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KELLEY BENHAMCommunity Christian School's accreditation is revoked because of multiple concerns.
LARGO - The embattled Community Christian School lost its accreditation on Wednesday, another major blow for a school whose principal drew criticism for regularly taking girls to Disney World.
In revoking the school's accreditation, the Florida Association of Christian Colleges and Schools cited numerous management and financial problems, some of them raised recently by parents.
It is the latest and possibly most devastating setback to a school shaken by a police investigation into principal Dick Baker's trips to Disney World. In recent days, the school has lost students, been threatened with eviction and endured a barrage of complaints from parents who want Baker fired.
"Whether there are legal or criminal charges is not the issue," said Howard Burke, director of FACCS, an arm of a national accrediting group. "The issue is professional ethics and practices that are not acceptable."
The concerns cited by the FACCS go beyond Baker.
The school passed an accreditation review in February, but FACCS officials discovered more problems after recent complaints from parents.
Burke sent a letter to board president Maria Gustin on Wednesday citing a multitude of issues, some of them dating back years and others revealed after the police investigation, which found no crimes:
The board that oversees Baker has conflicts of interest, mishandled money and apparently violated its own bylaws, Burke said. FACCS thinks the board signed over blank checks to Baker, who handled the bookkeeping himself. During the February review, the agency warned the school that Baker had too much control.
With Baker now on a 60-day paid leave, the school appointed an interim administrator with no college degree, Burke said. And since the school on Monday fired the assistant administrator and two teachers who held advanced degrees, the school has a shortage of credentialed faculty and administrators.
Baker appears to lack the credentials required by FACCS. The Times has been able to confirm only a bachelor's degree from Pillsbury Baptist Bible College in Minnesota. Burke said Baker has a master's in music or another field other than education. He has said previously that he doesn't know if Baker has earned a doctorate, only that he uses the title "Dr."
The school mischaracterized its affiliation with Westside Church of the Nazarene, telling the accreditation agency and the IRS it is, or is becoming, a ministry of the church. In fact, the church is primarily a landlord for the school, and is now trying to end the lease. The school also told FACCS its lease was indefinite when it actually expires in less than a year.
The school has failed to provide FACCS with an external audit of its finances the past two years.
The school has not completed an improvement plan and other updates requested after the February review.
"It is unusual and bizarre that we take this kind of action," said Burke, who has known Baker since he took the job 13 years ago.
The school cannot regain its accreditation any time soon, certainly not this school year, Burke said. "They can start from ground zero again."
That means credits earned by CCS students won't transfer smoothly to public schools because public schools won't know what requirements students have met. Schools don't have to be accredited in Florida, Burke said, but attending a non-accredited school can create extra hassles, especially for high school students.
Jan Rouse, associate superintendent for curriculum and instruction for the Pinellas County Schools, said a public school might do its own tests to determine a transfer student's level of achievement.
College admissions officers also may seek more information about students graduating from an unaccredited private school, she said.
"Certainly it makes a school more vulnerable to some additional questioning about the level of achievement students have reached as they exit."
While they hope to save the school, several parents and teachers reacted to the news with relief Wednesday night.
"Finally, someone is stepping up and holding them accountable," said parent Ben Baucom.
Parents want to know whether their tuition money paid for the Disney trips, but have tried without success to obtain a budget and other school documents. They also contend that the board that oversees Baker was not properly elected and is therefore without authority.
A number of parents had called and e-mailed FACCS, asking for an inquiry, Burke said. Most schools facing this level of controversy lose too many students to survive, he said.
The school, through its attorney, has declined to disclose its enrollment.
Assistant administrator Kathie Erwin, Bible teacher Vicky Jones and athletic director Glenn Walker, all fired this week, hired an attorney Wednesday to get their jobs back.