Ricardo Flores Magon Academy

Monarch Montessori enrolls enough students to open as a DPS charter school this fall

Monarch Montessori, the charter school that's the subject of this week's cover story, "Play Time is Over," has enrolled enough students to open this fall. Denver Public Schools, which approved the school due in part to pressure from the State Board of Education, gave Monarch until April 20 to enroll ... More >>

Ricardo Flores Magon Academy granted five-year charter renewal, sans Marcos Martinez

The Ricardo Flores Magon Academy charter school can continue operating. Today, the Charter School Institute voted to extend the embattled school's contract for five more years -- with several stipulations. Among them: Find a new leader. The school's founder and most recent principal, Marcos Martinez ... More >>

Colorado Virtual Academy: Report finds low-paid teachers, huge workloads at online school

Teachers at Colorado's largest online school are likely overworked and underpaid, according to an investigation by KUNC reporter Grace Hood. She found that most of the teachers at Colorado Virtual Academy make less than $35,000 per year -- even middle school English instructors who, during the first ... More >>

Marcos Martinez, head of Ricardo Flores Magon Academy, resigns his post

Marcos Martinez, the controversial founder of the Ricardo Flores Magon Academy and subject of our cover story "A Hard Line," has resigned. So, too, have two other employees whom the school's board of trustees asked to take a paid leave while they investigated complaints against them. The school is n ... More >>

Ricardo Flores Magon Academy hires security guard because of "concerns"

​The turmoil continues at the Ricardo Flores Magon Academy charter school in Westminster, the subject of our recent cover story, "A Hard Line." Facing two lawsuits and many more complaints, the school has now (at least temporarily) lost its leader, about whom many of the complaints were made. ... More >>

Ethan Hemming named executive director of Charter School Institute

Ethan Hemming, charter school whiz and former interim executive director of the Charter School Institute, is no longer interim. The institute's board of directors has made him the official executive director and head of an organization in the process of righting itself after several things went wron ... More >>

Marcos Martinez, head of Ricardo Flores Magon Academy, on leave during investigation

Is Marcos Martinez, principal at the Ricardo Flores Magon Academy and the subject of our recent feature "A Hard Line," on his way out as head of the Westminster charter school? Westword just received word that Martinez, chess instructor Dominic Martinez and director of curriculum and instruction Ga ... More >>

Ricardo Flores Magon Academy: Petition outlines concerns about charter school

​ A group of parents associated with the Ricardo Flores Magon Academy is airing its concerns about the charter school, which was the subject of our recent feature story, "A Hard Line." They're circulating a petition to remove the school's leader, Marcos Martinez, and have sent a list of concer ... More >>

Colorado's charter school law slips from fourth to seventh in new national ranking

​Colorado is seventh in the nation when it comes to the quality of its charter school laws, according to a ranking released today by the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. That's actually a downgrade from last year, when Colorado ranked fourth in the country. Why the slip? The folks ... More >>

Charter schools: State Board of Ed approves non-mandatory standards for authorizers

Update: The State Board of Education has approved new standards for charter school authorizers -- the school districts and one quasi-state agency that approve new charter schools. But the standards aren't mandatory. As the Colorado Department of Education's Amy Anderson tell us, state board members ... More >>

Charter School Institute adds ninth board member: Liz Aybar, former principal at P.S. 1

The Charter School Institute board is once again complete. Last week, Governor John Hickenlooper appointed a ninth member: Liz Aybar, who once served as principal of the now-shuttered P.S. 1 Charter School in Denver. Aybar and the other eight board members have their work cut out for them, as explai ... More >>

Ricardo Flores Magon Academy: Read school's charter renewal application

​ Applications were due yesterday for schools wishing to continue under the banner of the Charter School Institute, a quasi-state agency created in 2004 to approve charter schools rejected by districts with an ax to grind. The Ricardo Flores Magon Academy -- the subject of our cover story, "A ... More >>

Charter school enrollment grows nationwide and in Colorado, which now has 82,200 students

Flickr​Enrollment in charter schools is growing nationwide, as well as here in Colorado. More than two million students now attend charter schools in the U.S., a 13 percent increase from last year, according to numbers released today by the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. Colorad ... More >>

Ricardo Flores Magon Academy: Read the lawsuit filed by former teacher Claudia Mitchell

​ This week's cover story, "A Hard Line," looks deeper into complaints against a Westminster charter school called the Ricardo Flores Magon Academy. One former teacher is now suing the school, claiming she was discriminated against and then fired in 2009 after she called in sick with the swine ... More >>

Charter school chief rules with iron fist, say teachers

Ricardo Flores Magon Academy: Why was embattled school named for anarchist writer?

​This week's cover story, "A Hard Line," takes a look at the Ricardo Flores Magon Academy, a charter school in Westminster with both high test scores and a high number of former teachers, one of whom recently filed a discrimination lawsuit against the school. Among complaints voiced by some fo ... More >>

Ricardo Flores Magon Academy: Will lawsuits facing charter school matter come renewal time?

The Ricardo Flores Magon Academy charter school in Westminster gets spectacular academic results and has won accolades for its tennis and chess programs. But former teachers and parents say not everything there is working -- especially the administration. How much will the personality clashes, high ... More >>