TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Former Principal Sues Defunct Charter School

ADVERTISEMENT

By CHRISTIAN M. WADE, The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 3, 2007

NEW PORT RICHEY - The former principal of The Language Academy has filed a lawsuit against the now-defunct charter school, claiming she was wrongfully terminated.

The suit, filed Friday in Pasco-Pinellas Circuit Court on behalf of the academy's former administrator, Joyce Nunn, seeks more than $40,000 in back pay and other monies.

Nunn, who was fired by the school's board of directors shortly before the Pasco County School Board closed the school, claims the dismissal violated her contract.

She was fired by the board in March, though her contract was valid until July.

The compensation Nunn is seeking includes about $22,000 in donations she raised for the academy and an estimated $18,000 in back pay, according to court documents.

Nunn declined to discuss the pending litigation Sunday, and her attorney, Ed Albrecht of Land O' Lakes, could not be reached for comment.

The academy opened in 2002 next to the Westminster Presbyterian Church on U.S. 19. It was closed by the Pasco school board in April after struggling for more than a year to boost dwindling enrollment and improve its troubled finances.

Because The Language Academy no longer operates, it was unclear Sunday where Nunn is hoping to recover money or who would be responsible for the school's obligations.

Nunn, a retired school administrator, took over The Language Academy in early 2004 from the school's founder and first principal, the former Rev. Gary Carson.

Shortly after, Carson resigned as principal and board president after two school district audits raised questions about the academy's finances and management practices.

In July 2005, Carson was stripped of his ministerial duties by the Tampa Bay Presbytery after a special commission found him 'guilty of forgery' and violating church doctrine.

The ruling stemmed from an investigation by church officials into allegations that he signed the name of the church treasurer on dozens of checks from the academy.

An investigation by The Tampa Tribune uncovered how more than $500,000, including state and federal start-up money, was unaccounted for during Carson's tenure.

Carson, who was never charged with any crimes, denied wrongdoing.

The state-funded charter school never fully recovered from its financial woes, however, and the county's school board voted unanimously in October to close it.

Nunn and school officials vowed to do whatever it took to keep the academy afloat.

The school earned a reprieve in December, when Language Academy officials submitted a financial recovery plan, saying several benefactors had stepped forward with donations. That led the school board to rescind the closure vote.

The reprieve was short-lived, though. When the money didn't materialize, the school board voted again to close it.

Reporter Christian M. Wade can be reached at (727) 815-1082 or cwade@tampatrib.com.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT