Review board okays request of two NC charter schools to launch virtual, multi-county programs
The Charter Schools Review Board on Monday approved remote charter amendment requests for STARS Virtual Academy and Tillery Charter Academy, allowing both to expand their programs under a 2023 state law allowing brick-and-mortar charters to offer remote learning.
STARS Virtual Academy, an initiative of Moore County-based STARS Charter serving 884 students across five counties, will use an online platform from the private national company Edmentum along with state-certified teachers, executive director Wesley Graner told the board which unanimously approved the application.
Montgomery County-based Tillery Charter Academy, which serves 231 students across seven counties, plans to use its existing curriculum and in-house staff for the remote option, raising concerns from at least one board member who questioned whether the school could handle the additional workload.
'You look at something like that, you wonder, why give permission to spread their resources thinner by adding a whole nother program when the current program, for lack of better word, seems to be struggling or just isn't thriving as of yet,' board member Eric Sanchez said.
Despite these concerns, the board ultimately voted 6-3 to approve the application.
In other business, the board unanimously approved a request from GO BIG, an all-girls charter school in Charlotte that plans to open in the fall of 2025, to relocate less than five miles and reduce its planned enrollment. The board also unanimously approved a third request from West Triangle High School, also in the 'ready-to-open' process, to delay its opening until Fall 2026.
The board also took the following action on a group of requests for charter school renewals that would start July 1, 2025:
10-Year Renewals: Washington Montessori and Doral Academy of North Carolina
3-Year Renewals: Lakeside Charter Academy and United Community School
Renewal Vote Delayed: Movement Freedom Charter School.
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