“Imagine MASTer Academy has made suggested improvements and been released from probationary status by Ball State University Office of Charter Schools.
The board completed a list of 10 requirements outlined in a February 2010 Corrective Action Plan Letter, and OCS Interim Director Robert A. Marra notified school board members Monday of the status change, according to a news release. The letter included timetables for the completion of each action step. Ball State authorizes the state’s public charter schools, including Imagine MASTer Academy at 2000 N. Wells St.
The school completed requirements that included board training, changing meeting times to different dates from the other two Fort Wayne Imagine schools that operate independently – Imagine Schools on Broadway and the former Imagine Bridge Academy – replace board members whose terms had expired and develop a five-year plan. The board also had to stop making decisions outside public meetings and end its relationship with two charter schools in Texas for which it provided its nonprofit status without the consent of the board.
‘I commend your effort to achieve this milestone,’ Marra wrote in a letter to IMA board President Pat Sheean.
Sheean said in the release, ‘This has been a challenging learning process for all of us; however this process has undoubtedly led to marked improvements that benefit all of our stakeholders, including parents, students, teachers, staff and taxpayers.’
Ball State revoked the charter of Bridge Academy last year, after rejecting three location requests, saying it was not seeking to fulfill its original mission and vision. Imagine had not met an amendment to the site proposal it made for a higher-education component and a working relationship with surrounding colleges, allowing students to obtain dual credit and bringing in college students to work as teachers or social workers.”
Article published on June 9, 2011 by the News Sentinel