![]() ![]() The districts’ lawyer, Irvine attorney Daniel Shinoff, suggested in a letter that the county board “abused its discretion, when it decided to, in direct contradiction with their own staff’s recommendations, to approve a charter school petition with fatal … deficiencies.”Īt a meeting in September, Anaheim Union Superintendent Mike Matsuda warned: “By even the lowest standard, no one could suggest Epic is providing an education that leads to successful college and careers. In September, Anaheim district officials returned to the county school board and asked members to reconsider their approval of Epic. The Anaheim Elementary School District, which originally rejected the petition, and the Anaheim Union High School District, where the area’s students traditionally attend high school, were concerned that Epic was drawing their students. ![]() Soon after, the online school opened its administrative offices, near Anaheim City Hall. In March, in a departure from its staff recommendation, the board approved the school’s operation in a 4-1 vote. Trustees in the district said at the time that the school presented “an unsound educational program” that wasn’t likely to succeed.Įpic appealed that ruling to the Orange County Board of Education. An administrative office in Anaheim also is available for testing and meetups, and homework help is available online, in most grades, 24 hours a day.Įpic – an acronym for excellence, performance, innovation and citizenship – was denied last year when it sought to open a charter within the Anaheim Elementary School District. The school hopes to have 300 students in its first year and 850 students by 2021.Įpic officials say they offer a personalized education plan via the internet, and that their programs are overseen by state-certified teachers who meet with students via Skype or in person, as needed, wherever it’s convenient for students and their families. Since late June, when it opened locally, Epic Charter has enrolled 85 students from Southern California. In September, after Anaheim school officials publicly warned that students attending the charter were ill-served, the county education agency requested Epic’s records on contracts, invoices, staff credentials and canceled checks, among other documents.Ĭounty Superintendent Al Mijares said his department has an obligation to investigate complaints, and MacGregor said Epic has responded to all the records requests. “It’s a distraction and something that seems unnecessary for us to go through,” said Paul MacGregor, Epic’s executive director in California. And Epic officials deny the allegations, saying they’re a rehash of issues already addressed by the Orange County Department of Education when Epic’s taxpayer-funded operation was approved in the spring. Some parents and students praise the school’s program. County officials are scrutinizing the operation of a new online charter school that has drawn sharp criticism from Anaheim educators who want to see the program shut down.Īmong the allegations lodged against Epic Charter School are that it was improperly allowed to begin teaching elementary through high school students, that it used “predatory” marketing practices – including financial incentives to families that signed up – and that an affiliated school in Oklahoma is under investigation. ![]()
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