A personal fiefdom that ended badly.

Five years probation, repayment of $75,000 and four months in lockdown.  Fair? Probably.  The loss of her license will keep her out this business.  The treasurer has also apparently pled guilty.

Another hand picked school board,not doing their job.

"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men."

Hamm founded the school in 1999 and worked to get $7 million in state and federal money per year for the charter school. Charter schools are independently operated public schools that can receive state and federal public money to operate.

Much of that money was used to educate the students, but hundreds of thousands of it was spent by Hamm taking 22 taxpayer-funded trips and attending concerts, often with her friends and co-workers, also paid for with tax dollars. Hamm "treated the CCPA treasury as a personal slush fund in order to enhance her personal lifestyle," Assistant Prosecutor Bill Anderson said.

While her intentions initially may have been benevolent, Anderson said, Hamm created the school and made sure everyone knew she was going to run it as she wanted. "Miss Hamm came down with a case of 'founder-itis,' " Anderson said. 

"Miss Hamm ruled CCPA with an iron fist," he said. "She founded the school. She ran the school, and she was going to do whatever the hell she wanted with this money."

Another hand picked board,not doing their job.  A comment from the board.  Too little, too late.

"Gore admitted the CCPA board wasn't as diligent as it should have been in monitoring Hamm's spending. "The school has lost in excess of half a million dollars," he said."

In exchange for Hamm's plea, prosecutors dropped 23 other charges against her. She will report Jan. 7 to West to begin serving her 120-day time behind bars.

Stephanie Millard also has agreed to plead guilty in the case, court documents note.

http://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2014/11/24/lisa-hamm-convicted-charter-school-crimes/19483309/

Another Charter Administrator Convicted. A personal Fiefdom

A personal fiefdom.  It is good to be queen until it isn't.

Where was the oversight, a weak handpicked board and part time treasurer to rubber stamp.

I suspect that getting involved in these charter schools was a very bad career move.  Leaves  Stephanie Millard in a pretty bad position.  Not sure how many other charters she was acting treasurer for but I suspect any and know for sure that one of them was Ohio Connections Academy.

http://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/politics/2014/10/17/former-charter-school-leader-gets-plea-deal/17438269/

A former superintendent accused of using her charter school as her "personal feifdom" is now a convicted felon, marking the latest blemish for charter schools in this region and statewide.

Lisa Hamm, who ran the Cincinnati College Preparatory Academy, the region's largest charter school, cut a deal with prosecutors last week. She pleaded guilty Oct. 8 to three of 26 felony counts against her. The remaining charges, including multiple counts of theft in office and tampering with evidence, were dismissed.

Hamm, who court documents claim ran the school as her "personal fiefdom," could get up to 18 months in prison on the charges of unauthorized use of property. Probation is also an option. She agreed to repay $75,000 to the school. She's scheduled to be sentenced Nov. 24 by Hamilton County Common Pleas Judge John West.

Hamm of Fairfield, and former treasurer Stephanie Millard, of Walnut Hills, were accused of stealing or misusing $148,000 in taxpayer money that should have gone to educating the 950 students at Cincinnati College Preparatory Academy. The court documents allege Hamm instead used the money to pay for extravagant trips, plays, concerts, luggage, spa visits, jewelry veterinary care and other personal uses.

The charges in the Oct. 8 plea agreement involved a trip to San Diego that ended up costing more than $20,000, and trips to Orlando and to see Oprah Winfrey. Hamm had said the trips were school-related.

Charter schools are public schools that are independently run. There are about three dozen in Southwest Ohio. Some are high-performing and well-run. But as a group they're often criticized for lax accountability and mediocre academics. Several local charter schools have closed over the years due to financial problems and academic issues. Some cases resulted in criminal charges.

The state has been cracking down on charter schools via stringent audits and increased scrutiny of their sponsoring organizations. Charter school accountability has become a political issue, as Democrats accuse Republican leadership of not doing enough to improve it.

In the most recent example the Concept chain of charter schools, which includes the Horizon Science Academy in Bond Hill, came under investigation by the FBI and the Ohio Department of Education after a string of allegations including improper use of technology money and testing irregularities.