SBI is investigating ‘financial irregularities’ at NC charter school that’s closing
One of North Carolina’s oldest charter schools is closing amid a criminal investigation into whether state funding was fraudulently received.
Bridges Academy announced Friday it was closing as of June 30 due to “insurmountable financial challenges” discovered during an audit, according to a news release from the school’s board of directors. Bridges, located in Wilkes County about 150 miles west of Raleigh, had opened in 1997.
The school’s board said it’s cooperating with State Auditor Beth Wood’s investigative audit. In addition, the State Bureau of Investigation is investigating the charter school.
“In March of 2021, the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation opened an investigation into allegations that Bridges Academy charter school fraudulently obtained excess funding from the state of North Carolina,” Anjanette Grube, a SBI spokeswoman, said in an email Monday. “The investigation remains ongoing. No additional information is available at this time.”
Charter schools are taxpayer funded schools that are exempt from some of the rules that traditional public schools must follow. There are 200 charter schools open statewide this year.
The state Charter Schools Advisory Board accepted the surrender of Bridges’ charter on Monday.
“I’m sure we’ll be hearing more from legal about this matter as It develops and obviously this board takes this very seriously,” said Alex Quigley, chairman of the advisory board.
Financial irregularities discovered
Bridges’ board said they had brought in an outside consulting team in April to help rebuild the school following leadership and administrative changes. The board says the consultant found “irregularities within the school’s operations.”
“As both the state audit and the school’s investigation have continued, it has become apparent that there were financial irregularities that threaten the financial well-being of the school, and impact Bridges Academy’s ability to operate within the boundaries of its charter,” according to the school’s news release. “These irregularities were concealed from the Board of Directors and have resulted in insurmountable financial challenges.”
Bridges’ board held an emergency meeting on Friday and voted to surrender the charter and close the school. Now Bridges and the state are promising to help the school’s 171 students get their records transferred as they look for a new school.
“We did not make this decision lightly, and we recognize the uncertainty this creates for our families,” the school’s board said. “We will continue to share information with our community as the investigations move forward, and we will do whatever we can to assist families in next steps.”
This story was originally published June 8, 2021 at 8:00 AM with the headline "SBI is investigating ‘financial irregularities’ at NC charter school that’s closing."
