The names of school board members at
Ohio’s publicly funded Horizon and Noble charter schools are unlike those on
traditional public school boards.
Take, for example, the board members
at the Denison Horizon Science Academy elementary school in Cleveland: Mehmet
Malcok, Hamiyet Unal, Sevda Gousseinova, Erhan Ararat and Basak Kacar Khamush.
Up the chain of command, the names
are similar.
The superintendent of the North Ohio
Regional Office is Murat Efe. He has identified himself as an employee of
Concept Schools, a management firm in suburban Chicago.
The media contact at headquarters is
vice president Salim Ucan, according to the school’s website. The head of the
company is Sedat Duman.
Many of the board members and
employees are new to the United States, as the company is an aggressive
importer of Turkish labor. Some board members — unlike traditional public
school board members who cannot be elected without being registered voters —
aren’t U.S. citizens, let alone registered voters.
Ohio’s 17 Horizon and two Noble
schools are considered “public” charters. Funding for operations is transferred
from the school district where students would normally attend to each charter
school’s board, which pays Concept for management services.
Last school year, Ohio Horizon and
Noble Academies enrolled 6,719 students and received $49,775,180 in public
dollars. Schools are in Cleveland, Cincinnati, Columbus, Dayton, Euclid, Toledo
and Youngstown.
The News Outlet, a student
journalism lab headquartered at Youngstown State University that includes the
University of Akron and Cuyahoga Community College, has been collaborating with
the Beacon Journal in an exploration of Ohio school choice.
As part of the project, News Outlet
interns reached out to 20 board members at Concept schools in Northeast Ohio.
The goal was to learn more about the
board members and how the boards operate.
Few responses
Of the 20 board members — many of
whom are doctors or college educators — 14 did not respond to emails or phone
calls, or declined to be interviewed. Four provided partial responses and only
two answered all questions.
The list of questions included
citizenship, how they came to be on the board, if they have children attending
these charter schools and their experiences with the management company.
One board member was unaware that
her school, Horizon Science Academy Youngstown, employed a management company.
“Who is the management company?”
two-year board member Fatma Sahin Yildiz asked, repeating a question posed by a
News Outlet reporter, who followed with: “For Horizon, do you know who your
management company is?”
“For Horizon, I don’t know,”
answered Yildiz, who works in a hospital and has been in the U.S. for six years
on a green card, which provides permanent residency for a noncitizen.
Identical answers
Three people returned with the same
email response: Abdurrahman Arslanyilmaz of Youngstown, president of Horizon
Youngstown; Takhar Kasumov of Mayfield Heights, president of Horizon Cleveland
High and Cleveland Middle, and member of Denison Middle and Noble Academy
Cleveland; and Yilmaz Sozer of Akron, president of Horizon Denison Middle and
Noble Academy Cleveland.
Arslanyilmaz is an assistant
professor of the STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) College at
Youngstown State University. Kasumov is an assistant professor at Lerner
College of Medicine at the Cleveland Clinic. Sozer is an assistant professor of
electrical and computer engineering at the University of Akron.
“Horizon Science Academies and
Concept Schools were initiated by a few Turkish-American educators who wanted
to contribute, in their own capacity and expertise, to the solution of the
problem that U.S. was falling behind in STEM education,” the statement reads.
“Though an admittedly small group, Turkish Americans are like many other
immigrant groups — they come from different backgrounds, but share a common
experience and a common goal of contributing to their communities.”
Kasumov expounded on the Turkish
connection in a phone interview.
“Basically, the people in the
charter management company are from Turkey,” he said. “They have hired most
teachers coming from Turkey or Central Asia because science, math dedication, I
would say, is much higher than here in average American schools. And there is a
need for them here to be.”
Getting personal
The same board members who sent
prepared statements said they found some questions to be too personal,
including those about their experiences on the board.
“I don’t think I am going to be able
to answer those questions on personal issues. I can answer how long I’ve been
on the board. My experience, still, that’s a personal question as well,” said
Arslanyilmaz.
Sozer also declined.
“Actually, I am not allowed to talk
because ... . The questions that you listed related to my preferences, my
background or so, those are really personal questions,” Sozer explained. “I
checked with the lawyer — I understand you are doing your job, but I don’t want
to do an interview right now. I will send you an email.”
Questions about who asked them to be
on the boards and what they would be expected to do were referred to the school
Code of Regulations, which “explains how board members are recruited and
elected, and what governance training they receive.”
Asked about their relationship with
Concept Schools and whether the company played a role in selecting board
members, they referred to the management contract with Concept. The IRS
considers this an important question in determining whether a charter school
qualifies as a nonprofit organization.
Asked to discuss what they believed
to be the goal of the schools, they provided the mission statement.
Questions about whether they had
children, if so, how many and what type of school they attended — for example,
do any send their children to Horizon schools — were deemed to be “too
personal.”
Mum on citizenship
Asked whether he has considered U.S.
citizenship, Sozer — who has lived in the U.S. for 20 years — replied: “Most of
the board members are either U.S. citizen or permanent resident who are in the
process of getting U.S. citizenship.”
Kasumov, who has been in the U.S.
for 17 years, deleted the question.
Arslanyilmaz said he has been in the
U.S. for 14 years but declined to answer the citizenship question. “I do not
feel comfortable answering this personal question,” he wrote.
Basak Kacar Khamush, a board member
for Horizon Cleveland Elementary and Denison Elementary, sent an email saying:
“Thank you for your interest in our schools. Please direct all inquiries about
our school and board to Dr. Mehmet Malcok, board president. Please know that we
take our role as a public board member seriously and we take public records
requests and media inquiries in the friendliest and most professional manner.
Please respect our policies and contact the person I have referred you to, and
thank you.”
Ahmet Bahadir Ergin of Horizon
Science Academy Lorain was unwilling to be interviewed over the phone or answer
emailed questions until he spoke with “the school manager.” He declined to
provide the name and phone number of that school manager when asked.
“Well, I don’t think I would like to
give numbers of people ... especially on the phone. I am uncomfortable. I
really don’t know your identity. I don’t know who you are. I have a tendency
not to believe. I look at hard solid evidence,” said Ergin.
Ergin is an internal medicine
resident at Fairview Hospital in Cleveland.
Kasumov, however, said board members
have the option to speak with the media.
“Certainly. Everyone is free to say
what they have to say. There are no rules that say not to answer any questions.
No. There is nothing. Contact them directly,” he said.
TheNewsOutlet.org
is a collaborative effort among the Youngstown State University journalism
program, the University of Akron, Cuyahoga Community College and professional
media outlets including, WYSU-FM Radio and the Vindicator (Youngstown), the
Beacon Journal and Rubber City Radio (Akron).
