Feds ignored 'obvious red flags' with $2M grant to Cincinnati charter school, letter says

Several Ohio Democrats are calling for the U.S. Department of Education to rescind a $2 million grant it gave to a Cincinnati charter school earlier this year.

The school, Cincinnati Classical Academy, provided inflated test scores in its application for the money and pretended to be much more diverse than it is, state lawmakers said in a letter to U.S. Department of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona.

Cincinnati Classical Academy, which serves about 600 students in kindergarten through seventh grade, did not respond to questions Wednesday afternoon.

The academy does not serve predominantly economically disadvantaged students as it said in its application, the letter to Cardona reads, but rather "a population that is dramatically whiter and wealthier than not only the city of Cincinnati but the entire County of Hamilton."

Carol Burris, executive director for the Network for Public Education, an advocacy group that supports public schools and is critical of the national Charter School Program, penned the letter. More than two dozen Ohio officials and organizations signed it, including area Democratic lawmakers such as U.S. Rep. Greg Landsman and state Sen. Catherine Ingram, the Cincinnati NAACP and the Cincinnati Federation of Teachers.

Applicant reviewers with the Charter School Program "ignored what should have been obvious red flags" and didn't fact-check any of Cincinnati Classical Academy's claims, the letter says. "The application does not report or explain its lack of diversity. Instead, it masquerades as an equity initiative."

The tuition-free academy opened in 2022 and uses Hillsdale College's classical education curriculum. Hillsdale is a private Christian school in Michigan with ties to prominent Republicans including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

The academy was one of 14 schools to receive the Charter School Program grant in October. The money is intended to open, replicate and expand charter schools and can be used over four years to fund curriculum materials, professional development, a library, furniture and equipment for music, art and physical education, according to an October press release from the academy.

At the time the award was announced, Headmaster Michael Rose said Cincinnati Classical Academy intended to move to the former International Paper office buildings at Ward’s Corner in Miami Township to accommodate hundreds more students. The academy planned to add a new grade level each year until it serves students up to twelfth grade, he said.

“Finances to start a new school have been challenging," Rose said in the October press release. "We’ve had to take some large loans and limit spending to essential items, like books and quality teachers. Our students have a music or art class every day, and also have physical education daily. I know those teachers will be thrilled to have more materials to work with.”

In its letter to Cardona, the Network for Public Education asked the federal government to terminate the grant and not disburse any more money to the charter school, which they say is designed to attract white, Christian, middle-class families who "seek a private school experience paid for by taxpayers."

Burris said the U.S. Department of Education confirmed receipt of the letter and is reviewing the academy's application.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Ohio Democrats question federal grant to Cincinnati Classical Academy