In the complaint, Norman based Epic attorney William Hickman alleges that Sharp has knowingly made inaccurate, misleading statements about the school both in the press and to state agencies. The school is also currently under investigation by the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation for allegations of forgery, embezzlement, racketeering and obtaining money by false pretenses. Sharp’s press statements questioned how Epic could receive state aid in previous school years for up to 4,000 secondary students enrolled at its blended learning centers in Tulsa and Oklahoma counties.Īs per Epic’s website, the blended learning sites were limited to early childhood and elementary students until the 2019-2020 academic year.Įxcluding enrollment numbers from those blended learning sites, Epic Charter School is now the state’s seventh largest school district, trailing only Oklahoma City, Tulsa, Edmond, Moore, Putnam City, and Broken Arrow. According to court documents, the school is seeking more than $75,000 in damages.Ī former public school teacher and a member of the Senate’s Education Subcommittee on Appropriations, Sharp has publicly challenged how student attendance is monitored at the online charter school.īack in September, the online charter school sent the state senator a cease and desist letter in response to several press releases published by his office. Ron Sharp (R-Shawnee) in Oklahoma County District Court Tuesday, Dec.
That totaled $11.2 million that auditors said should be owed back to the state.OKLAHOMA CITY - Oklahoma’s largest online charter school issuing a state senator with a history of questioning its administrative practices.Īlleging slander and libel, attorneys with Epic Charter Schools filed a civil lawsuit against state Sen. The state auditor and inspector’s office reported last year that Epic overspent by more than $8 million in pay for its top brass, illegally transferred $203,000 to a California charter school and wrongly paid $2.7 million to the company that managed Epic.
The latest withholding of funds means Epic will have repaid $20 million to the state. When a district exceeds that cap, the state withholds the difference from its funding.Įpic has been charged similar administrative cost penalties of $530,527 in 2020 and $10.5 million earlier this year. Schools with more than 1,500 students cannot spend more than 5% of their funds on administrative salaries and costs, a rule intended to keep more school dollars in the classroom. State schools Superintendent Joy Hofmeister during the Oklahoma State Board of Education meeting June 24.įor subscribers: Epic Charter School leaders welcome investigation as new allegations surface
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