Lincoln County superintendent warns Siletz Valley School it’s still violating charter, still risking closure

By SHAYLA ESCUDERO/Lincoln Chronicle

After a nearly a year of warnings, Siletz Valley School is still not meeting requirements in its charter agreement with the Lincoln County School District and remains at risk of closing, according to a new letter from the district’s superintendent.

Superintendent Majalise Tolan sent Siletz school leaders a scathing letter April 30 that was made public Tuesday as part of a school board packet for its monthly meeting. The letter further outlines the Siletz school’s lack of compliance with its two-decade-old charter agreement.

“The school district continues to lack confidence in SVS’s compliance due to a persistent lack of follow through and evidence of true implementation of the developed plans created and submitted by SVS,” Tolan said in an email Wednesday to the Lincoln Chronicle.

Among 11 points in the letter, Tolan said the school in downtown Siletz needs $15 million in repairs that the charter is responsible for, students have an attendance rate below 40 percent, and there isn’t an approved plan for students trying to learn the English language.

In response to warning letters last July, in November and again in January, Siletz Valley School leaders say they are making plans to fix areas where they are falling short. But Siletz’s leadership did not respond to the Chronicle’s requests for comment this week.

In her latest letter, Tolan said the school district needs more than plans – that Siletz needs to implement them. And if the school doesn’t reach compliance in 11 areas, Tolan said, they might be back where they started and their charter may be under threat.

“It is important to note that acceptable compliance is not a beginning stage or a plan on paper – compliance is consistent implementation and has been requested for three years with ongoing support,” the letter said.

It’s been a bumpy path for the charter school.

Last month, Tolan recommended terminating the charter and building lease agreements and creating new ones so that the school wouldn’t have to close. But her recommendation didn’t get enough support from the board because one member was absent and another recused herself from the decision.

Siletz Valley Schools leadership, students and staff let out a sigh of relief after that meeting. But there was still a lot of uncertainty of what might happen next, as a motion’s failure to pass did not absolve the charter of its responsibility to meet the charter’s requirements.

In the weeks since, the school district sought legal advice to figure out the next steps and is starting to take a few steps back.

An agreement 

In order to operate, Siletz Valley School and the district formed a charter and lease agreement in 2003 – a contract that states requirements the school must meet from building maintenance to creating student discipline plans. For the past three years, the school has not met many of the requirements.

For the most part, processes and plans are created by the charter and it is up to school administrators and its board to follow them, rather than the sponsoring district creating plans for the semi-independent school to follow. Because the charter school gets state funds via the district, the district is responsible for making sure the school is in compliance with the agreement and has its own obligations to the state as well.

Turnover in Siletz leadership prompted Tolan to send a letter last July outlining several areas of concern ranging from violations of state public meetings law to how the school reports its finances. The district did not see sufficient improvements during the fall and winter, so on Jan. 30 Tolan issued a 60-day notice with the intent to terminate the contract.

The district also got an outside consultant to further determine the school’s lack of compliance.

Lincoln County school board members had several options in front of them when they considered Tolan’s closure recommendation – terminate the charter and absorb Siletz students into Lincoln County schools, reopen the school as a part of the district, or vote to not terminate the lease and continue to give Siletz more time.

But Tolan recommended another option – terminate the charter agreement and create a new one so the school wouldn’t have to close but would also allow it to meet their legal obligations. But, with one board member recused and another absent, the motion failed to pass.

Another letter

Siletz Valley School has had several chances over the last three years to get into compliance, and is still falling short, according to Tolan’s letter to interim superintendent Debra Barnes and board chair Jenifer Metcalf.

“In the public hearing, SVS staff commented that the lack of consistent leadership is the reason for non-compliance; however, while many leaders have been in and out of leadership positions, several have remained, and all have been notified of the need for compliance,” Tolan wrote.

According to the school district, the charter is still not compliant in 11 areas – services for English learners; board bylaws; facilities maintenance; budget reporting; academic improvement; attendance rates; data reporting; financial and grant reporting; Oregon’s public meetings laws; discipline procedures; and cybersecurity;

“Lack of strong leadership, honest reflection, focused implemented and monitored plans; and a belief in improvement appear to be missing,” Tolan said. “LCSD is told and the public is led to believe that compliance is met because drafts or plans with no evidence of true implementation are written and should be trusted. Three years of lack of evidence demonstrates that drafts and plans cannot be trusted. These plans must be implemented, reviewed, revised, and continuously improved for our students.”

The district had provided an eight-hour a month coach since February and had been consulting with the Siletz Tribe on its grants to the charter school.

But that support has been yanked. From now on, the district will instead refer Siletz administrators and board to the Oregon Department of Education.

“LCSD staff has been willing to help provide additional training, feedback, and support however it is met with little to no implementation,” Tolan wrote.

According to the district, it will still continue to invite the charter to administrative training and professional learning opportunities, give regular feedback, monitor weekly and meet monthly. But, Tolan said the district will begin referring the charter to the state for additional training and support.

If the district does not see progress, the school may receive another 60-day notice of termination – meaning it could face a possible closure, Tolan said.

• Shayla Escudero covers Lincoln County government, education, Newport, housing and social services for Lincoln Chronicle and can be reached at [email protected]

To read Lincoln County School District Superintendent Majalise Tolan’s letter to the Siletz Valley School board, go here