Shocking Findings: Pennsylvania’s Largest Cyber Charter Schools Waste Hundreds of Thousands on Luxury Cars, Dining, and Entertainment

Pennsylvania’s largest cyber charter school, Commonwealth Charter Academy (CCA), has come under scrutiny for its spending habits. A report from Education Voters PA revealed that the school spent nearly $600,000 on car dealerships and car washes in a year, along with $400,000 on entertainment activities.

The report examined CCA’s finances from July 2022 to June 2023. It highlighted $116,000 spent on dining, which included payments to bars and vineyards. Many of these expenses lacked clear explanations, including over $400,000 categorized as shopping without specific details on what was purchased. The school also paid more than $1 million to families under vague labels like “family mentor” or “student/caretaker.”

Education Voters PA commented that every dollar spent by CCA could have been used to support traditional public schools. They pointed out that such funds could help reduce class sizes, hire additional staff, or improve facilities in struggling public schools.

The report didn’t stop there. It also flagged an astonishing $8.8 million spent on advertising and promotional activities, but promised to provide more details in a future update.

Timothy Eller, a CCA spokesperson, defended the charter school in response to these findings. He emphasized that all funds are used for the benefit of enrolled students. He also argued that the expenses mentioned are typical for organizations of CCA’s size, which manages a $500 million budget and employs 2,400 staff members.

Critics of CCA state that Pennsylvania’s cyber charter system often drains resources from local public schools. Districts pay tuition to cyber charters for each enrolled student, which varies widely across the state based on local spending levels.

In the 2023-24 school year, CCA reported enrollment of over 23,000 students, with Eller later stating the number had risen to 33,000. This growth has raised questions as traditional public schools face funding challenges. Critics are also concerned about CCA’s transparency, noting that unlike public school boards, CCA’s board meeting agendas do not provide detailed information about proposed expenditures.

Education Voters PA categorized CCA’s expenditures as follows:

• Cars: $584,005 for 51 payments at car dealerships and car washes, without clarity on specific purposes.
• Dining: $116,486, including payments to apps like DoorDash and local vineyards.
• Entertainment: $404,717 spread across 193 payments to places like Hersheypark and Top Golf.
• Advertising and promotion: $8.8 million.
• Families: $744,924 for 1,078 payments labeled as “family mentors,” with amounts varying widely.
• Hotels: $205,056 for 141 payments, with no details on the purpose.
• Lobbying: $254,870 for firms providing lobbying services.
• Shopping: $406,205 for 276 payments without identifying items purchased.
• Staff: $749,170 for 766 payments with no specific staff names given.
• Gas: $33,737 for 161 payments to gas stations.
• No category: $56,000 for 92 payments that were entirely redacted.

The report calls for the state to conduct a thorough audit of CCA’s finances. Education Voters PA believes external scrutiny is necessary due to the numerous redacted transactions.

While Eller argued that CCA undergoes annual audits with no issues reported, Education Voters is pushing for reforms. They suggested implementing a flat tuition rate of $9,500 for cyber charters and stressed the need for the Department of Education to evaluate the expired agreements of cyber charters. In their view, a pause on new charters should take place until existing ones are accounted for.

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