Current examinations that have been introduced to the NJ school empire

The government's office has initiated a comprehensive examination of a competitive charter school empire in which the network serves with a summons for practically all financial, budgetary and operational documents from 2019. NJ Advance Media has learned.

The summary was issued on November 15 to the college achievement of public schools, a public charter school network, the subject of a multi-stage NJ-front media examination was the burgeoning empire.

The state compatroller – an independent state agency that has been commissioned to bring more efficiency and transparency to all levels of the government of New Jersey quoted his authority, “complaints regarding pre -added media.

The summons applied for an impressive width of documents from the College-rich executive session, among other things.

College Achroping Public School, known as caps, has submitted several counter -motions to cancel the summons. The caps described public relations from the compatroller “an outrageous presentation of agent tower and an inappropriate and suppressive document of the document”, according to a submission.

Naush Boghossian, a PR specialist who represents Caps, refused to discuss the procedure on Tuesday, and said that the network was “unable to comment on ongoing legal affairs.

The compatroller also rejected a comment when NJ Advance Media reached on Tuesday.

Caps was the focus of a series of NJ Advance Media investigations when the news organization is far from the founder and CEO of the network, Michael Piscal, new Jersey. Executive Directors of College achieve schools in Paterson and Asbury Park/Neptune in the amount of $ 515,674 or $ 460,515 in the total compensation -salaries that are significantly higher than other top school officers in New Jersey.

A subsequent investigation by NJ Advance Media discovered that the former husband and woman team, which headed the Institution of the Network in Asbury Park and Neptune, used a family-owned company to do thousands of dollar school clothing at the expense of the taxpayer and in direct violation To produce school thoughts against New Jersey.

The officials Jodi and Tim Mcinerney, who worked as executive director and headmistress of College Ach -Asbury Park, were, according to the state financial disclosure.

Like other public charter schools in New Jersey, Caps receive the most funds directly from the school districts that send children to school. The network currently operates 11 schools in five cities or townships across the state and looks after almost 3,500 students.

In the attempt to hand over the summons from the compatroller, CAPS lawyers argued in counter -movements that caps, by serving as a charter management organization for the surveillance of schools in your network, is not a charter school. Caps Inc. is a private unit that works as a non -profit company and is not a contractor of the state of New Jersey. “

But in a subsequent letter, which was submitted by the state against the canceled application and prepared by Attorney General Stephanie Mignogna, the state confirmed the compatroller “responsibility for the expenditure of public funds and the effectiveness of these expenses …”

The letter also stated: “Frustratingly, the caps swings its significant role in the upbringing of the pupils of the New Jersey Public Schools and the core mission to improve educational results for students and at the same time to distance yourself from the supervision of public agencies and public funds The core of the OSC mission by claiming that it is a private person who is not subject to supervision. “

The next meeting for discussion of the case is planned for March 6th in front of the Supreme Court of Monmouth County.

The latest development is followed by reporting on the interior work of Caps, in particular its institution in Asbury Park and Neptune, the reporting on the interior work of NJ Advance Media. According to the reports, Caps fired the Mcinerneys, deployed the salaries of his top officials and hired an external law firm to start an independent examination in July. The results of this investigation still have to be published.

In response to the reporting of NJ Advance Media on caps and other charter schools across the state, the Senate Committee Committee held hearings in December that should lead to this.

According to Senator Vin Gopal, D-Monmouth, the chairman of the Senate Committee Committee of the Senate, a draft of the draft law is expected to be drawn up this month.

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Matthew Stanmyre can be reached mstanmyre@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on X @mattstanmyre. Find NJ.com on Facebook.