PALMETTO, Fla. — A clash over who should control the embattled Lincoln Memorial Academy in Palmetto has left some in the community at odds with the Manatee County School district, and sparked a student walk-out and protest Friday morning.
"They took over the school, made the changes, but they did not consult with the parents, neither did they consult with us as the community,” Dexter McDonald, an alum of the school who is now w bishop with Community Outreach Ministries said. “This school was established in [1949] as a community school. It actually was the first school that allowed Afro-Americans to attend school in Manatee County."
Due to its history, Lincoln Memorial Academy is a source of pride for the African American community it serves. However, since it became a charter school, it has been plagued with problems.
Former Principal Eddie Hundley lost his teaching certificate in January after he allegedly recommended a teacher to Sarasota schools who was facing child porn charges. The school has been in a financial deficit for months, and now, federal education investigators are looking into accusations of fraud, embezzlement and conspiracy.
“It's unfortunate because the kids should be the narrative in all of what's going on right now,” president of the Manatee County NAACP Tarnisha Cliatt, said. "The data we received stated that 90 percent of those students are not on grade level in reading and math."
Cliatt said because the district takeover meant a change in curriculum, that both students and teachers have to adjust to, a walkout takes away precious learning time."We need to have as much instructional time for these students, so that way they can get up to standards,” she said.
The district said in a statement while it respects students First Amendment rights, "the events that transpired at Lincoln Memorial Academy today were initiated, instigated and encouraged by adults inside and outside the school for political reasons."
A hearing related to the future of the school will be held next week.
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