NC Board of Education gives Raleigh's Torchlight Academy deadline to comply with special education laws

A Raleigh charter school is now in the highest level of noncompliance status for what state education officials say is a failure to follow federal special education laws.

On Thursday, the North Carolina State Board of Education voted without opposition to give Torchlight Academy, which enrolls about 600 kindergarten through eighth grade students, until Jan. 5 to prove its begun complying with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. After that, the school could face further discipline, which could include charter revocation.

"The State Board of education is deeply concerned about the ongoing, longstanding and widespread failure of Torchlight Academy to comply with federal special education laws," Chairman Eric Davis said.

Davis noted findings from the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction's Exceptional Children Division, which accused the school of falsifying students records to make it appear as though the school was reviewing students' individualized education programs annually. Federal law requires an annual review of each student's program.

School officials did not speak publicly during Thursday's virtual board meeting but argued their case last week before the North Carolina Charter Schools Advisory Board. They noted the school had a new director of the school's exceptional children program and called the state's actions unprecedented and unfair.

The charter school was already under "governance cautionary status" -- the first level of noncompliance. Last week, the North Carolina Charter Schools Advisory Board recommended the state board move them to the second level, probation. That would have given the school 30 more days to fix its problems. Continued issues after that, the advisory board recommended, should result in more severe action, which could include revocation of the school's charter.

But the State Board of Education voted Thursday to move the charter school to the third level -- "governance noncompliance status" -- which gives them 10 calendar days to fix their noncompliance issues.

The board gave the school about 19 more days, many of which will occur over winter break, to comply with the law. The school must submit its proof that it has complied by 9 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 5, right before the board's two-day monthly meeting.

"Rather than acknowledge its failures, Torchlight continues to blame the Office of Charter Schools and DPI's Exceptional Children Division," Davis said. DPI offered support to Torchlight, he said. He called the school's predicament "a substantial failure to comply."

Thursday's decision was difficult, board Education Innovation and Charter Schools Committee Chair Amy White told the board.

"Difficult in that we recognize students in our great state have not been served," White, who motioned for the sanctions, said. Educators have not shown the level of committed required to provide a sound basic education to students, she said.

EARLIER

A Raleigh charter school is facing probationary status for what state education officials say is noncompliance with federal special education laws.

Torchlight Academy, which enrolls about 600 kindergarten through eighth grade students, is currently under “governance cautionary status” for noncompliance.

Earlier this month, state charter school officials determined the school hadn’t done enough to be removed from that status.

Instead, the Charter School Advisory Board of the State Board of Education recommended the school be moved to “governance probationary status.” Under that, if the school did not come into compliance within 30 days, the advisory board recommended “more severe action” against the school, which could include a revocation of its charter.

The North Carolina State Board of Education will meet in called session Thursday afternoon to discuss, among other things, taking action against the school for nearly two years of identified issues within their exceptional children program for students with disabilities.

The school has previously asked for more time to comply with the state’s requests and cited new hires, including a new exceptional children program director.

The school opened in 1999, under the purview of nonprofit Northeast Raleigh Charter Academy. Its elementary school sits just outside of the Interstate 440 belt line, off of Atlantic Avenue on Bramer Drive. Its middle school is farther southeast, off of Old Poole Road.

In April, North Carolina’s public school districts and public charter schools reported about 12.6% of children age 5 to 21 and 13.5% of children age 3 to 21 as receiving exceptional children services.

Torchlight Academy reported 30 of its 624 students — just 4.8% — were receiving exceptional children services.

That’s down from from 40 or more students in nearly every year prior, according to state data, even as the school’s enrollment increased.

In a presentation to the Charter School Advisory Board earlier this month, the school reported 42 students receiving exceptional children services this fall and another three students still completing the referral process. It reported enrolling 618 total students this fall.

In its recommendation, the advisory board found the school had been “grossly negligent” in its oversight of the exceptional children program, did not properly implement the program as required by the federal Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act (IDEA), altered and falsified student records, falsely reported training compliance, did not provide adequate access to student and finance records, and had unqualified staff.

The school contends, in a Dec. 7 filing with the advisory board, that it made attempts to provide the state with every record requested, that the state had marked the school as “compliant” for exceptional children programming in its overall 2020 performance review, that the state’s findings are based on little information and that the state is hindering the school’s ability to make corrections.

“Torchlight is clearly being held to a higher standard than other schools in the state of NC which is an issue that should lead to an investigation by the federal government,” the filing reads.

School leadership argues the state didn’t begin to offer “adequate assistance” until this fall and notes that the school hired a new director of exceptional children in October.

The school has begun an Exceptional Children’s Program Comprehensive Reform Task Force, outlined in a 20-page response to the Charter School Advisory Board in October.

The North Carolina Department of Public Instruction’s Exceptional Children Division first found deficiencies — in violation of the IDEA — in the school’s exceptional children services during a February 2020 site visit. The visit was part of routine monitoring.

During the visit, state officials examined the records of five random students receiving exceptional children services and found noncompliance with at least one student’s case when it came to several components of the review. For example, four out of the five individualized education plans had not be reviewed in the past year. Officials also found some employees lacking knowledge of how different elements of the exceptional children program work.

The school had until April 2021 to correct the problems identified.

“During the last year and a half and despite being told they were out of compliance with federal laws, Torchlight has undertaken little corrective effort,” the recommendation to the State Board of Education for Thursday’s meeting reads.

An unannounced visit in September found further issues, including untrained and unqualified staff.