Statewide Virtual Charter School Board places Proud to Partner Leadership Academy on probation amid staffing, financial and academic concerns

The Statewide Virtual Charter School Board voted in open session on Nov. 10, 2025 to place Proud to Partner Leadership Academy (PTPLA) on probation across academic, financial and organizational categories, and set a deadline of Nov. 26, 2025 for the charter school’s board to submit a formal corrective plan.

Agency staff told the board that PTPLA had reduced its paid staff from 10 to three (superintendent, one teacher and a counselor) because of funding constraints, and that on multiple site visits observers found inconsistent instruction and large numbers of students in the building who were not engaged in logged online coursework. Staff reported PTPLA’s October 1 student count at 100 and observed roughly 43–65 students on-site at various visits. "Based upon the layers of concerns, serious concerns about the instructional environment and the education being provided to the students and the ongoing nature of the situation, I would recommend the statewide charter school board proceed under the warning tier of the oversight model," agency staff said during the presentation, while also noting that the rules allow the board flexibility to move tiers based on severity.

Financial reviews presented to the board showed a negative fund balance at the end of the prior year, missed OCAS (Oklahoma Cost Accounting System) submission deadlines that created compliance deficiencies and state-aid assessments (a 1% assessment for one month and 2% for a second month), and at least one confirmed practice of using current fiscal-year revenues to pay prior-year expenditures; agency staff said that practice had been stopped once identified. The school reported hiring a new treasurer and contracting with an accounting firm to address the shortfalls.

Board members pressed staff on timelines and next steps, repeatedly emphasizing that student learning must come first. Several members compared the situation to a medical triage: restore teachers and student engagement immediately, then remedy finance and reporting issues. One board member asked why the board had not seen earlier warning signs and whether the school’s governing board had been sufficiently engaged.

A motion to move PTPLA to probation was made during the meeting and later amended to require the probationary final plan to address all three areas (academic, financial and organizational). The board adopted the amendment and then the motion; voting was recorded as affirmative by the members present and the chair announced the motion carried. Agency staff said they would review the corrective plan once filed and bring the school’s response back to the board for assessment at the next meeting.

The board’s action requires PTPLA’s governing board to submit a formalized plan that identifies deficiencies, assigns responsible parties, sets completion deadlines and proposes an effective date and implementation timeline. Agency staff suggested that immediate corrective actions focus on restoring paid instructional staff and improving student engagement, while financial and documentation repairs may require longer timelines.

The board emphasized it wants rapid progress on academic engagement and staffing, noting that some remedies (for example, reversing prior fiscal transfers) cannot be retroactively undone, but can be corrected going forward. The meeting record shows the board expects the final corrective plan by Nov. 26, 2025 and will review whether the proposed timeline and actions are sufficient at the subsequent meeting.