Charter Academy Gets District Nod

The Orange Unified School District board recently voted unanimously to allow the California Charter Academy of Orange County to operate under the district’s supervision.

The nonprofit charter school offers classes to students mostly 18 years of age or older who are academically low-achieving.

“We will be making sure the program is running effectively and they are delivering the program they say they are going to,” said Neil McKinnon, assistant superintendent of education services. “They appear to be well run, and I think they have a legitimate concern about the delivery of this program.”

The California Charter Academy has 26 locations that are publicly funded and operate independently of state regulations but with school district supervision.

The school district will be overseeing the academy’s operation in Orange and San Diego counties and will receive 3% of its state revenue, which will be based on student attendance.

About 1,000 students attend the charter schools in both counties. The district would receive about $150,000 a year from the academy, which receives its money directly from the state, McKinnon said.

“We are catering to a population that missed out on a high school diploma the first time around,” said Steven Cox, chief executive of the academy. “We offer a high school diploma program where students get the individualized attention that they need.”

Although no California Charter Academy site operates within the district, McKinnon said the district might look at the possibility of serving at-risk students attending Orange Unified schools.

Marissa Espino can be reached at (714) 966-5879