S2 E8: FL Charter School Gets $65M of Fraudulent Donations

March 15, 2019

Overview:

Kendall Artusi founded Bright Futures Academy – grew it from 48 to 800 students from 2001-2016. During this time she uncovered and reported that the original board of directors participating in an IRS tax scheme ran $65 million dollars thru the school. Kendall ran the school with a staff of up to 100 employees which operated across 4 campuses in 3 municipalities with no management/support company.

Meet Our Guest:

In 2016, Kendall began working for Academica and now oversee 8 schools in PBC, writes charter applications for different programs and am currently opening a new school in South Carolina based off of the Bright Futures Acady Program. The school is called Clear Dot Charter School and will open in Columbia, SC in August 2019. The focus is Global Competency. The school’s sponsor is The Charter Institute at Erskine, and they have been amazing! We are working with MB Kahn Construction and American Charter Development to acquire the site and build the school.

Kendall is passionate about Charter School Education because she believes in choice; and that families should have an option to send their children to schools with programs that best meet their needs. She wants to help break the cycle of poverty and equally prepare all students to have an opportunity to realize their dreams.

Website Links:
www.academica.org
www.cleardotcharterschool.org

The Host:

If you are interested in being on the show or know someone who would be a great guest, please connect with Kevin Stoller

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The Better Learning Podcast combines education and entertainment in a fresh, engaging format where guests share their favorite school-related movies. Host Kevin Stoller leads dynamic conversations, exploring memorable scenes, iconic characters, and timeless lessons through award-style categories like “The John Keating Award” for standout teachers and “Realistic or Ridiculous?” to dissect school life portrayals.

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