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Charter chief's tirade brings tart response
By KENT FISCHER, Times Staff Writer Pasco County school superintendent John Long is steamed at the director of a local charter school, and he wants the parents, and the governor, to know about it. On Aug. 16, Deerwood Academy director Hank Johnson dashed off an angry letter to Gov. Jeb Bush in which he slammed the district for delaying Deerwood Academy's funding, throwing up roadblocks to expansion and generally making life tough. "There isn't a day that goes by that I don't fight with the county school system," Johnson wrote. "They constantly harass us with threats, and they make life as challenging as they possibly can." Johnson's letter, co-signed by about 90 parents, touched a nerve with Long, who accused Johnson of "playing loose" with the facts and for lying to the School Board at its meeting on Aug. 20. "One of my staff members spoke with Dr. Johnson about the information in the letter to you, and he admitted that some of his 'facts' were inaccurate or reflected his perceptions," Long wrote to the governor on Friday. "I am offended by his loose presentation of the facts to you and members of our legislative delegation." Board members and district staff chastised Johnson at the Aug. 20 meeting for sloppy accounting and record keeping. When Johnson spoke to defend himself, he told the board that he had "signed a lease this week" for a new facility that required him to put up "everything he owned" as collateral. Then he challenged the board: "Which one of you are willing to put up everything you own for the children of Pasco County?" Turns out, Johnson never signed such a lease. "We're still finishing up the negotiations," he told the Times on Tuesday. When asked why he told the board he had signed the lease when he had not, Johnson said he was upset and misspoke. "I'm not exactly sure what I said," Johnson said. "I was really upset. It's a blur." The Port Richey school, with an enrollment of about 200 students, will receive more than $850,000 in taxpayer money for operation this academic year. Johnson's letter to the governor states that the school was set to enroll 245 children, but that the district forced him to cut that because it "doesn't want me to have more than 200 students." "He has never had the 245 students he states," Long wrote. Deerwood's contract with the district, which Johnson agreed to, limits the school's enrollment at 200. Last spring, Johnson requested that the cap be lifted, but the board rejected the idea after an audit found sloppy bookkeeping, too many teachers teaching subjects they weren't certified to teach, and a possible conflict of interest in the school's governance structure. As for the district delaying his school's funding, district officials said that Johnson received $85,747 less than 72 hours after the state made it available. On Tuesday, Johnson tried to downplay the harsh words he wrote, saying the letter wasn't meant to be an attack on the district. It was attempt to persuade the governor to give charter schools more money for facilities and renovations, he said. "It's just a misunderstanding that we've worked out," Johnson said. "Our relationship with the school district is fantastic." Said assistant superintendent Sandy Ramos: "We're being straight up with him and we expect him to do the same." -- Kent Fischer covers education in Pasco County. He can be reached in west Pasco at 869-6241 or toll-free at 1-800-333-7505, ext. 6241. His e-mail address is kfischer@sptimes.com.
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From today's Pasco Times Editorial Letters Letters |
