Mortellus
Feb 29, 2020
Despite administrators identifying substantial benefits, TJCA's Board declined to pursue up to $1.25 million in funding amid concerns about financial sustainability, student discipline, parental involvement, and changing student demographics. The Academy would pursue and receive funding from the same program the following year.
What happened: On February 29, 2020, the Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy Board of Directors voted against submitting an application for an NC ACCESS grant, rejecting an opportunity to compete for up to $1.25 million in funding intended to make charter schools more accessible to economically disadvantaged students and other underserved populations.
The decision followed weeks of discussion among school administrators, teachers, and board members. According to contemporaneous reporting by The Daily Courier, concerns raised during those discussions included the financial sustainability of serving additional economically disadvantaged students, student discipline, parental participation, and the potential effects of changing student demographics on classroom instruction.
The grant, administered through North Carolina's Advancing Charter Collaboration and Excellence for Student Success (NC ACCESS) program, was specifically intended to help charter schools expand educational opportunities for students facing economic and other barriers, including students experiencing homelessness, English language learners, and students with disabilities. TJCA administrators had supported pursuing the funding, identifying opportunities to improve transportation, technology, and professional development. Nevertheless, the Board ultimately voted not to submit an application.
What was established:
January 2020: TJCA initially endorses the opportunity
During its January board meeting, TJCA agreed to submit a letter of intent to pursue an NC ACCESS Expansion and Replication subgrant. The letter described the Academy as an "excellent match" for the program and affirmed that the school met its requirements and had begun planning for implementation. This initial endorsement is significant because it establishes that TJCA's leadership had already recognized the program's compatibility with its institutional goals before opposition emerged during subsequent deliberations.
February 18, 2020: Teachers and administrators debate the grant
During a specially called board meeting, school personnel discussed concerns about the additional costs associated with serving economically disadvantaged students. Although TJCA was a tuition-free public school, participants acknowledged that families still faced expenses for meals, uniforms, athletics, and other activities. The discussion revealed that some teachers were already spending personal money to help students meet these expenses. Teacher Greg Stearns described the existing financial pressures on educators, including instances of teachers purchasing shoes for cross-country runners. His comments emphasized the difficulty of increasing enrollment among economically disadvantaged students without first addressing the needs of students already attending.
Other concerns raised during the meeting included limited parental involvement, student disciplinary challenges, and questions about how changes in student demographics might affect instructional effectiveness. School administrators, however, emphasized the potential benefits of the funding. Academic Dean Michael Smith stated that the grant was a good fit for TJCA and could provide extensive professional development, two new school buses, and substantial technological improvements. Smith also acknowledged that the Academy likely served more economically disadvantaged students than its official figures reflected. He explained that the school relied on families to self-identify economic disadvantage during enrollment, and admitted: "We just haven't done due diligence with identifying EDS students." This admission is particularly important. TJCA was considering whether it could sustainably serve more economically disadvantaged students while its own administration acknowledged that the school had not adequately identified the economically disadvantaged students it already served. The proposed grant also required participating schools to make a specified number of enrollment spaces available to economically disadvantaged students. The Board postponed its decision until February 29, allowing additional time for staff feedback.
February 29, 2020: The Board votes against applying
Following its annual retreat, TJCA's Board voted not to submit the grant application before the March 1 deadline. Board Chairman Ray Maxwell subsequently confirmed the decision, thanking teachers and staff for their participation in the process. Maxwell acknowledged that the grant could have supported improvements, but explained that concerns about sustainability and other considerations had led the Board to reject the opportunity. The March 5 edition of The Daily Courier documented the decision and the concerns that preceded it. The same reporting noted that the Board agreed to pursue a separate $48,000 Challenge Foundation Properties grant for replacement projectors, an opportunity requiring TJCA to provide an additional $48,000 in matching funds.
Why the decision matters
The significance of the 2020 decision extends beyond the amount of funding involved.
NC ACCESS was designed to address barriers that can prevent economically disadvantaged students from accessing charter school education. Transportation, financial hardship, and limited resources were among the problems the program sought to address. Yet TJCA's deliberations placed the prospect of expanding access alongside concerns about discipline, parental engagement, financial burdens, and instructional effectiveness. These are not interchangeable concerns. The costs of supporting students experiencing poverty represent practical challenges that schools must address. Concerns that changing student demographics might negatively affect discipline or teaching raise different questions about institutional expectations and whose participation a school is prepared to accommodate. The distinction matters because the Board was not deciding whether to accept an already awarded grant. It was deciding whether the Academy should even compete for funding intended to help overcome some of the very obstacles being discussed. The public record documents that TJCA chose not to pursue that opportunity in 2020, despite its administration having identified substantial educational and operational benefits.
Original Evidence:
Taylor Johnson, "Board postpones vote on NC ACCESS grant," The Daily Courier, February 20, 2020, p. A5.
Taylor Johnson, "TJCA board passes on grant," The Daily Courier, March 5, 2020, p. A1.
Ritchie Starnes, "Two new hires are set to advance TJCA forward," The Daily Courier, August 12, 2021, p. S8.
Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy, TJCA Secures $700K Grant for Transportation & Technology.
North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, North Carolina Awards Grants to 34 High-Quality Charter Schools to Increase Access for Educationally Disadvantaged Students, August 18, 2020.
Subsequent developments: The Academy's position changed the following year. In June 2021, TJCA was awarded a $700,000 NC ACCESS grant intended to expand opportunities for economically disadvantaged students. An August 12, 2021, article in The Daily Courier, titled "Two new hires are set to advance TJCA forward," reported that the funding would support transportation for students who might otherwise have difficulty attending the school. TJCA also publicly announced the award, explaining that the $700,000 would be provided over five years and used to support transportation and technology improvements while broadening access for families in Rutherford, Cleveland, Polk, and surrounding counties.
The development represented a notable change from the decision made approximately sixteen months earlier. Newly appointed Executive Director Christopher Wright described a commitment to reducing barriers to enrollment, stating: "We have a goal to reach the economically disadvantaged. I want to eliminate barriers." The contrast between the two periods is important. In 2020, TJCA's Board declined to apply for access-oriented funding following concerns about the challenges of serving more economically disadvantaged students. In 2021, the Academy publicly celebrated securing funding from the same program to improve access for those students.
The later award does not erase the earlier decision. Rather, it provides an opportunity to examine how the Academy's leadership, priorities, and willingness to address enrollment barriers developed over time.
Further documentation, including the 2020 board retreat records, the successful 2021 grant application, subsequent progress reports, and available enrollment data, could clarify what changed between the two decisions and what improvements ultimately resulted from the award.
TJCATruth.com welcomes relevant board records, historical grant documents, correspondence, and other materials that help establish how these decisions were made and implemented.
Report from the community: Contemporaneous firsthand statements from TJCA educators and administrators were documented in The Daily Courier's February 20, 2020, reporting. These accounts describe teachers personally subsidizing student expenses, administrators recognizing deficiencies in the identification of economically disadvantaged students, and competing perspectives about whether TJCA was adequately prepared to expand access. TJCATruth.com has not yet received additional independent firsthand accounts from families, students, or staff directly affected by the 2020 grant discussions and decision. We particularly welcome accounts from families who encountered financial or transportation barriers to attending TJCA during this period, educators who participated in the grant discussions, and individuals familiar with the school's subsequent use of NC ACCESS funding. Individuals with relevant firsthand experiences are encouraged to contact TJCATruth.com. Requests for anonymity will be respected, and identifying information will not be published without the contributor's explicit consent. All submissions will be handled with discretion and confidentiality.