Pennsylvania Auditor Criticizes Charter's Finances, State Funding System

The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (12/7, Vidonic) reports that the Pennsylvania Department of Education responded to state Auditor General Jack Wagner's report that "an 'out of whack' formula left the Pennsylvania Cyber Charter school flush with cash" by indicating that Gov. Tom Corbett will prioritize analyzing the state's charter funding system. "Wagner said the audit shows that the Midland, Beaver County, cyber school, the largest in the state with 10,600 students, is receiving much more public funding than it needs, and he criticized how the school spends some of it. The audit showed that at the end of the 2009-10 school year, the cyber school had a $13.8 million surplus, and between 2008 and 2010, it spent at least $3.5 million in taxpayer money for print, TV and radio advertising."