According to N.C. Policy Watch:
Wake Superior Court Judge Abraham Jones issued a ruling Friday that found the State Board of Education, the state entity that sets policy for the North Carolina’s public schools, had been legally entitled to ignore an application from a virtual charter school seeking North Carolina taxpayer funds to teach students from their home computers.
The extent of Jones ruling came as a bit of a surprise, with both the State Board of Education and the N.C. School Board Association asking Jones in arguments earlier in the week give the state board another chance to review the application of the school again.
“Though it would have been a better practice to give a written response to [North Carolina Virtual Academy]’s and N.C. Learn, Inc.’s charter school application on or by March 15, 2012, the SBE [State Board of Education] was not legally bound to do so because it had already explicated stated that virtual charter school applications were not being accepted for school year 2012-2013,” Jones wrote in his order.
Judge Jones’ order overturned an earlier administrative law-judge ruling ordering the State Board of Education to approve the application due to procedural mistakes.
K12, Inc. has had its share of lumps in the media recently, with articles in The New York Times, and The Washington Post, detailing problems with the administration and performance of the virtual schools.
The virtual schools have been embraced by some in the home-school movement and many in the school voucher movement.
As of now, it appears they will not be opening up in North Carolina in the 2012-2013 school year.
