School Choice & Charters A State Capitals Roundup

California Schools Chief Launches Charter Audit

By Robert C. Johnston — March 15, 2005 1 min read
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California Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell has requested an audit of how the state’s largest network of charter schools spends more than $40 million this year in state funding.

The audit of the Options for Youth and Opportunities for Learning charter schools, which enroll about 20,000 students in 60 centers throughout the state, will be conducted by the state department of education, local county offices of education, and the state’s Fiscal Crisis and Management Assistance Team.

The audit is the latest development in a long-running disagreement over how much state funding the schools should receive and how that aid should be spent.

A press release from the charter schools’ co-founders, John and Joan Hall, says they welcome the audit and hope it will help clarify state charter school policy.

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A version of this article appeared in the March 16, 2005 edition of Education Week

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