Showing posts with label Accord Institute. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Accord Institute. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 8, 2018
Meet 'The Founders': CAPRICE YOUNG The Lying Scoundrel
Pathological liar, thank God she is gone as of June 30th,
1) She is not a founder of Gulen Schools, the founders are all gone from California, and USA only 2 remain in California
2) The Gulen Movement isn't "Muslim" they are a cult, the biggest critics of Gulen Movement and these schools are Muslims especially other Turkish people.
3) Caprice Young when she was on school board couldn't open Charter Schools fast enough in Los Angeles and loved dumping this pathetic schools near Armenian Christian Churches, neighborhoods, cultural centers and businesses.
4) The last CEO Mehmet Argin didn't resign in July 2014 he was fired because the schools were going to be closed. So in a back room deal with LAUSD with the charter school law firm of Young, Minny & Corr (a pathetic lawfirm that cares about money not truth) they rid the school of Gulenist Mehmet Argin, and fired a ton of Turkish Teachers and made the school more "Americanized"
Caprice Young was the 5th CEO of Magnolia Science Academy in 16 years and the first white female
5) 2 Magnolia schools closed 1 in Orangevale, CA and 1 in Santa Clara
6) there as significant financial mismanagement of the Magnolia Science Academies from their audit including $300,000 that went to paying for the H1-b Visas of Turkish Teachers and family members
7) Magnolia has had no significant gains in their student body and their future is uncertain whoever takes over these trouble schools will do so for the money
8) Magnolia Science Academy was never unfairly "harassed" because they were Gulenists, or Turkish, They were rightfully under scrutiny for mismanagement of American tax dollars and their lying to parents, LAUSD and fabricating "test scores"
9) Magnolia Science Academy is NOT a high performing school all Gulen Schools claim to be "Blue Ribbon" or a "Top School reported by US News and World Report"
10) Why the lying Caprice? What makes you a lying scoundrel? Is it the money or the power? You know dam good and well they are the Gulen Movement, you have been to Turkey and you have also spoken for their lobbying group Pacificia Institute
Sunday, October 16, 2016
New School Santa Ana, 2 Magnolia Schools close, 10 new applications denied, 3 on chopping block,Varol Gurler RESURFACES
Nice Show Caprice, how can you afford it?
Operational Loan from Intra County for Santa Ana and staff walked out.
Operational Loan from Intra County for Santa Ana and staff walked out.
HERE HE IS IS -....BACK IN CALIFORNIA
VAROL GURLER
VAROL GURLER IS THE NEW PRINCIPAL AT
MAGNOLIA SCIENCE ACADEMY- SANTA ANA
This Gulenist gets around
Amity Brooklyn School
Lotus School of Excellence
Sonoran Science Academy
Magnolia Science Academy
3 American Addresses one in Reseda, CA, Arizona and the other in Brooklyn, NY
According this this Corporate Wiki on Varol the ORCA Construction company is out of the same address
Here is his contact information when he applies for H1-b visa teachers via Amity School
Varol Gurler mentioned in that family news rag Zaman Amerika (Gulen rag)
Hizmet news about Brooklyn Amity School and a karate girl champion
Back in 2011 he reportedly gave $100.00 to formerLAUSD board member Tamar Galatzen
Tuesday, January 12, 2016
Magnolia Science Academy is on a roll to open new schools just in time for the Broad, Gates and Walton Billion dollar give away
San Fernando Valley (2) applications
The Gulenists are like Turkish sailors on crack - cranking out charter school applications in the last 3 weeks. They applied for 2 Magnolia Science Academies in the San Fernando Valley #10 and #11 and applied in Oceanside but strangely withdrew the application to re submit later.
They snuck in with the application but lets see if the LAUSD puts the breaks on because it's so soon after being in the dog house and almost closing for having financial shortfalls and other mismanaged money.
December 12, 2015 was the presentation what will LAUSD do?
Magnolia Science Academy 10
Magnolia Science Academy 10 New Charter Petition - Public Hearing 12/08/15
Magnolia Science Academy 11
Magnolia Science Academy 11 New Charter Petition - Public Hearing 12/08/15
Oceanside, CA
Michelle Crumpton, Magnolia’s chief academic officer, wrote in the petition that the charter school would start with grades K-3 in the first year and add a grade each year, making it K-7 by 2022, when the charter petition must be renewed.
The school anticipates 510 students in its fifth year of operation, and about 1,000 students when it becomes a full K-12 school in 2027.
Crumpton said that the “the fast growth of high-tech clusters in San Diego County” will provide future high-wage job opportunities and that her company’s program will help meet that demand.
“Ensuring that the future workforce is properly educated in the STEM disciplines ... is a crucial first step in establishing economic sustainability for San Diego County individuals and communities,” she wrote in the petition.
The school anticipates 510 students in its fifth year of operation, and about 1,000 students when it becomes a full K-12 school in 2027.
Crumpton said that the “the fast growth of high-tech clusters in San Diego County” will provide future high-wage job opportunities and that her company’s program will help meet that demand.
“Ensuring that the future workforce is properly educated in the STEM disciplines ... is a crucial first step in establishing economic sustainability for San Diego County individuals and communities,” she wrote in the petition.
Friday, May 8, 2015
State audit reveals severe shortfalls in truancy reporting from Magnolia Schools, financial and other issues resolved
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-magnolia-charter-20150507-story.html
California state audit has found that a charter school organization accused of financial mismanagement by the Los Angeles Unified School District has improved its bottom line but still needs stronger controls over spending.
The audit, released Thursday by State Auditor Elaine M. Howle, also found that the expenditure of $127,000 by the Magnolia Educational and Research Foundation to process immigration papers for foreign staff was lawful and reasonable.
In addition, the audit criticized L.A. Unified for trying to shut down three campuses in Palms, Northridge and Bell using limited information and without giving Magnolia officials adequate time to respond to charges of mismanagement. It said the district "may have acted prematurely."
Caprice Young, chief executive officer of Magnolia Public Schools, hailed the report.
"What's important about this report is not just that we're being vindicated, but that LAUSD has been called to task for its unfairness and lack of professional practices," she said.
Board of Education member Bennett Kayser, Magnolia's most vocal critic, said the district's scrutiny helped drive the charter organization's financial reform measures.
"I am glad this charter chain is fixing up its act. It is too bad it took this much effort to force them to do so," he said in a statement. "Charters in California live by very few rules but one is that they need to keep clean books."
In a statement, the district said it "acknowledges the actions on the part of the new leadership of Magnolia Public Schools to address the substantive concerns" and said it would continue to monitor the organization as legally required.
L.A. Unified sought to close the campuses after an outside audit performed last year alleged that the organization was $1.66 million in the red, owed $2.8 million to the schools it oversees and met the federal definition of insolvency. The Palms academy also was insolvent, the audit said.
In addition, the review alleged fiscal mismanagement, including a lack of debt disclosure, weak fiscal controls over the principals’ use of debit cards and questionable payments for immigration fees and services.
The statewide charter organization, which enrolls 4,000 students in 11 academies focused on science and math, denied the allegations and sued the district last year to overturn the decision to close the campuses. In March, the district agreed to keep the schools open under a legal settlement.
Charters are independent, publicly funded campuses; most are nonunion.
The audit found that some of L.A. Unified's concerns had merit. It confirmed that some of the academies were insolvent at points in the last three fiscal years, in part because of delays in state funding, but that all were back in the black. It also questioned 52 of 225 transactions reviewed, the financial relationship with one vendor and controls over fundraisers.
Young, who was hired in January, said her new leadership team has moved swiftly to address the concerns. Magnolia's improvements, she said, include a new chief financial officer and controller, stronger controls over spending and staff training. Under the legal settlement with L.A. Unified, the charter chain also agreed to submit to fiscal oversight by a state financial management organization.
Was part of the deal that Caprice Young cut with LAUSD the separation of "certain" Magnolia staff largely attached to the Gulen movement like this idiot who spent more time in Sacramento, CA trying to sway government opinion that he knew nothing about.
http://www.scpr.org/news/2015/05/07/51523/state-auditors-find-la-s-magnolia-charters-grossly/
LA's Magnolia charters 'grossly' underreported truancies, state auditors find
The California state auditors found all four Magnolia Public Schools reviewed "grossly" underreported truancies – errors the charter network said it is addressing.
One Magnolia school, Academy 5, reported no truancies in the 2012-2013 school year, but in a report released Thursday, the auditors discovered the rate was more than 30 percent.
State auditors said the errors "could mislead parents of potential students and other interested stakeholders regarding the school environment."
Auditors also found issues with payroll and vendor payments, but concluded the once-struggling charter network was solvent as of July 2014
Magnolia's CEO Caprice Young said her staff didn't fully understand the state's truancy definition and are making corrections. Young said the truancy errors did not impact the organization's public school funding tied to average daily attendance, which she said is calculated separately.
The Los Angeles Unified School District moved to close two Magnolia Public Schools' eight campuses last year after the district's inspector general found missing and misused funds.
Magnolia disagreed with many of the findings and fought the closures in court with the help of the California Charter Schools Association.
Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Luis A. Lavin sided with the charter network, and the schools remain open.
State auditors agreed "LAUSD may have acted prematurely when it rescinded its conditional approval of two academies," because it did not give Magnolia "sufficient time to respond to its criticisms."
"Was this vindicating? Absolutely!" Young said. "Do we have a lot of work to do? Yes."
Late Thursday, LAUSD issued a statement, saying it “acknowledges the actions on the part of the new leadership of Magnolia Public Schools to address the substantive concerns that the District raised in fulfillment of its oversight responsibilities.”
It added:
The audit confirmed that the schools were insolvent at points during the past three fiscal years, but said that was due to a delay in state funding. As a result, the cash-strapped academies borrowed from schools with surplus revenues to pay off debts. While the district was critical of Magnolia for engaging in these types of inter-agency loans, the state audit concluded that “these loans served a useful purpose because they enabled the struggling academies to continue to serve their students.”
As of July, all but one of the loans was repaid, and eight academies are operating in the black with sufficient reserve funds.
However, despite an overall clean fiscal bill of health auditors say Magnolia must strengthen its financial and management processes, especially with respect to fundraising and documenting expenditures.
Another failing by Magnolia identified in the report is that it “grossly underreported truancy data to the California Department of Education.”
About 2,300 students attend Magnolia academies. Complaints of fiscal mismanagement and low enrollment have plagued nearly all of the campuses since the first charter was founded in 2002.
Still, Magnolia officials put a positive spin on the report.
Caprice Young, a former LA Unified school board president and the newly hired CEO, told LA School Report that the audit was long-awaited good news and proves that the organization is fiscally stable.
“It is a real vindication for us,” she said, adding that, “it is very, very critical of the way that LAUSD treated Magnolia.”
Young explained that Magnolia has implemented more stringent policies allowing for more transparency, including the manner in which schools report student truancies. “The problem there was that the staff was not counting all of the tardies as truancies,” she said. “But it didn’t have any impact on test scores or the amount of money we received for funding.”
“What the auditor came up with is a fix-it ticket. What LAUSD came up with was a death sentence,” Young said.
Ultimately, the report determined that “LAUSD may have acted prematurely when it rescinded the charter renewal petitions of two academies.”
Further, it said, the district did not provide sufficient time for the charter school company to respond to criticisms.The audit also said the district failed to share the complete results of an independent audit commissioned by the district with Magnolia until after it had rescinded the academies’ charter petitions.
The two sides reached reached a settlement agreement in March, resulting in the renewal of all three academies’ charters.
http://laschoolreport.com/state-audit-criticizes-magnolia-charters-and-also-la-unified/#.VUv7ccEq94A.twitter
NOTE TO CAPRICE; A known fact around political and academic circles that you are working very hard to remove the Turks from the charter ownership. You have pushed them into the background and put new faces "Hispanics" and other non-Turks to the front. Until the members of the Gulen Movement are entirely removed from this charter school, it's all show for now. You have retained some of their models for education and they should be removed as all the Turkish teachers remaining should be removed. Hire American teachers that are not affiliated with the Gulen Movement, it isn't necessary to "target" the support of one particular ethnic group. They as you know, have their own private schools and will never trust you or your motives.
Keep waving the money around and making improvements, hopefully you can keep up the show long enough to push the Gulen Movement completely out of California. Then the money can 100% go into your pockets.
The audit, released Thursday by State Auditor Elaine M. Howle, also found that the expenditure of $127,000 by the Magnolia Educational and Research Foundation to process immigration papers for foreign staff was lawful and reasonable.
In addition, the audit criticized L.A. Unified for trying to shut down three campuses in Palms, Northridge and Bell using limited information and without giving Magnolia officials adequate time to respond to charges of mismanagement. It said the district "may have acted prematurely."
Caprice Young, chief executive officer of Magnolia Public Schools, hailed the report.
"What's important about this report is not just that we're being vindicated, but that LAUSD has been called to task for its unfairness and lack of professional practices," she said.
Board of Education member Bennett Kayser, Magnolia's most vocal critic, said the district's scrutiny helped drive the charter organization's financial reform measures.
"I am glad this charter chain is fixing up its act. It is too bad it took this much effort to force them to do so," he said in a statement. "Charters in California live by very few rules but one is that they need to keep clean books."
L.A. Unified sought to close the campuses after an outside audit performed last year alleged that the organization was $1.66 million in the red, owed $2.8 million to the schools it oversees and met the federal definition of insolvency. The Palms academy also was insolvent, the audit said.
In addition, the review alleged fiscal mismanagement, including a lack of debt disclosure, weak fiscal controls over the principals’ use of debit cards and questionable payments for immigration fees and services.
The statewide charter organization, which enrolls 4,000 students in 11 academies focused on science and math, denied the allegations and sued the district last year to overturn the decision to close the campuses. In March, the district agreed to keep the schools open under a legal settlement.
Charters are independent, publicly funded campuses; most are nonunion.
The audit found that some of L.A. Unified's concerns had merit. It confirmed that some of the academies were insolvent at points in the last three fiscal years, in part because of delays in state funding, but that all were back in the black. It also questioned 52 of 225 transactions reviewed, the financial relationship with one vendor and controls over fundraisers.
Young, who was hired in January, said her new leadership team has moved swiftly to address the concerns. Magnolia's improvements, she said, include a new chief financial officer and controller, stronger controls over spending and staff training. Under the legal settlement with L.A. Unified, the charter chain also agreed to submit to fiscal oversight by a state financial management organization.
Was part of the deal that Caprice Young cut with LAUSD the separation of "certain" Magnolia staff largely attached to the Gulen movement like this idiot who spent more time in Sacramento, CA trying to sway government opinion that he knew nothing about.
http://www.scpr.org/news/2015/05/07/51523/state-auditors-find-la-s-magnolia-charters-grossly/
LA's Magnolia charters 'grossly' underreported truancies, state auditors find
The California state auditors found all four Magnolia Public Schools reviewed "grossly" underreported truancies – errors the charter network said it is addressing.
One Magnolia school, Academy 5, reported no truancies in the 2012-2013 school year, but in a report released Thursday, the auditors discovered the rate was more than 30 percent.
State auditors said the errors "could mislead parents of potential students and other interested stakeholders regarding the school environment."
Auditors also found issues with payroll and vendor payments, but concluded the once-struggling charter network was solvent as of July 2014
Magnolia's CEO Caprice Young said her staff didn't fully understand the state's truancy definition and are making corrections. Young said the truancy errors did not impact the organization's public school funding tied to average daily attendance, which she said is calculated separately.
The Los Angeles Unified School District moved to close two Magnolia Public Schools' eight campuses last year after the district's inspector general found missing and misused funds.
Magnolia disagreed with many of the findings and fought the closures in court with the help of the California Charter Schools Association.
Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Luis A. Lavin sided with the charter network, and the schools remain open.
State auditors agreed "LAUSD may have acted prematurely when it rescinded its conditional approval of two academies," because it did not give Magnolia "sufficient time to respond to its criticisms."
"Was this vindicating? Absolutely!" Young said. "Do we have a lot of work to do? Yes."
Late Thursday, LAUSD issued a statement, saying it “acknowledges the actions on the part of the new leadership of Magnolia Public Schools to address the substantive concerns that the District raised in fulfillment of its oversight responsibilities.”
It added:
The District will follow through on its stated responses to the Auditor’s recommendations as part of our ongoing commitment to high quality charter school authorizing, as well as monitor Magnolia’s implementation of its action steps. As noted in the Audit, the District and Magnolia Public Schools were able to reach a settlement that allows both parties to move forward together in the best interest of students and in protection of taxpayers’ trust.
Did Caprice Young know that Magnolia Schools are modeled after Yamalar College in Turkey?
A state audit of Magnolia Public Schools, a charter network operating in LA Unified, has found that the group’s financial controls need improvement but that the district acted too hastily in its attempts to close three of the chain’s eight campuses.
The report, issued today, brings to a close a long running episode involving Magnolia’s parent company and LA Unified efforts last year to revoke the charter renewal applications for three Magnolia Science Academy schools — in Palms, Van Nuys and Bell — over fiscal mismanagement and other financial irregularities.The audit confirmed that the schools were insolvent at points during the past three fiscal years, but said that was due to a delay in state funding. As a result, the cash-strapped academies borrowed from schools with surplus revenues to pay off debts. While the district was critical of Magnolia for engaging in these types of inter-agency loans, the state audit concluded that “these loans served a useful purpose because they enabled the struggling academies to continue to serve their students.”
As of July, all but one of the loans was repaid, and eight academies are operating in the black with sufficient reserve funds.
However, despite an overall clean fiscal bill of health auditors say Magnolia must strengthen its financial and management processes, especially with respect to fundraising and documenting expenditures.
Another failing by Magnolia identified in the report is that it “grossly underreported truancy data to the California Department of Education.”
About 2,300 students attend Magnolia academies. Complaints of fiscal mismanagement and low enrollment have plagued nearly all of the campuses since the first charter was founded in 2002.
Still, Magnolia officials put a positive spin on the report.
Caprice Young, a former LA Unified school board president and the newly hired CEO, told LA School Report that the audit was long-awaited good news and proves that the organization is fiscally stable.
“It is a real vindication for us,” she said, adding that, “it is very, very critical of the way that LAUSD treated Magnolia.”
Young explained that Magnolia has implemented more stringent policies allowing for more transparency, including the manner in which schools report student truancies. “The problem there was that the staff was not counting all of the tardies as truancies,” she said. “But it didn’t have any impact on test scores or the amount of money we received for funding.”
“What the auditor came up with is a fix-it ticket. What LAUSD came up with was a death sentence,” Young said.
Ultimately, the report determined that “LAUSD may have acted prematurely when it rescinded the charter renewal petitions of two academies.”
Further, it said, the district did not provide sufficient time for the charter school company to respond to criticisms.The audit also said the district failed to share the complete results of an independent audit commissioned by the district with Magnolia until after it had rescinded the academies’ charter petitions.
The two sides reached reached a settlement agreement in March, resulting in the renewal of all three academies’ charters.
http://laschoolreport.com/state-audit-criticizes-magnolia-charters-and-also-la-unified/#.VUv7ccEq94A.twitter
NOTE TO CAPRICE; A known fact around political and academic circles that you are working very hard to remove the Turks from the charter ownership. You have pushed them into the background and put new faces "Hispanics" and other non-Turks to the front. Until the members of the Gulen Movement are entirely removed from this charter school, it's all show for now. You have retained some of their models for education and they should be removed as all the Turkish teachers remaining should be removed. Hire American teachers that are not affiliated with the Gulen Movement, it isn't necessary to "target" the support of one particular ethnic group. They as you know, have their own private schools and will never trust you or your motives.
Keep waving the money around and making improvements, hopefully you can keep up the show long enough to push the Gulen Movement completely out of California. Then the money can 100% go into your pockets.
Friday, November 21, 2014
Magnolia Science Academy #8 Denied renewal despite DESPERATE attempt to accomodate LAUSD
Magnolia Science Academy #8 in Bell, CA has only been open since 2010, they knew showing up to the 11/18/2014 LAUSD board meeting the recommendation would be DENIED.
On November 6, 2014 the PTF sat with the local representatives of the California Charter School Association (CCSA) on what points to drive home to reverse the impending DENIAL.
The school also tried to invoke the help of local politicans who will be "educated" on these schools.
On November 6, 2014 the PTF sat with the local representatives of the California Charter School Association (CCSA) on what points to drive home to reverse the impending DENIAL.
The school also tried to invoke the help of local politicans who will be "educated" on these schools.
DENIAL Announcement from LA School Report
Video of LAUSD here
Visable absent were ALL TURKS. Mehmet Argin is no longer the CEO Murat Biyik is interim CEO
at 52:00 Jerry Simmons is the Magnolia Attorney he has submitted changes in writing to LAUSD. "They are willing and able to make ALL necessary changes to keep the school open"
1) Will terminate contracts with Accord Institute
2) Stop all immigration hiring
3) Hired new director of Finance (See 1:00 "Mr. Dias)
4) that there is $9+ million in banking account and the schools are "solvent"
5) They agree to no longer transfer funds between central offices and the schools
6) Magnolia agrees to drop all court proceedings of Magnolia #6 and 7
 |
| Attorney Jerry Simmons of Young, Minney and Corr, LLP http://www.mymcharterlaw.com/team_simmons.asp
|
55:36 Alfredo "School Director" aka Principal
mentions how their first year they had 48 school suspensions and how much they have improved in
just 4 short years.
59:18 Kim Onisko (Hired liar) accountant
We will and have made all changes necessary to keep the schools open
$9+ million in checking account at Magnolia they are "solvent"
Mr. Onisko would you care to let taxpayers know where the $9 million deposit came from and if $6 million is from the state of California Facility grant received on 7/1/2014 and if the rest could possibly be money deposited by Accord Institute, Turkic American Alliance and TUSKON (All Gulen Front Groups) ACCOUNTABILITY Mr. Onisko, TRANSPARENCY.
one just doesn't become solvent overnight.
1:00 Esualdo Dias, New Financial Director hired 2 weeks ago submitted new business plan
met with staff of LAUSD.
1:04 William Grey History Teacher and Assistant Principal "blah blah'
1:09 to 1:29 a series of students, parents and 1 grandmother spoke some needed translators
1:29 Parent mentions that her kid's teacher is Turkish
1:50 Monica (Fat Ass) Garcia, LAUSD board member- brings up that the Denial has nothing to do with the amazing job they have done but a "Litigation" that cannot be discussed. Dr.Cortines asks "if there is any kind of re visiting based on the changes the school claims they are making? Charter School Division speaks about the process of appeal. Steven Zimmer played devils advocate that the renewal could be revisited should they find those changes have happened but the litigation is findings of fact. That the denial doesn't effect the current school year, but the 2015-2016 so they can finish up the current school year.
Magnolia Science Academy is desperate. The court proceedings on #6 and 7- will continue and it will find they acted negligently and that LAUSD was just in denying their renewal and suspension.
Magnolia is not in a position to be making "deals" with LAUSD it's now at the state level auditors office.
To Kim and Jerry, please continue billing Magnolia Science Academy for services and deplete their checking account of the $9 million.
Sayanora, adios, Good bye!!!!!
Wednesday, October 22, 2014
Magnolia Science Academy Gulen "inspired" school roster for LAUSD
Magnolia Science Academy #1
18238 Sherman Way
Reseda, CA grades 6-12
Principal-Mustafa Sahin and Varol Gurler
Magnolia Science Academy #2 (Birmingham High School- share campus)
17125 Victory Blvd
San Fernando Valley, CA grades 6-12
Principal - Suat Acar
Magnolia Science Academy #3
1254 E. Helmick St.
Carson, CA grades 6-12
Principal Selcuk "steven" Keskinturk
Magnolia Science Academy #4 (Daniel Webster School)
1130 N. Graham Pl.
Los Angeles, CA 90064 grades 6-12
Principal Omar Polat
Magnolia Science Academy #5
18230 Kittridge St.
Reseda,CA grades 6-12
Principal Ismail Ozkay
Magnolia Science Academy #6
3754 Dunn Dr.
Los Angeles, CA 90034 grades 6-8
Principal "john" Gurcan Terzi
Magnolia Science Academy #7
18355 Roscoe Blvd.,
Northridge, CA grades K-5
Principal Irina Erangey-Millard (Only female principal in the USA works for Gulen Movement)
Irina is "Central Asian" (Turkic)
Magnolia Science Academy #8
6411 N. Orchard ave.,
Bell, CA 90201 grades 6-8
principal Alfredo Rubalcava token Mexican American
Tuesday, September 30, 2014
Magnolia Science Academy Magnolia Families Unite! Propaganda video
Julian Lopez, is currently the IT person for Magnolia Public Schools. He has
bounced around from UC Berkeley to UC Merced (he claims) but the registrars
at those two schools have no record of a Julian Lopez.
Saturday, August 16, 2014
Magnolia Science Academy- California State Auditor launches extensive investigation
Another scoop by KPCC’s Annie Gilbertson. The California State Auditor is investigating four of the state’s 11 Magnolia Science Academies, part of the Gulen charter chain.
“After sampling transactions from Magnolia campuses in 2012, L.A. Unified found over $43,000 in duplicate payments to vendors, flagging those as potential misuse of funds.
“The Los Angeles Unified school board ordered a second audit in 2014, voting to close two of the schools if any fiscal problems arose.
“The audit, which the district is calling a “forensic review,” revealed that schools sent $2.8 million to the network’s management organization. The funds were poorly documented loans, and much of the cash was never paid back to classrooms, according to L.A. Unified.
“District auditors found the management organization met the definition of insolvent, operating on a $1.7 million deficit.
“Magnolia refutes much of the findings.”
LEARN HERE HOW ACCORD INSTITUTE IS RELATED TO FARUK TABAN AND TURKISH
LOBBYING
http://gulenpoliticians.blogspot.com/2014/09/the-gulen-boys-are-at-it-againthis-time.html
Monday, August 11, 2014
Mehmet Argin formerly of Paragon Science Academy now Magnolia Science Academy CEO "No Organic Ties" REALLY?
Mehmet Argin is a loyal Gulen Follower and will go anywhere to grow the share
of power for the Gulen Movement.
MEHMET ARGIN, WE CHALLENGE YOU TO STOP
LYING ABOUT THE CHARTER SCHOOLS AFFILIATED
WITH EXILED IMAM FETHULLAH GULEN
2010 USA Today Article "Objectives of charter schools with Turkish ties questioned"
http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/education/2010-08-17-turkishfinal17_CV_N.htm
in this article Argin is quoted:
that Daisy Education Corporation "has no legal or organic ties" with other schools. He cautions against linking charter schools founded by Turkish-Americans directly to the Gulen Movement "just because Turkish Americans may be inspired by Mr. Gulen"
Quote by Mehmet Argin
4 years ago 2010 Mehmet Argin was with the Sonoran Science Academies /Paragon Science in Arizona. He made a statement that none of these schools opened by Turkish Americans have "organic ties". Mehmet Argin even put out the usual Gulen endorsement of Paragon Science Academy.
Fast forward to 2014 Mehmet is now in California working as the CEO Superintendent of the Gulen-Inspired operation Magnolia Science Academy. Here is his glowing endorsement of the California schools. If you compare with the Paragon video above you will hear the same words.
Now for the other Gulen Liar- Mr. Umit (Matt) Yapanel, who is currently the Superintendent of the
California Schools. Matt (Umit) was formerly the Principal in Colorado of the Gulen "inspired" school Lotus School of Excellence. Matt failed to get an expansion in CO, because of poor scores and hired an attorney to take his case to the state board of education EPIC FAILED. (does that story sound familiar California People?)
SOMEONE IS TELLING A FIB
From Colorado to Arizona to California
These are all connected and part of the Gulen Movement
Thursday, July 31, 2014
Magnolia Schools Opening ends close business relationship
LEARN HOW ACCORD INSTITUTE IS CONNECTED TO GULEN MOVEMENT POLITICAL LOBBYING VIA FARUK TABAN
A very close business relationship. Magnolia Public Schools, the parent of the two charters, is located at 13950 Milton Ave in Westminster, Suite 200A. Accord is located at 13950 Milton Ave in Westminster, Suite 200B. Close ties are also evident in two of Accord’s three board members who previously served on the board for MPS and were intimately involved in launching a few of the charter schools. The Accord website says current board president Ertan Salik was a “key figure in the charter school development team for Magnolia Science Academy, where he served as the board president from 2002 to 2005.” Another Accord board member, Suat Utku Ay, was on the board of directors for Magnolia Science Academy 1 in Reseda from 2005 to 2007. He was also the lead petitioner for Magnolia Science Academy 2 in Van Nuys.
In ruling against LA Unified, which wanted to close the schools over financial concerns, Lavin listed six conditions that could not be violated for the schools to remain open. One was an end to MPS’s outsourcing core administrative services for all eight of its LA Unified schools to Accord. Accord provided professional training, human resource and financial support, curriculum development, teacher evaluations and other academic support services for MPS. LA Unified contended that transferring those responsibilities called into question MPS’s accountability in the operations of its schools. While Lavin did not explain his reasoning for insisting on the breakup, in a June 27 letter to MPS, Jose Cole-Gutierrez, head of LA Unified’s Charter School Division, said the overlap of services provided by MPS and Accord “raises the question of the purpose of (MPS) and the management fees it receives from the schools when it appears that Accord is providing wholesale operations to the school.” LA Unified concluded that MPS spent nearly 30 percent of its total 2012 spending in payments to Accord and 26 percent in 2013. Between 2010 and February of 2014, the district said MPS paid Accord about $3 million. MPS denied all accusations of impropriety and argued that the $3 million represents a only 2.75 percent of the parent company’s five year, $110 million revenue stream, according to Mekan Muhammedov, Chief Finance Officer of MPS.
But Mehmet Argin, MPS CEO, told LA School Report, “We will comply with all the conditions” set by Lavin. “I believe the judge made a fair decision.” Lavin’s prohibition against the MPS-Accord business relationship struck at least one other charter executive as curious. David Hyun, Chief Financial and Operating Officer for Alliance College Ready Public Schools, which will operate 26 district charter schools when schools open in August, says Alliance would avoid the perception of a conflict interest but that there is nothing inherently illegal in what MPS is doing. “I don’t think the location matters; I think it’s about control,” he told LA School Report. “If the Accord board members are not on the board of Magnolia anymore, and they are two separate legal entities, then I don’t see where the conflict lies. Now if that board member was on Magnolia and Accord, at the same time, then I see the conflict.” It is unclear whether MPS or another outside company will now assume the responsibilities once performed by Accord. http://laschoolreport.com/magnolia-schools-opening-ends-close-business-relationship-lausd/
IF JUDGE LAVIN ORDERED MAGNOLIA TO SEVER TIES WITH ACCORD INSTITUTE
WHY IS THEIR LOGO STILL ON THE WEB SITE?
Wednesday, July 23, 2014
Magnolia Science Academy linked to reclusive Turkish Imam face closure
https://nonprofitquarterly.org/policysocial-context/24545-ca-charter-schools-linked-to-reclusive-turkish-imam-face-closure.html
A fiscal audit of two Los Angeles charter schools for fiscal mismanagement has led to concerns about the two charter schools’ parent organization. The audit led to the closing of Magnolia Science Academy-6 and Magnolia Science Academy-7 for reasons, according to L.A. Unified district, that included “a number of irregularities.” However, the audit also apparently revealed that the charters’ parent, Magnolia Public Schools, may itself be insolvent.
The news about the two Magnolia schools in Los Angeles has been noticed by other localities that host Magnolia charters. The Santa Clara County Office of Education last year renewed a charter petition for a Magnolia school outside of Cupertino, but is now concerned. “We will pay attention to this—we wouldn’t want to find out that our [Magnolia charter] school would have to close because other [Magnolia] schools are in trouble,” said Don Bolce, Santa Clara’s director of special projects. “We recognize that with a charter school that is part of a charter management organization, a problem at one school could impact other schools – if there is a problem, it endangers the system.” Magnolia’s charter school in Santa Ana, according to L.A. School Report, “has been of concern to school and county officials in Orange County despite winning approval for $18 million in facilities bond money.”
The Magnolia charter school system has had its ups and downs over the years, with some schools closed in other districts. But the 11 operating Magnolia schools, including eight in the Los Angeles Unified School District, are not ordinary charter schools, assuming there is any such thing. A Turkish newspaper, the Daily Sabah, indicates that the Magnolia schools are affiliated with a Turkish movement called the Gülen Movement. A website for the Gülen movement, also called “Hizmet,” describes the movement as “a faith-inspired, non-political, cultural and educational movement whose basic principles stem from Islam’s universal values, such as love of the creation, sympathy for the fellow human, compassion, and altruism,” establishing schools and universities around the world to carry out the beliefs of Gülen.
The Daily Sabah, supportive of Turkish government authorities, has a much more negative characterization of Gülen.
“The movement is led by a controversial imam living in rural Pennsylvania in self-imposed exile, who is at odds with the Turkish government over the influence he wields inside the Turkish police forces and top judiciary. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan recently requested the extradition of Fethullah Gülen both privately and publicly from the Obama administration and accused Gülen of plotting a judicial coup against the Turkish government before the local elections last March.”
The Hizmet Chronicle, a news outlet that is supportive of the movement and critical of the Turkish government, has charged that the press has smeared Gülen schools, with the Erdoğan-connected Turkish press playing a role in headines about other Gülen-related schools.
Another website provides a somewhat dated list (as of 2011) of Gülen-affiliated public schools, numbering perhaps as many as 140, including 44 in Texas and 19 in Ohio, though it seems that they aren’t all part of the same network or management. Why charter schools? A 60 Minutes piece on Gülen schools makes the connection to the Gülen belief system:
Living in exile in a gated retreat in Pennsylvania’s Poconos, “the Turkish imam Fethullah Gülen…tells his followers that to be devout Muslims they shouldn’t build mosques—they should build schools; and not to teach religion, but science. In sermons on the web, he actually says: ‘Studying physics, mathematics, and chemistry is worshipping God.’ So Gülen’s followers have gone out and built over 1,000 schools around the globe - from Turkey to Togo; from Taiwan to Texas.”
We certainly don’t know enough to comment pro or con about the Gülen movement and the insinuations against it lodged by the Erdoğan government. However, there have been criticisms, highlighted in the 60 Minutes coverage, that the Gülen charter schools are, according to a whistleblower, basically a money-making operation and a ruse for getting Gülen’s Turkish acolytes visas. If the Gülen schools are business ventures first and educational institutions second, the shutting down of Magnolia schools in Los Angeles suggests that the business plan might not be working in some geographies.
But without taking a position regarding Gülen versus Erdoğan, we can suggest that creating charter schools that overtly or covertly pursue a specific quasi-religious message, even to the point of one linked to a cultish leader like Gülen, shouldn’t be part of the K-12 public school system. Even if Gülen’s reported vision of Islam is positive with its emphasis on science, to the extent that it is tied to religion and doing battle with other interpretations of the Koran, it doesn’t really belong in a public school system—Rick Cohen
Tuesday, July 22, 2014
LAUSD orders 2 Gulen Magnolia Science Academies closed, parents vow to fight despite being in the dark over finances
http://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2014/07/21/la-charter-schools-face-closure-amid-financial-questions/
LOS ANGELES (AP/CBSLA.com) — Los Angeles Unified School District officials have decided to close two charter schools, based on the finding of a draft audit that has not been made public.
District administrators last month revoked the charters of Van Nuys’ Magnolia Science Academy 7 elementary school and its sister institution, Magnolia Academy 6 middle school in Palms, The Daily News reported.
Just months earlier, the district board “conditionally” approved renewing the schools’ charters. The California Charter Schools Association says the district’s approval and sudden revocation violates state law. “With little warning, no chance to respond and with only six weeks until the start of the next school year, LAUSD informed us that they are not renewing two of our Charters, based on findings that are either factually incorrect or grave misinterpretations,” Magnolia Education and Research Foundation’s Mehnet Argin said.
A judge will consider issuing an injunction Thursday that could stop the district from closing the schools, at least temporarily. About 300 students who attended Magnolia Science Academy 7 and another 140 students at Magnolia Science Academy 6 will have to find new schools to attend for the fall session, according to LA School Report. According to The Daily News, there had been questions in the past as to whether schools as small as the Magnolia academies were financially viable.
Read here how Magnolia Science Academy's Accord Institute is related to Faruk Taban and Turkish Lobbying.http://gulenpoliticians.blogspot.com/2014/09/the-gulen-boys-are-at-it-againthis-time.html
Just months earlier, the district board “conditionally” approved renewing the schools’ charters. The California Charter Schools Association says the district’s approval and sudden revocation violates state law. “With little warning, no chance to respond and with only six weeks until the start of the next school year, LAUSD informed us that they are not renewing two of our Charters, based on findings that are either factually incorrect or grave misinterpretations,” Magnolia Education and Research Foundation’s Mehnet Argin said.
A judge will consider issuing an injunction Thursday that could stop the district from closing the schools, at least temporarily. About 300 students who attended Magnolia Science Academy 7 and another 140 students at Magnolia Science Academy 6 will have to find new schools to attend for the fall session, according to LA School Report. According to The Daily News, there had been questions in the past as to whether schools as small as the Magnolia academies were financially viable.
Read here how Magnolia Science Academy's Accord Institute is related to Faruk Taban and Turkish Lobbying.http://gulenpoliticians.blogspot.com/2014/09/the-gulen-boys-are-at-it-againthis-time.html
Monday, July 21, 2014
Saturday, July 19, 2014
Magnolia Science Academy investigation California state wide
Not only the LAUSD but the entire State of California
New troubles for the non-profit charter school network, Magnolia Public Schools (MPS), are beginning to raise concerns beyond LA Unified, where the sudden closure of two schools for fiscal mismanagement expanded yesterday into what could be a larger investigation.
In a letter outlining a recent fiscal audit that led to the closure of the two LA Unified schools, Magnolia Science Academy-6 and Magnolia Science Academy-7, district officials detailed a number of irregularities and called the parent organization itself “insolvent.”
At least one other county has noticed.
“We will pay attention to this – we wouldn’t want to find out that our school would have to close because other schools are in trouble,” said Don Bolce, director of special projects at the Santa Clara County Office of Education, which renewed a charter petition last year for a Magnolia school located on the outskirts of Cupertino after reviewing concerns about the school’s finances.
“We recognize that with a charter school that is part of a charter management organization, a problem at one school could impact other schools – if there is a problem, it endangers the system,” he told LA School Report.
Messages seeking comment from Mehmet Argin, the MPS chief executive, were not immediately returned.
MPS currently operates 11 schools across California: eight in LAUSD, plus three others, including one in Santa Ana that has been of concern to school and county officials in Orange County despite winning approval for $18 million in facilities bond money.
Magnolia has also closed — and attempted to open — numerous other schools in various districts in recent years. (See list below).
For MPS, the problems in LA Unified are just the latest in a series of issues that have plagued the nonprofit in recent years. It has faced numerous audits of its schools as well as accusations of an association with a Turkish group called the Gulen movement, an Islamist-based group involved in education in countries around the world that has been accused of creating a cult-like environment in its schools.
An examination by LA School Report of public documents reveals a history of concern by officials around California who have repeatedly flagged financial issues. Here is a rundown of some of the activity that MPS taken in recent years:
District Charter – San Diego Unified School District
In a letter outlining a recent fiscal audit that led to the closure of the two LA Unified schools, Magnolia Science Academy-6 and Magnolia Science Academy-7, district officials detailed a number of irregularities and called the parent organization itself “insolvent.”
At least one other county has noticed.
“We will pay attention to this – we wouldn’t want to find out that our school would have to close because other schools are in trouble,” said Don Bolce, director of special projects at the Santa Clara County Office of Education, which renewed a charter petition last year for a Magnolia school located on the outskirts of Cupertino after reviewing concerns about the school’s finances.
“We recognize that with a charter school that is part of a charter management organization, a problem at one school could impact other schools – if there is a problem, it endangers the system,” he told LA School Report.
Messages seeking comment from Mehmet Argin, the MPS chief executive, were not immediately returned.
MPS currently operates 11 schools across California: eight in LAUSD, plus three others, including one in Santa Ana that has been of concern to school and county officials in Orange County despite winning approval for $18 million in facilities bond money.
Magnolia has also closed — and attempted to open — numerous other schools in various districts in recent years. (See list below).
For MPS, the problems in LA Unified are just the latest in a series of issues that have plagued the nonprofit in recent years. It has faced numerous audits of its schools as well as accusations of an association with a Turkish group called the Gulen movement, an Islamist-based group involved in education in countries around the world that has been accused of creating a cult-like environment in its schools.
An examination by LA School Report of public documents reveals a history of concern by officials around California who have repeatedly flagged financial issues. Here is a rundown of some of the activity that MPS taken in recent years:
District Charter – San Diego Unified School District
- SD Magnolia Science Academy 2
Closed 2010: MPS had won a charter petition to open the school in 2009, but after a year’s delay, it opened with only eight students enrolled. It was closed by the district mid-semester in 2010.
- Magnolia Next Generation Charter
Denied 2014: MPS submitted a charter petition numerous times to the school district to open Next Generation. In denying the charter this year, the district said the organization was “demonstrably unlikely to successfully implement the program set forth in the petition because the petitioners have presented an unrealistic operational plan for the proposed charter with respect to facilities and enrollment.”
- Magnolia Science Academy 3
Awarded petition but never opened: charter expired, June 2014
- Magnolia Science Academy – San Diego open since 2005
Renewal petition slated for 2015: The district sent warnings to MPS in both 2011 and 2012 after finding it had a negative ending fund balance and an inadequate reserve.
- Magnolia Science Academy — Santa ClaraRenewal approved 2013: Reservations stemming from its financial footing were flagged in a staff report that cited concerns with the school’s “negative fund balances, negative cash flow, poor fiscal accounting procedures, and internal control weaknesses.” Since then, according to Bolce, the county monitored its progress, and the school made the necessary adjustments. “Our biggest concerns were that we saw some operational concerns, the thing that was driving it for us – we had concerns about the school’s solvency…that was because the state was deferring payment.”
- Pacific Technology School-Orangevale (Near Sacramento)
Closed 2013: This school strugged with enrollment and financial issues, and was flagged by the state as being in “Poor Financial Condition.” According to a memo issued by Secretary of Education, Tom Torlakson last year, the school had a “negative fund balance trend is an indicator that demonstrates poor fiscal management practices and if unabated may result in financial insolvency or (California Dept. of Education/State Board of Education) action.” The school was closed in June 2013.
- Santa Ana Pacific Charter/Magnolia Santa Ana (190 students 6-12)
Renewed April 2014: Operating for five years as a “statewide benefit charter,” authorized by the California Department of Education, this school was forced to seek a new authorizer when its sister school in Orangevale closed. (The state requires an operator to have two schools under a statewide benefit charter). Last year, the state put it on a list of schools in “Poor Financial Condition,” and when the operator sought authorization from the Santa Ana Unified School District, the district denied the petition, citing fiscal concerns. The appeal was denied by the Orange County Department of Education in February of this year. On appeal, the Advisory Commission on Charter Schools State Board of Education voted in favor of awarding a the charter despite a staff report citing financial concerns.The school is on track to receive $18 million dollars in bond money for a new facility.
Thursday, July 17, 2014
Magnolia Science Academy - A Gulen Charter School: LAUSD to expand investigation includes all Magnoli...
Magnolia Science Academy - A Gulen Charter School: LAUSD to expand investigation includes all Magnoli...: http://laschoolreport.com/just-in-lausd-expanding-probe-into-magnolia-charter-schools LAUSD’s audit of two Magnolia Science Academy ch...
Monday, November 22, 2010
Magnolia Science Academy - Bell, CA and their visit to Turkey
This is their 2009 visit to Turkey that was called "European trip". Has anyone bothered to explain to these students that Turkey is NOT a part of Europe and will never be included into the European Union in the near future?
Human Rights and Civil Rights violations is the biggest reason why. Maybe they forgot to mention to these students that this Grand Mosque was built by the Greek Orthodox that inhabited the land 12 centuries before the invasion of Ottomans from Central Asia Mongolia? This Grand Mosque was in fact a Church called the St. Hagia Sophia before the Islamic regimes invaded and shamelessly converted it.
Today the St. Hagia Sophia has been converted into a museum with no mention of the first Christian inhabitants of a town called Constanipole now changed to Istanbul.
Learn about how it may not be safe for your children to travel to Turkey because of civil unrest. Gulen schools in Turkey are being attacked and on 11/20/2010 there was another bomb attack in Istanbul.
Do you want your child in Turkey when some nut case decides to perform Jihad and strap a bomb to their back? http://www.gulencharterschoolsusa.blogspot.com/
P.S. Question who pays for these trips to Turkey since 76% of the Magnolia Science Academy's students live below the poverty level. If you are a California Tax payer look in the mirror.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)