OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) – Epic Constitution Faculties and Epic Youth Providers agreed Wednesday to finish their 10-year contractual relationship following a number of months of controversy stemming from a state auditor uncovering what she stated was intensive monetary impropriety.
The contract between the 2 entities will conclude on June 30.
Epic Youth Providers is a privately-owned, for-profit administration group that oversaw Epic Constitution Faculties day-to-day operations because it was established in 2011.
Ben Harris and David Chaney, co-founders of the college and the administration firm, launched the next assertion:
“Beginning this college, watching it develop and flourish, and seeing the profound and constructive impression it has on college students has been the glory of a lifetime. We couldn’t be prouder of our scholar physique, our gifted and hardworking lecturers, or our directors and workers.
During the last ten years, digital training has transitioned from a small area of interest to a necessary choice that now exists in all 77 Oklahoma counties. That progress is nothing wanting a revolution in public training, and it’s one which has benefitted tens of hundreds of households searching for protected, high-quality instructional experiences that may be custom-made to their distinctive wants and expectations. None of that might have been doable with out Epic, EYS, and particularly the tens of hundreds of households which have trusted us with their youngsters.
At the moment, we really feel it’s best for EYS and Epic to pause our skilled relationship and to provide every entity an opportunity to find out learn how to finest serve households transferring ahead in mild of the latest settlement settlement. Whereas it is a unhappy and tough determination for us, we imagine it’s in one of the best pursuits of EYS and, most significantly, the 50,000 plus college students Epic Constitution Faculties and EYS at present serve.”
BEN HARRIS AND DAVID CHANEY
Epic Constitution Faculties officers signed a settlement with the Statewide Digital Constitution College Board in April that required Epic Constitution Faculties to separate from Epic Youth Providers.
The settlement, nonetheless, allowed Epic to proceed serving the greater than 35,000 college students enrolled in its One-on-One constitution, which has college students in 75 Oklahoma counties.
Cindy Byrd, the Oklahoma State Auditor & Inspector, launched a 120-page report on Oct. 1, detailing the primary a part of an intensive audit into Epic’s funds.
Byrd stated they reviewed Epic Constitution Faculties’ funds from 2015 to 2023.
“Epic constitution faculties was given nearly a half a billion {dollars} in the course of the audit interval,” Byrd beforehand stated. “They take 10 % of each tax greenback that comes by way of the college’s door.”
Epic was sending at the least $200,000 price of Oklahoma tax cash to an Epic California college, in keeping with Byrd.
Byrd, earlier this month, detailed to Oklahoma college leaders the findings of her investigation into Epic.
A lot of the scathing report centered on the funds spent on Epic Youth Providers, which faculties contracted with.
A PPP-loan report confirmed that final yr, Epic Youth Providers obtained a mortgage of $42,700 for its three staff.
Byrd identified the corporate was paid $46 million in tax-payer {dollars} from 2015 by way of 2023, regardless that it had zero staff apart from the 2 founders for many of that point.
“In 2019, they employed two lobbyists and a safety man, however we’re not sure how these positions helped the administration of the college,” Byrd stated.
Byrd went on to spell out what she referred to as falsified month-to-month invoices from EYS to Epic One-on-One and Epic Blended, together with invoices for licensed and non-certified staff – regardless that there have been solely the three – and meals companies for virtual-only college students.
“See the meals companies administration?” Byrd stated. “How does a digital solely college have $37,000 spent each month, that very same actual quantity, $37,000 for college kids that require no little one vitamin prices?”
Certainly one of Byrd’s greatest factors of frustration is $125 million in tax payer {dollars} unaccounted for from 2015 to 2023.
Epic directors have lengthy maintained that the audit was politically pushed.
“Whereas we’ve got objected to the politicization of the audit and a few of its findings, we’ve got applied many modifications it really useful to strengthen our college and make our operations extra clear,” Epic College Board President Doug Scott is quoted as saying in Epic’s Wednesday information launch. “We’re in a unique, stronger and higher place than we have been six months in the past, and I’m happy with the onerous work of this Board and our college leaders. I need to thank the SVCSB and Govt Director Dr. Rebecca Wilkinson for her management throughout this time period. Everybody concerned has a servant’s coronary heart and needs to serve youngsters and households to one of the best of our means.”
You should definitely get recent headlines delivered to your inbox weekday mornings! You may as well sign-up for breaking electronic mail alerts! KFOR.com/Newsletters
The information launch states there shall be higher transparency, together with modifications that can “enable for a extra detailed, public view of the college’s expenditures.”
The information launch stated the higher transparency will embrace public entry to EPIC Studying Fund expenditures for the best stage of public transparency by July 1 and on a go-forward foundation.
“We labored towards this settlement with one objective in thoughts: enhance the place we would have liked within the curiosity of steady college enchancment to higher serve our 2,200 workers members and our approximate 55,000 college students and households,” stated EPIC Superintendent Bart Banfield. “Our group is now excited and able to flip the web page on what has been a turbulent chapter. We imagine the 2023-2023 college yr shall be our greatest but and present our dedication to having a constructive, collaborative relationship with the SVCSB, the State Division of Training and our different companions and sponsors.”
Powered by WPeMatico
