Charlotte charter will move in with Movement School amid financial woes
A Charlotte charter school will move 12 miles away and share a building as it battles financial woes.
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Charlotte Secondary School opened in 2007, first as a middle school and later expanding to include grades 9-12, with its first high school class graduating in 2016. It has confirmed an enrollment of 156 students for the 2026-27 school year.
After a vote last week by the North Carolina Charter Schools Review Board, it will move from its current location in southeast Charlotte to share a facility with Movement School, another charter 12 miles away on Freedom Drive in northwest Charlotte.
The move “supports the school’s long term financial sustainability while preserving its independent governance, mission, and educational program,” Julie Whetzel, an educational programs consultant for the N.C. Office of Charter Schools, told the board July 23.
Movement School has extra room, its CEO Kerri-Ann Thomas told the board, as it initially planned to house grades K-8 but now only serves as an elementary school. Its building on Freedom Drive has about 100,000 square feet, and Charlotte Secondary plans to lease around 30,800. However, the lease is not yet final.
Charlotte Secondary still has “financial noncompliance” status after first being placed on notice in December for being more than $107,000 in the red.
The move, in part, results from the financial trouble, Head of School JoHannah Miller told the board. When the school started serving high school students in the 2012-13 school year, it moved to a larger building and got a $1.2 million loan at a 9% interest rate to improve the facility.
“Over time, that became a burden for the school,” Miller said.
After the school was placed on noncompliant status, Miller said, it asked its landlord if he could be flexible on costs. In the end, he requested they vacate the building.
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The new setup is expected to reduce the school’s annual facility costs by approximately $143,600 — from $669,500 to $525,900.
Still, 28 families have indicated some transportation-related needs as a result of the move. While all traditional public school districts in North Carolina currently operate a bus system, charter schools have some more flexibility. However, they must develop a transportation plan that ensures getting to and from school is not a barrier for any student, according to N.C. law.
Charlotte Secondary plans to contract with a company called Care Cabb Kidz for bus services.
Though board members approved Charlotte Secondary’s proposal, some warned the school needs to double down on improving its state test scores. It received a D accountability grade from the state last school year and is currently on the state’s list of low-performing schools.
“I do have a concern that you need to get off of the low-performing list,” board member Lindalyn Kakadelis said. “And, I know y’all are working hard, but please double down on that.”
Charlotte Secondary operates on a four-day-per-week academic schedule for students, which Miller said it planned to continue after its move to the new location.
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