Charter school faces closure

A Memphis charter school used unlicensed teachers to teach some courses and gave every geometry student the same grade last year, an investigation by Shelby County Schools revealed.

The district is recommending its board revoke the charter of Gateway University, just months after the school saved itself from closure for operating outside of SCS boundaries.

The recommendation will be discussed Tuesday in a board committee meeting, and is scheduled for a vote at the end of the month. The school, which had 112 students in its first year last year, would be forced to close at the end of this school year.

The district recommended closing

the school before this academic year because it was operating outside of SCS boundaries, in violation of state law. Administrators pulled their recommendation when, with days to spare, the school found a new facility at 3333 Old Brownsville Road.

Superintendent Dorsey Hopson said at that time the district was investigating allegations made by a former employee, but did not elaborate.

A 92 for every geometry student

The investigation, sent from SCS to the Tennessee Department of Education and obtained by The Commercial Appeal, looked into six allegations, finding at least some evidence to substantiate four of them and raise concern about a fifth. The document does not say which allegation is leading to the administration’s recommendation to shut the school down.

A statement from the school said its leaders are aware of the recommendation and are “prepared to follow the respective appeal process, should that be necessary.”

“While we are disappointed by this recommendation, our students’ success — in and outside of the classroom — remains our top priority,” the school’s statement said. “And, we will continue to move forward in our mission to empower our students with the habits of mind and character to assume the highest responsibilities of life, citizenship and leadership.”

The investigation shows that in geometry “every student earned the exact same grade for every assignment every quarter and each received the same final grade, a 92 (percent).”

The school had only ninth-grade students in its first year, and just seven students who had completed algebra 1 in their eighth-grade year and could move up to geometry. Despite their apparent advanced math abilities, every student tested in the lowest category on their end-of-course exam, reflecting a “below basic” level of understanding of the material, according to the investigation.

The school contended that the students took a hybrid class of in-person instruction and online lessons. The investigation showed only four of the students had logged in to the online portal.

‘Sometimes no one taught the class’

A current employee reportedly told investigators that sometimes the school’s founder and CEO, Sosepriala Dede, taught the geometry class, “and that sometimes no one taught the class.”

Dede does not have a license to teach geometry, the investigation states.

An allegation that grades were improperly changed — a topic that continues to plague SCS schools beyond the charter sector — could not be substantiated but the evidence still “merits concern,” the document states.

“There is some indication of operational troubles and confusion concerning the reporting of grades,” the investigation states. “Long-term substitutes were given the credentials of other staff members for the purpose of inputting grades. Teachers spoke of grade floors and pressure from the administration not to fail students.”

A grade floor is the practice of requiring teachers to give all students at least a certain grade. The practice was halted last year under a moratorium in traditional SCS schools.

The document also said the same teacher was listed as the teacher of record for multiple classes that met at the same time.

Two other teachers are listed as the teacher of record in classes for which they did not have a license.

Unlicensed teachers can teach a class with a waiver from the district. SCS did not have waivers on file for that school, the investigation says.

One of the allegations was that the school had a “fictitious” board. Charter schools are overseen by SCS but are required, as nonprofits, to have their own governing boards.

The investigation revealed Gateway’s board was one member shorter than the minimum number of board members agreed to in its charter.

Students used for custodial work?

An allegation that students were improperly used as custodial staff showed evidence that students did some cleaning, but “no former staff member states that they ever saw a student perform custodial duties more demanding than cleaning the cafeteria or vacuuming the carpeted classrooms at the end of the day.”

However, the document notes that the vendor Gateway used for cleaning its building reported they only cleaned the facility a total of six times during an entire school year. The vendor, who is not named in the investigation, also reported that Dede “told the vendor on at least one occasion, the school’s track and field team was made to clean the facility.”

“All former staff interviewed stated that students were asked to clean the cafeteria and classrooms, to take out the garbage, vacuum or mop,” the investigation reads. “No one reported that a student was ever coerced or forced to clean the facility, and no one reported that students did any more demanding labor than light housekeeping duties.”

However, a current teacher stated some students missed class for these duties.

The final allegation was that an employee was working without being cleared from a background check. SCS notified the school that more information was needed about a potential employee before she could be cleared to work, but she started working at the school three days later.

The investigation determined there was “some evidence” to substantiate the allegation that an employee was working without a completed background check.

“The employee in question was never cleared by Safety & Security for employment, but she was never expressly precluded from employment either,” the investigation states.

Reach Jennifer Pignolet at jennifer.pignolet@commercialappeal.com or on Twitter @Jenpignolet.