Source: http://www.counsel.nysed.gov/Decisions/volume57/d17121
Timestamp: 2020-07-09 20:20:34
Document Index: 546607779

Matched Legal Cases: ['§2853', '§2853', '§2853', '§2853', '§2853', '§2853', '§2853', '§2853', '§2853', '§2853', '§2853', '§2853', '§2853']

Decision No. 17,121 | Office of Counsel
Decision No. 17,121
Appeal of FAMILY LIFE ACADEMY CHARTER SCHOOLS from action of the New York City Department of Education regarding school utilization.
Cohen Schneider LLP, attorneys for petitioner, Susan R. Briggs, Esq., of counsel
Berlin, Acting Commissioner.--Petitioner, Family Life Academy Charter Schools, an existing education corporation with authority to operate Family Life Academy Charter School II (“FLACS II” or “the school”),[1] challenges the New York City Department of Education’s (“DOE” or “respondent”) failure to offer the school a co-location site in a public school building or space in a privately-owned or publicly-owned facility at DOE’s expense and at no cost to petitioner, as required by Education Law §2853(3)(e). The appeal must be sustained.
Petitioner is authorized by the Board of Trustees of the State University of New York (“SUNY”) to operate FLACS II, which served students in kindergarten through grade 5 in the 2016-2017 school year.[2] On March 8, 2017, SUNY authorized the renewal of the authority of petitioner to operate FLACS II for a five-year term and approved its request to revise the school’s charter to expand to serve students in grades 6 through 8 (“middle school expansion”). The school will commence its middle school expansion in the 2017-2018 school year.
By letter to DOE dated May 5, 2017, petitioner requested co-location in a public school building, pursuant to Education Law §2853(3)(e), for the school’s middle school expansion. By letter dated May 16, 2017, DOE acknowledged petitioner’s request, but stated that it would “not be extending an offer of space at this time.”[3] This appeal ensued.
Petitioner asserts that DOE failed to offer it facilities for the school in violation of Education Law §2853(3)(e). As relief, it seeks an order directing DOE to comply with Education Law §2853(3)(e)(5) and pay rental assistance, beginning with the 2017-2018 school year and continuing thereafter, in an amount attributable to the school’s middle school expansion that is equal to the lesser of the actual rental cost of an alternative privately-owned site selected by petitioner or thirty (30) percent[4] of the product of the school’s basic tuition for the current school year and the positive difference of the school’s enrollment in the current school year minus the school’s enrollment in the school year prior to the first year of the expansion.
Here, by letter dated May 5, 2017, petitioner requested co-location space in a public school building for the school’s middle school expansion commencing in the 2017-2018 school year. The record indicates that, in its May 16, 2017 response, DOE stated that it would “not be extending an offer of space at this time.” However, in the event that DOE did not offer petitioner a co-location site in a public school building for the school, it was nevertheless required by Education Law §2853(3)(e)(1) to offer petitioner space in a privately-owned or other publicly-owned facility at the expense of the city school district and at no cost to petitioner. Instead, DOE indicated in its response only that it would not be extending an offer of space. As it did not offer petitioner space for the school in a privately-owned or other publicly-owned facility at the expense of the city school district and at no cost to petitioner, DOE failed to comply with the requirements of Education Law §2853(3)(e)(1).
The record in this case indicates that the school currently serves students in kindergarten through grade 5. The record further indicates that the school was approved by its charter entity in March 2017 to expand to serve students in grades 6 through 8. The school will commence its middle school expansion in the 2017-2018 school year, an expansion for which it requires additional space. Therefore, on the record before me, I find that petitioner has established that the school requires additional space due to an expansion of grade level that was approved by its charter entity for the 2014-2015 school year or thereafter. Petitioner has, thus, met all the statutory criteria and is entitled either to a co-location or to an offer of private or other publicly-owned space (see Education Law §2853[3][e]).
Accordingly, having failed to make such an offer, DOE must, pursuant to Education Law §2853(3)(e)(5), pay petitioner commencing with the 2017-2018 school year, and in each remaining year of the school’s current charter term and any subsequent renewal term, provided that, in any such renewal term, the charter school serves the grades encompassed by the charter referenced herein, rental assistance based on student enrollment in the newly-added grades 6 through 8 for which it has been approved to provide instruction.[5] Specifically, with respect to an existing charter school whose expansion of grade level is approved by its charter entity, “if the appeal results in a determination in favor of the charter school, the city school district shall pay the charter school an amount attributable to the grade level expansion” that is calculated in accordance with the formula set forth in Education Law §2853(3)(e)(5).
Therefore, DOE must pay petitioner for the school’s newly-added grades 6 through 8, commencing in the 2017-2018 school year, and in each remaining year of the school’s current charter term and any subsequent renewal term, provided that, in any such renewal term, the charter school serves the grades encompassed by the charter referenced herein, an amount attributable to its middle school expansion that is calculated in accordance with the formula set forth in Education Law §2853(3)(e)(5).
IT IS ORDERED that respondent comply with the requirements of Education Law §2853(3)(e)(5) in accordance with this decision and pay petitioner for the school’s middle school expansion commencing with the 2017-2018 school year, and for each remaining year of the current charter term and for any subsequent renewal term provided that, in any such renewal term, the charter school serves the grades encompassed by the charter referenced herein, an amount attributable to the grade-level expansion that is calculated in accordance with the formula set forth in Education Law §2853(3)(e)(5).
[1] In addition to operating FLACS II, petitioner operates two other charter schools, Family Life Academy Charter School and Family Life Academy Charter School III.
[2] FLACS II currently serves students in kindergarten through grade 5 in private space. Petitioner previously appealed DOE’s failure to respond to its request for co-location space for the school’s expansion to grades 3 through 5. On June 23, 2015, a decision was issued ordering DOE to comply with the requirements of Education Law §2853(3)(e)(5) with respect to such expansion (see Appeal of Family Life Academy Charter Schools, 54 Ed Dept Rep, Decision No. 16,777).
[3] In her affidavit, petitioner’s chief executive officer indicated that without an offer of space from DOE, petitioner will incur rental costs and expenses for the school.