Dive Brief:
- Thirteen parents of current and former Success Academy students have filed a formal complaint with the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights against the 34-school charter network, claiming that it denied accommodations to students with disabilities.
- The complaint follows longstanding allegations by critics, who have said that the schools "pushed out" undesirable students who might bring down graduation rates and overall academic performance.
- According to the allegations, students were asked not to return, were disproportionately suspended, and were not treated in the same way as their able-bodied peers.
Dive Insight:
Success Academy has long been an easy target for charter opponents, most recently for the leak of a Brooklyn Success Academy principal's infamous “Got to Go” list that included 16 students he wanted to "purge" due to disciplinary problems. At the time, the reports gave weight to critics' longstanding claims that Success intentionally pushed out low-performing students and those with behavioral challenges. This latest round of accusations strengthens those claims, calling a federal spotlight upon them and potentially carrying implications for charter networks across the board.