Statement of Opposition - HSA Belmont Charter School Expansion
Statement of Opposition - HSA Belmont Charter School Expansion, April 26, 2023
We oppose the expansion of Horizon Science Academy Belmont, (HSA Belmont) state-authorized charter school, in the 10th Senate District/19th House District/45th Ward. A new charter campus would siphon state funds from district public schools and have a damaging impact on our underfunded Far Northwest Side public schools and communities. Additionally, the very concerning history of the school’s inception and operator, Concept Schools Inc., presents significant reasons for pause.
As Block Club Chicago reported last week, HSA Belmont is close to finalizing a deal to buy the former Our Lady of Victory (OLV) school building in Jefferson Park (4434 N. Laramie Ave.), and current rising 8th and 9th graders (from the existing campus in Belmont Cragin, 2456 N. Mango Ave., which currently serves K-8.) would attend the Our Lady of Victory campus in fall 2023. The charter is already advertising the new campus and enrolling students for grades 7-9.
The long-term goal of HSA Belmont is to expand the OLV campus through 12th grade in 2025 (up to 600 students). In addition to violating the spirit of the current collective bargaining agreement with the Chicago Teachers Union, which stipulates that charter schools cannot have a net increase in enrollment, the expansion and ongoing operating expenses will take state funding dollars from our public schools.
Secondly, there is the potential that the new upper grades charter school campus will negatively impact enrollment in existing CPS schools by attracting students who would have otherwise attended CPS schools in the area. Given the student based budgeting model CPS employs, enrollment declines negatively impact the funding the Chicago Board of Education allocates for schools. When CPS schools lose students, they lose dollars. CPS Far Northwest Side Schools are currently underfunded, with high schools alone receiving $45.6 million less than they need annually to be adequately funded. Our schools cannot afford to lose more funding. (Sources: CPS 20th Day Enrollment 2022-23, CPS Far Northwest Side Schools, IL Evidence Based State Funding Gap per Pupil).
Equally concerning is HSA Belmont's operator, Concept Schools Inc., which faced federal allegations of criminal activities, investigations of illegal political activity (international money laundering and fraud), and has a history of union busting. In 2020, Concept Schools Inc. "agreed to pay $4.5 million to end a long-running federal investigation into allegations it improperly steered federally funded technology contracts to 'chosen vendors.'" More detail on Concept’s questionable political actions and connections, including a financial relationship with former IL House Speaker Madigan, can be found here.
Currently, there are three Horizon Science Academy (HSA) schools operating in Chicago. HSA Southwest is authorized by the Chicago Board of Education. HSA Belmont and HSA McKinley Park are authorized by the Illinois State Board of Education. In 2012, the Chicago Board of Education voted to deny license authorization for Concept Schools Inc. to open HSA Belmont. Concept appealed to the now-abolished Illinois State Charter School Commission, and its appeal was granted in March 2013.
HSA Belmont was the first charter in the city not approved by Chicago Public Schools and instead authorized by the IL Charter Commission—which was put in place to override decisions at the local level, eroding the authority of school boards who best understood the standards of the district and the needs of the community.
In addition to funding state-authorized charter schools (including expansions) with state dollars, ISBE can “levy a 3% fee on any state-approved charter school to help cover the cost of oversight.” This is an additional loss of state dollars for our public schools.
In January this year, the lone Horizon Science Academy authorized by the Chicago Board of Education (HSA Southwest), was put on watch and issued a two-year contract renewal (renewals are historically five-years) for not meeting standards in “all three areas — academic, financial and operational, which includes how well it meets the needs of students in special education and students learning English.”
State-authorized charter schools, like HSA Belmont, are not subject to the same standards as CPS-authorized charters, so we don’t know how they perform comparatively. Given that they have the same operator, we must consider that HSA Belmont may also not be meeting district standards.
The Chicago Board of Education denied the opening of HSA Belmont; why should we allow the state to expand it now? We don’t need a new charter campus taking funds from our underfunded public schools and being regulated outside of our district.
- United Northwest Side, 25th Ward IPO, 30th United, 33rd Ward Working Families, 39th Ward Neighbors United, Activate Chicago Parents, Brighton Park Neighborhood Council, Chicago Teachers Union, Illinois Families for Public Schools, Northside Action for Justice, Raise Your Hand IL, United Neighbors of the 35th Ward, Network 49, and 50th Ward United Working Families