Joint Support for DC Public Education Quality and Accountability

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                                                                                                                                       October 3, 2024

Dear Council Chair Mendelson and Members of the Committee of the Whole,

We request that you hold a hearing quickly to fully understand all of the circumstances that led to the LEA Eagle Academy’s decision to close two public schools in late August, on the cusp of the 2024-2025 school year.  As a result of this decision, the parents of 350 children were given just a few days to find new schools for their children, and dozens of educators were suddenly left without positions. As one Ward 8 school employee noted: “Instead of putting the money into the schools that are already there and really need it, money is poured into new school developments... And then we must pick up pieces when things don’t work out.”  School takeovers, as indicated by the PCSB in their deliberations are not necessarily an answer, and the deeper underlying issues need to be investigated.     

The Committee of the Whole has legislative and budget oversight over the education sector.  This includes DCPS as well as the Public Charter School Board and the charter sector. The charter sector is funded by our tax dollars and operates over 134 schools.  They are the beneficiaries of $1.35 billion a year in D.C general funds. They have amassed $1 billion in revenue bond debt, which is secured by an annual facility allowance from the D.C. general fund which was $183 million in FY25.   Collectively, they educate almost half of the children in the public system.  

DC parents and families have students in both sectors and expect you at the Council to ensure stability and quality equally in any school they choose to send their children to. Eagle Academy families, indeed all charter families, deserve the same level of investigation and oversight as DCPS families.  While the PCSB has prized autonomy and takes pride in their identity as public schools, this autonomy has to come with responsible oversight by our elected officials. In exchange for the authority to experiment with new education models, these schools must be subject to the same rigorous oversight and democratic governance as all other schools.  A letter from the Council chair asking for an explanation does not meet the bar of good government in the case of a failing this large to families of public school children.

If Council does not schedule a hearing on the Eagle Academy closure, and the failures it has highlighted, they replicate the very lack of public monitoring which created the problem in the first place. A hearing should explore exactly what factors led to the closure of this public LEA. The former CEO/CFO and former accounting firm should be invited to share their understanding of the underlying issues that led to the school’s closure.  This hearing would also invite the public to discuss what the DC education system must do moving forward to protect other students, families, and educators. The PCSB followed their internal protocols; this failure indicates that there are deeper problems to be investigated.   

The closure of two public schools in late August deserves a public and transparent process to better understand all of the issues that led to this outcome.    At a minimum it should address: 

  • The circumstances that led to the LEA Eagle Academy’s decision to close two public schools - what is the timeline and the history of the financial difficulties of Eagle Academy.   

  • Did the system have the educational capacity to adequately serve these families, and have the schools they enrolled in been appropriately resourced?

  • Stronger measures in place for the DC Public Charter School Board to ensure greater accountability. 

  • The plans in place for the McGogney building previously occupied by Eagle Academy Public Charter School and owned by DC.

  • Who is responsible for the $22 million dollar revenue bond against the school? 

What changes should be considered in response to what is learned?   The Council has a hearing on the DCPS budgeting and contracting processes scheduled for October.  Surely, it is your fiscal and ethical responsibility to grant to charter school families the same level of care and oversight this fall.  

Thank you and we look forward to hearing from you on this.  

Sincerely, 

Eboni-Rose Thompson SBOE Ward 7 SBOE Representative, President
Jacque Patterson – SBOE At Large Representative, Vice President
Benjamin Williams SBOE Ward 1 Representative
Allister Chang, SBOE Ward 2 Representative
Frazier O’Leary, SBOE Ward 4 Representative
Robert Henderson, SBOE Ward 5 Representative
Brandon Best, SBOE Ward 6 Representative
Carlene Reid, SBOE Ward 8 Representative

 Representatives from the following:

Ward 2 Education Council (W2EC)
Ward 4 Education Alliance
Ward 5 Education Equity Committee
Ward 6 Public Schools Parent Organization (W6PSPO)
Ward 7 Education Council
Ward 8 Education Council  
21st Century School Fund
CARE Anacostia
CARE Brookland
DC Fiscal Policy Institute
DC LSAT Collective
Decoding Dyslexia DC
Empower Ed
Senior High Alliance of Parents Principals and Educators (S.H.A.P.P.E.)
Teaching for Change
Washington Teachers' Union
Education Town Hall
WE ACT RADIO
Educationdc.net