CPS to help Aspira make payroll, but charter operator’s financial woes remain

Chicago Public Schools is helping the struggling Aspira charter school network make its immediate payroll, but the privately run, publicly financed operator still needs more cash to remain open through the school year.

Aspira CEO Edgar Lopez told WBEZ and the Chicago Sun-Times on Tuesday that CPS is providing a $760,000 advance — which he says the network will be required to pay back — to cover Aspira’s next two payroll periods. He previously told the district that he didn’t have enough money to pay his employees this Friday.

“This action was taken to support students by keeping schools fully staffed while Aspira works to strengthen its financial position,” CPS officials said in an email to the school community Tuesday. “Aspira is required to develop a clear plan to strengthen its finances, and CPS has encouraged the organization to involve families, staff, and school communities in this process, beginning in December.”

The district’s assist comes after CPS sent a letter last week accusing the network of “a failure of governance” and “a lack of financial proficiency necessary” to run a school. The district rejected the $5 million bailout requested by Aspira to ensure it remains open through June.

Lopez said additional help from CPS “still hasn’t been worked out,” and he’s “still not feeling good. But he was heartened by the district’s help with payroll.

“We’re meeting payroll Friday, so I won’t lose sleep over it for the next couple of days,” Lopez added.

The charter network runs two high schools — Aspira Business and Finance High School and Aspira Early College High School — both in Avondale on the Northwest side. Together, they have about 570 students. Aspira also runs a third school, an alternative school that re-enrolls dropouts, through Youth Connection Charter School.

Aspira is the latest network to run into financial trouble. Already this school year, a small charter school in South Chicago announced plans to close in June. Earlier this month, the CPS board also voted to turn the privately run, publicly funded Chicago High School for the Arts into a district-run magnet school.

Damian Ascencio, a sophomore at Aspira Business and Finance, said he chose the school because it’s in his neighborhood and he heard it was a good place to learn.

After finding out last week that the school was in financial straits, he and his classmates have been openly talking about where they might land next.

“They say that they might transfer, that they are leaving, that this school is broke and they need money,” Ascencio said.

He likes his school’s clean and modern spaces, but if Aspira’s troubles aren’t solved, Ascencio hopes to enroll in another nearby school like Schurz High School in Irving Park. He said it was “crazy” that he’s even thinking about leaving.

Lopez, the CEO, has blamed CPS funding and enrollment policies for the network’s financial troubles. Aspira’s financial health has been impacted by declining enrollment, a district-wide trend that has impacted other charter operators. Charter schools get money from CPS for each student they enroll.

ASPIRA enrolled fewer students than the charter operator expected this fall, resulting in $1.5 million less funding than planned, Lopez said.

But CPS officials have taken the charter to task for budgeting based on “unrealistic” enrollment projections.

The charter has tried to save money by laying off employees and closing its middle school, but those savings haven’t materialized.

Anthony Bates, who works closely with students as a mentor at Aspira Business through the city’s Chicago Youth Service Corps program, didn’t know the school was facing financial collapse.

Bates said he sees how valuable the school is for the kids. He appreciates the real-world lessons in banking and investments, which he doesn’t want students to lose.

“[There’s] a chance that they may not be taking these [lessons] as seriously, but some of these things that I notice should 100% stick with you,” Bates said. “It would definitely be a loss.”