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District review team recommends denying 3 Rivers Wildflower Montessori charter; founder vows to revise application
Summary
At a Feb. 3 education committee hearing, Pittsburgh Public Schools’ review team concluded the 3 Rivers Wildflower Montessori charter application failed multiple legal and programmatic criteria — including lack of a facility, incomplete curriculum alignment, and inadequate special-education planning — and recommended the board not approve it; the applicant said she will address the deficiencies and return.
The Pittsburgh Public Schools charter review team recommended that the board not approve the 3 Rivers Wildflower Montessori Charter School application after finding multiple statutory and programmatic deficiencies, and the school’s founder said she will revise the application and pursue next steps.
Elizabeth Augustine, the district’s director of charter accountability, told the committee the application submitted Nov. 17, 2025, failed to demonstrate required sustainable support and did not meet key criteria under the charter law. "The recommendation is to not approve this application," Augustine said after listing shortcomings in support, curriculum, governance, finances and facilities.
Why it matters: approval would authorize a publicly funded K–8 charter operating in Pittsburgh and shift state and district tuition dollars to a new operator. Board members pressed the applicant on enrollment priorities, facility plans, and whether the proposed model would serve the district’s targeted students.
Augustine summarized the district’s review findings: the application included only nine speakers in support at the required public hearing and 16 letters of support (several…
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