Commissioner of Education Michael Williams will appoint a board of managers for the liquidation of assets and other specific issues related to the revocation and closure of Honors Academy and the seven campuses operating under the charter as public, accredited schools. The charter is currently operating as a de facto private school. Therefore, the board will address only those issues regarding the final closure of the Academy as a state charter but will not impact the day-to-day operations.
The previously announced revocation became effective June 30, 2014. Once a charter is revoked, a former charter school is prohibited by law from operating as a public charter school or receiving state funds.
The Honors Academy campuses covered by this action are Branch Park Academy in Farmers Branch, Creekview Academy in Killeen, Landmark School (also known as Leadership Academy) in Palestine, Legacy Park Preparatory in Kaufman, Pinnacle Academy of Fine Arts in Fort Worth, Quest Academy in Dallas and Wilmer Academy in Wilmer.
The former charter school has continued to operate a de facto private school, but is falsely holding itself out as a public charter school, a violation of the Texas Education Code, according to TEA staff. The former charter school has refused to transfer its student records to TEA, another violation that may have a negative impact on students who previously attended or currently attend Honors Academy. Those students who remain enrolled in an Honors Academy campus are considered private school students and are not earning credit from a public, accredited school. TEA staff hand delivered information packets to every Honors Academy campus for distribution to parents.
The revocation and closure of Honors Academy also impacts teachers and any other employees at the seven campuses. Teachers who remain on faculty at any Honors Academy campus are employees of a private school and no longer contribute to the Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS) and the current school year is not counted toward their years of service in TRS.
