairman, State Board of Education, Dr. June Atkinson, State Superintendent, and Betsy West
Mr. William Harrison and The North Carolina State Board of Education Vote "NO" to the Howard & Li...
Vote “No” for the Howard & Lilllian Lee Scholars Charter School
National Heritage Academies (NHA), a for profit Education Management Organization, from Grand Rapids, Michigan currently manage five charter schools in the state of North Carolina, none of which out perform the Chapel Hill Carrboro City School district.
We believe in public accountability for the expenditure of public monies, particularly for the keystone to our democracy - public education for all our children, the poorest and the wealthiest. The NHA application would sidestep the democratic process of accountability for our taxpayer’s money, and divert our tax dollars into the coffers of a Michigan based profit making corporation dedicated to its bottom line. The NHA model provides that 95% of all public funds allocated to the charter will be managed by NHA.
We do not believe that the National Heritage Academies, founded by J.C. Huizenga, has the best interest of educating our communities children at heart. NHA’s overall track record in North Carolina is dismal to average at best.
NHA proudly boast a “test” driven model. The class schedules and seasons are dedicated to students developing habits that center around test-taking. Hardly making our children engaged 21st Century learners that will retain knowledge of coursework after completing exams.
Don’t be fooled: This is not about “education choice for all” or “closing the achievement gap”........This is about the 1%, privatizing public education, and taking advantage of all the children and families of our community and state.
We respectfully urge you to reject the application for charter of the Howard and Lillian Lee Scholars Charter. We don’t want National Heritage Academies in our school district, county or state!
Sincerely,
Concerned Citizens of Chapel Hill Carrboro City Schools and the State of North Carolina
Why is this important?
In less than two weeks our NC State Board of Education will decide whether or not to make final approval for a new charter school named The Howard & Lillian Lee Scholars School in our district. This new charter will siphon away over $4.5 million dollars from our local public education budget that has already seen major reductions in the past few years. The profit will not go back into the community but into the coffers of a private for profit company, National Heritage Academies.