http://www.charterschoolwatchdog.

Now this is "scandalous"

We wanted to "borrow" some really good information from one of our "sister" websites who is likewise, interested in exposing the rampant fraud in charter school operations. The website, "Charterschoolscandals," is an equal opportunity reporter and has ferreted out information on both Turkish and non-Turkish run charter schools.

However, for our interest, and in keeping with this website's "theme," we are going to stick with the "Turkish stuff." But we encourage our readers to fully explore Charterschoolscandals' website in its entirety.

Courtesy of Charterschoolscandals: http://charterschoolscandals.blogspot.com/p/gulen-school-characteristics.html
Friday, July 23, 2010 Gulen schools and their booming H1B visa applications Consider the following (based on the list Top 100 H1b Visa Sponsors In Secondary School Education Since 2008appearing on 7/23/2010):

  • The Gulen schools and their related organizations account for 31.5% of all H1B visa applications requested by the top 100 secondary school education H1B visa sponsors. (Table 1)
  • Of the top 100 secondary school education H1B visa sponsors, 34 of the 100 sponsors were Gulen schools or their related organizations.
  • A total of 4277 visas were requested by the top 100 sponsors.
  • 1349 of the 4277 applications were submitted by Gulen schools or their related organizations.
  • There were fewer than 100 U.S. schools in this subterranean network of schools operated by Gulen movement missionaries in this same year. Read about the characteristics of these schools here.
  • The Cosmos Foundation, which operates approximately 27 Gulen schools in Texas, ranked #1 with 521 visa applications. These schools are heavily, but not exclusively, staffed with Turkish and Turkic teachers. The administrators and founders are nearly exclusively Turkish males.
  • To contrast, Global Teachers Research Resources (a teacher headhunting organization) ranked #2 with 325 visa applications. GTRR’s newsletters reveal a wide range of teacher nationalities.
  • Further investigation is likely to reveal that close to 100% of the visa applications of the Gulen schools and their related organizations will be for individuals from Turkey.
  • Public school districts also applied for visas. In fact, seven of the top-20 largest school districts in the country were also top-100 sponsors for visa applications. These seven districts represent nearly 2,900,000 students attending approximately 3,831 schools. (Table 2)
  • When averaged, seven of the top-20 largest school districts in the country submitted one H1B visa application for every 6.2 schools.
  • The average number of visa applications for the Gulen schools was 13.5 H1B visa applications per school!
The hypothesis which has been presented elsewhere in the blogosphere is that the Gulenists operating the charter schools and their related organizations use “teacher shortage” as their rationale for bringing more and more fellow Hizment volunteers (A.K.A. Gulen missionaries) into the U.S. It is important to note that – unlike a more typical teacher headhunting organization – these schools exclusively seek only those foreign teachers who are Turkish or Turkic, and primarily male. And as more and more Gulen schools are established, the number of Gulen missionaries working as Turkish charter school teachers -- courtesy of all those H1B visas -- can continue to grow. Ten more Gulen charter schools are scheduled to open this coming fall.*

Table 1: “TOP 100 H1B VISA SPONSORS IN SECONDARY SCHOOL EDUCATION SINCE 2008”

GULEN SCHOOLS & THEIR RELATED ORGANIZATIONS ONLY

Visa

Rank

Company

EIN = Federal

Employer ID Number*

H1B Visa Applications

Notes

1

Cosmos Foundation dba Harmony Science Academy

760615245

521

~30 charter schools in Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Tennessee

9

Cosmos Foundation [dba Harmony Public Schools

760615245

101

Same as above

10

Riverwalk Education Foundation

760615245

97

4 charter schools in Texas, dba School of Science & Technology

15

Pelican Educational Foundation [dba Abramson Science & Technology Charter School]

203801713

58

2 charter schools in Louisiana

16

Dove Science Academy [dba Sky Foundation]

731578930

57

3 Gulen charter schools in Oklahoma, plus one attempt in Arkansas

18

Lisa Academy

061665076

53

2 charter schools in Arkansas, under Little Scholars of Arkansas (LISA) Foundation

22

Dove Science Academy Oklahoma City

731578930

42

2 charter schools in Oklahoma

26

Sonoran Science Academy (also dba Daisy Education Corporation)

860990917

33

8 charter schools in Arizona

32

Millennium Education Foundation

421692516

26

2, possibly 3, charter schools in Missouri

35

Horizon Science Academy Dayton High Sc

201849958

24

Single charter school in Ohio

41

Beehive Educational Services

200912672

20

Single charter school in Utah

45

Horizon Science Academy

19

Unspecified number of charter schools in Ohio

48

Fulton Science Academy

582512910

18

3 charter schools in Georgia

49

Magnolia Educational and Research Foundation

954649884

17

12 charter schools in California

53

Hampden Charter School Of Science

unknown

16

Single charter school in Massachusetts

53

Paterson Charter School For Sci&tech

223799763

16

Single charter school in New Jersey

58

Paragon Education

201634330

15

Single charter school in AZ; affiliated with Daisy Educational Corporation dba Sonoran Science Academy

58

Milky Way Education Center

223261282

15

Operates a private Gulen school in NJ (Pioneer Science Academy A.K.A. Pioneer Academy of Science); sometimes written “Milkyway”

58

Millenium Education Foundation

421692516

15

See other “Millennium” organization above

58

River City Education Services (FL)

205773949

15

Involved with schools in FL; some sort of relationship to the Grace Institute.

64

Cosmos Foundation Inc, Dba Harmony School Of Innov

760615245

14

See Cosmos Foundation above

64

Horizon Educational Services Of Columbus

311657839

14

Single charter school in Ohio (?)
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]-->
<!--[endif]-->

64

wellspring cultural educational foundation

061610852

14

This may be the organization which oversees Putnam Science Academy, a private boarding school in Connecticut. More notes below.

77

Brooklyn Amity School

113511046

12

A private Gulen school in NYC, described as a Turkish school by Today’s Zaman

77

Chicago Math. And Sci. Acdmy. Charter Sch

450532536

12

Single charter school in IL

77

Buffalo Academy of Science Charter School

200723492

12

Single charter school in NY

77

Horizon Science Academy Cleveland High School

12

Single charter school in OH

77

Burlington American Turkish Org

470947586

12

For teacher positions in NJ; unspecified school

77

Daisy Education [dba Sonoran Science Academy]

860990917

12

Daisy Education Corporation, see #26 above

77

Chicago Math. & Science Academy Char. School, Inc

450532536

12

Single charter school in IL (Chicago Mathematics and Science Academy Charter School Inc)

77

Sonoran Science Academy-davis Monthan

see SSA ranked #26

12

Single charter school in AZ;

87

Sonoran Science Academy Broadway

412263902

11

Sonoran Science Academy Broadway This SSA has its own EIN

87

Horizon Science Academy Elementary School

262061654

11

Single charter school in OH

87

Horizon Science Academy Toledo

200524037

11

Single charter school in OH

NOTES:

  • View 990s at http://nccsdataweb.urban.org/PubApps/990search.php/
  • The visa list features a Millennium Education Foundation as well as a Millenium [sic] Education Foundation; both organizations have the same address (5605 Troost Ave., Kansas City, MO).
  • Burlington American Turkish Organization sponsors teacher positions in New Jersey.
  • The Gulen schools in Ohio (Horizon Science and Noble Academies) are managed by Concept Schools, but they operate as independent non-profits.
  • The address on the 2008 Form 990 for Wellspring Cultural and Educational Foundation Inc is West Haven, CT, and its program is described as the following: “To establish, maintain and nourish Educational and Cultural programs for the benefit of turkish-americans and persons of turkish-american descent.” The form does not list a board of directors, but it does list the highest compensated employees who are school administrators for the only known Gulen school in Connecticut, the Putnam Science Academy, a private boarding school which was described as a “Turkish school” in Today’s Zaman. The principal who listed in 2007 is Ercan Tozan, who is now the principal of the Rochester Academy Science Charter School, a Gulen-identified school in New York.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

THE TIP OF THE ICEBERG

At Fetullah Gulen.org is an article which explains the mission and experience of the Hizmet volunteers who are fanning out to schools across the globe to work as Gulen missionairies.

Pioneering Turkish Teachers Realize Long-sought Dream,May 31, 2009, Sunday’s Zaman(a Gulenist publication)

Marking the seventh year of this event [2009 Turkish Olympiads], the International Turkish Olympiads is just one of the fruits of the tireless work of self-sacrificing teachers who have moved to different parts of the world, being inspired by the well-known Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen, widely considered to be one of the most influential thinkers alive today.

Having witnessed the harmony between the students of those 115 participating countries, despite the fact that they are competing against each other for first place in one of the 14 different categories all requiring mastery in Turkish, one cannot but agree that if global peace is going to be a reality one day, its existence will owe a great deal to those who incessantly communicate their transcendent love, which does not recognize borders or discriminate against anyone.

Walking among those students without even uttering a word, it is impossible not to see the beauty they form together. Students coming from Nigeria, the UK, Yemen, the US, Mexico, Tajikistan, Australia and 108 other countries around the world, hand-in-hand, are the perfect assurance for a better tomorrow… What about the friendship between Iraqi Sazgar Darabek from Sulaimaniya Girls College and American Denise Stacy Uraias from Texas Science Academy?…

The fatigue and pain that needed to be contended with in order for these teachers to deliver a fruitful outcome cannot be underestimated. They made the sacrifice of moving to countries far from Turkey that most of their fellow countrymen have never even heard of and where the climates are not so pleasant…

…Each year, contestants are selected from every country where there is at least one Turkish school by a jury of teachers working at that particular institution…

This blogger, a Turkish teacher in Thailand, also lists some of the international Gulen schools.

Click to watch "HAYAL EDIN" a propaganda video about the event produced by Samonyolu TV, a known Gulenist Turkish TV station (hayal = n. dream, fantasy, etc., edin = v. obtain, acquire, etc.).

From the official Web site of the International Turkish Olympiad: "...from our land the power of the Turkish language would spread throughout the world.”

Read more about the international aspect of this movement here.

Table 2: “TOP 100 H1B VISA SPONSORS IN SECONDARY SCHOOL EDUCATION SINCE 2008”:

SCHOOL DISTRICTS AMONG THE TOP-20 LARGEST SCHOOL DISTRICTS IN THE U.S.

Visa Rank

Company

H1B Visa Applications

Number of schools

Number of students

4

Prince George s County Public Schools (MD) #17

288

197

131,014

6

Los Angeles Unified School District (CA) #2

133

658

707,627

11

New York City Public Schools (NY) #1

82

1450

999,150

16

Houston ISD (TX) #7

57

300+

202,936

28

School District of Philadelphia (PA) # 10

28

291

178,241

41

Chicago Public Schools (IL) #3

20

675

413,694

64

School Board of Broward County (FL) #6

14

260

262,813

Total

622

3,831

2,895,475

----------

About Gulen charter schools The Gulen (or Hizmet) movement is an international religious and cultural movement being carried through by followers of Fetullah Gulen, a controversial Turkish Islamic leader. One of the primary activities is the establishment of schools which are supported and operated by members of the movement. Evidence points to the likelihood that U.S. public dollars are supporting this private ideology via charter schools. 

VIEW THE FULL LIST OF U.S. GULEN CHARTER SCHOOLS HERE. 

Perhaps at some point the American national press will alert themselves to this phenomenon and produce a news story which stimulates public awareness and discussion. Perhaps at some point, our national, state, and local educational leaders will learn about this movement and its charter schools and take appropriate action. In the meantime, this site can provide the public with useful information about the schools.

Taken individually, the Gulenist schools seem quite promising and their oddities are not noticeable. However, despite the schools and school clusters claiming to have no, or minimal, affiliation with one another, they have extremely unusual similarities, which they even share with the international Gulen schools such as PakTurk (check the Web site's News & Events). The characteristics of these schools will include most of the following:

  • Emphasis on math and science; yet little experimental science
  • Science fairs; math competitions, robotics clubs (“modem” education)
  • Major emphasis on awards, mostly won by a small fraction of the students; many of the competitions are sponsored by a set of affiliated organizations (I-SWEEP, Pacifica Institute, etc.)
  • High scores on standardized tests, even in cases of very challenging demographics
  • Chronic problems with special education compliance
  • Excessive information requested upon application which can be used to screen students (test scores, home language, parental workplace, etc.)
  • Relentless self-promotion through press releases and the courting of local public officials
  • Schools occasionally featured on known Gulist news outlets, such as Today’s Zaman,Ebru TV, or Samonyolu TV
  • A number of the supposedly-unrelated schools have unusually similar websites and logo motifs
  • High teacher turnover; teachers, administrators disappear and appear mysteriously
  • Departed administrators will appear at other supposedly-unrelated schools in the network
  • Large number of Turkish or Turkic teachers, many with poor English skills
  • Excessive use of H1B Visas to fill staffing needs (See Gulen schools and their booming H1B visa applications)
  • 99.9% of the founders, board members, and administrators are male and have Turkish or Turkic names
  • Administrators and many teachers lack experience working in any schools outside the network
  • Teachers socialize to an unusual degree with students; character education often taught by male Turkish or Turkic teachers
  • Home visits offered to all families; school sleepovers
  • Turkish language classes, during or after school (Turkish does not rank as a major language but it is stressed as being extremely important)
  • Turkish cultural activities such as Turkish clubs, elaborately costumed student participation in regional "Turkish Olympiads" (see "Learning to love Turkey") and class trips to Anatolian/Turkish festivals
  • School-sponsored trips to Turkey, usually disguised as “International” or “Europe” trips (scan the photo galleries on the school Web sites)
  • The dominant Turkish and Turkic presence in staff members, curriculum and student activities is never mentioned as a feature of the school in the original charter school application
  • School leaders deny, deflect, or minimize their connections to the Gulen Movement.
 * * * * * * * *

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION



 

We wanted to "borrow" some really good information from one of our "sister" websites who is likewise, interested in exposing the rampant fraud in charter school operations. The website, "Charterschoolscandals," is an equal opportunity reporter and has ferreted out information on both Turkish and non-Turkish run charter schools.

However, for our interest, and in keeping with this website's "theme," we are going to stick with the "Turkish stuff." But we encourage our readers to fully explore Charterschoolscandals' website in its entirety.

Courtesy of Charterschoolscandals: http://charterschoolscandals.blogspot.com/p/gulen-school-characteristics.html
Friday, July 23, 2010 Gulen schools and their booming H1B visa applications Consider the following (based on the list Top 100 H1b Visa Sponsors In Secondary School Education Since 2008appearing on 7/23/2010):

  • The Gulen schools and their related organizations account for 31.5% of all H1B visa applications requested by the top 100 secondary school education H1B visa sponsors. (Table 1)
  • Of the top 100 secondary school education H1B visa sponsors, 34 of the 100 sponsors were Gulen schools or their related organizations.
  • A total of 4277 visas were requested by the top 100 sponsors.
  • 1349 of the 4277 applications were submitted by Gulen schools or their related organizations.
  • There were fewer than 100 U.S. schools in this subterranean network of schools operated by Gulen movement missionaries in this same year. Read about the characteristics of these schools here.
  • The Cosmos Foundation, which operates approximately 27 Gulen schools in Texas, ranked #1 with 521 visa applications. These schools are heavily, but not exclusively, staffed with Turkish and Turkic teachers. The administrators and founders are nearly exclusively Turkish males.
  • To contrast, Global Teachers Research Resources (a teacher headhunting organization) ranked #2 with 325 visa applications. GTRR’s newsletters reveal a wide range of teacher nationalities.
  • Further investigation is likely to reveal that close to 100% of the visa applications of the Gulen schools and their related organizations will be for individuals from Turkey.
  • Public school districts also applied for visas. In fact, seven of the top-20 largest school districts in the country were also top-100 sponsors for visa applications. These seven districts represent nearly 2,900,000 students attending approximately 3,831 schools. (Table 2)
  • When averaged, seven of the top-20 largest school districts in the country submitted one H1B visa application for every 6.2 schools.
  • The average number of visa applications for the Gulen schools was 13.5 H1B visa applications per school!
The hypothesis which has been presented elsewhere in the blogosphere is that the Gulenists operating the charter schools and their related organizations use “teacher shortage” as their rationale for bringing more and more fellow Hizment volunteers (A.K.A. Gulen missionaries) into the U.S. It is important to note that – unlike a more typical teacher headhunting organization – these schools exclusively seek only those foreign teachers who are Turkish or Turkic, and primarily male. And as more and more Gulen schools are established, the number of Gulen missionaries working as Turkish charter school teachers -- courtesy of all those H1B visas -- can continue to grow. Ten more Gulen charter schools are scheduled to open this coming fall.*

Table 1: “TOP 100 H1B VISA SPONSORS IN SECONDARY SCHOOL EDUCATION SINCE 2008”

GULEN SCHOOLS & THEIR RELATED ORGANIZATIONS ONLY

Visa

Rank

Company

EIN = Federal

Employer ID Number*

H1B Visa Applications

Notes

1

Cosmos Foundation dba Harmony Science Academy

760615245

521

~30 charter schools in Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Tennessee

9

Cosmos Foundation [dba Harmony Public Schools

760615245

101

Same as above

10

Riverwalk Education Foundation

760615245

97

4 charter schools in Texas, dba School of Science & Technology

15

Pelican Educational Foundation [dba Abramson Science & Technology Charter School]

203801713

58

2 charter schools in Louisiana

16

Dove Science Academy [dba Sky Foundation]

731578930

57

3 Gulen charter schools in Oklahoma, plus one attempt in Arkansas

18

Lisa Academy

061665076

53

2 charter schools in Arkansas, under Little Scholars of Arkansas (LISA) Foundation

22

Dove Science Academy Oklahoma City

731578930

42

2 charter schools in Oklahoma

26

Sonoran Science Academy (also dba Daisy Education Corporation)

860990917

33

8 charter schools in Arizona

32

Millennium Education Foundation

421692516

26

2, possibly 3, charter schools in Missouri

35

Horizon Science Academy Dayton High Sc

201849958

24

Single charter school in Ohio

41

Beehive Educational Services

200912672

20

Single charter school in Utah

45

Horizon Science Academy

19

Unspecified number of charter schools in Ohio

48

Fulton Science Academy

582512910

18

3 charter schools in Georgia

49

Magnolia Educational and Research Foundation

954649884

17

12 charter schools in California

53

Hampden Charter School Of Science

unknown

16

Single charter school in Massachusetts

53

Paterson Charter School For Sci&tech

223799763

16

Single charter school in New Jersey

58

Paragon Education

201634330

15

Single charter school in AZ; affiliated with Daisy Educational Corporation dba Sonoran Science Academy

58

Milky Way Education Center

223261282

15

Operates a private Gulen school in NJ (Pioneer Science Academy A.K.A. Pioneer Academy of Science); sometimes written “Milkyway”

58

Millenium Education Foundation

421692516

15

See other “Millennium” organization above

58

River City Education Services (FL)

205773949

15

Involved with schools in FL; some sort of relationship to the Grace Institute.

64

Cosmos Foundation Inc, Dba Harmony School Of Innov

760615245

14

See Cosmos Foundation above

64

Horizon Educational Services Of Columbus

311657839

14

Single charter school in Ohio (?)
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]-->
<!--[endif]-->

64

wellspring cultural educational foundation

061610852

14

This may be the organization which oversees Putnam Science Academy, a private boarding school in Connecticut. More notes below.

77

Brooklyn Amity School

113511046

12

A private Gulen school in NYC, described as a Turkish school by Today’s Zaman

77

Chicago Math. And Sci. Acdmy. Charter Sch

450532536

12

Single charter school in IL

77

Buffalo Academy of Science Charter School

200723492

12

Single charter school in NY

77

Horizon Science Academy Cleveland High School

12

Single charter school in OH

77

Burlington American Turkish Org

470947586

12

For teacher positions in NJ; unspecified school

77

Daisy Education [dba Sonoran Science Academy]

860990917

12

Daisy Education Corporation, see #26 above

77

Chicago Math. & Science Academy Char. School, Inc

450532536

12

Single charter school in IL (Chicago Mathematics and Science Academy Charter School Inc)

77

Sonoran Science Academy-davis Monthan

see SSA ranked #26

12

Single charter school in AZ;

87

Sonoran Science Academy Broadway

412263902

11

Sonoran Science Academy Broadway This SSA has its own EIN

87

Horizon Science Academy Elementary School

262061654

11

Single charter school in OH

87

Horizon Science Academy Toledo

200524037

11

Single charter school in OH

NOTES:

  • View 990s at http://nccsdataweb.urban.org/PubApps/990search.php/
  • The visa list features a Millennium Education Foundation as well as a Millenium [sic] Education Foundation; both organizations have the same address (5605 Troost Ave., Kansas City, MO).
  • Burlington American Turkish Organization sponsors teacher positions in New Jersey.
  • The Gulen schools in Ohio (Horizon Science and Noble Academies) are managed by Concept Schools, but they operate as independent non-profits.
  • The address on the 2008 Form 990 for Wellspring Cultural and Educational Foundation Inc is West Haven, CT, and its program is described as the following: “To establish, maintain and nourish Educational and Cultural programs for the benefit of turkish-americans and persons of turkish-american descent.” The form does not list a board of directors, but it does list the highest compensated employees who are school administrators for the only known Gulen school in Connecticut, the Putnam Science Academy, a private boarding school which was described as a “Turkish school” in Today’s Zaman. The principal who listed in 2007 is Ercan Tozan, who is now the principal of the Rochester Academy Science Charter School, a Gulen-identified school in New York.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

THE TIP OF THE ICEBERG

At Fetullah Gulen.org is an article which explains the mission and experience of the Hizmet volunteers who are fanning out to schools across the globe to work as Gulen missionairies.

Pioneering Turkish Teachers Realize Long-sought Dream,May 31, 2009, Sunday’s Zaman(a Gulenist publication)

Marking the seventh year of this event [2009 Turkish Olympiads], the International Turkish Olympiads is just one of the fruits of the tireless work of self-sacrificing teachers who have moved to different parts of the world, being inspired by the well-known Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen, widely considered to be one of the most influential thinkers alive today.

Having witnessed the harmony between the students of those 115 participating countries, despite the fact that they are competing against each other for first place in one of the 14 different categories all requiring mastery in Turkish, one cannot but agree that if global peace is going to be a reality one day, its existence will owe a great deal to those who incessantly communicate their transcendent love, which does not recognize borders or discriminate against anyone.

Walking among those students without even uttering a word, it is impossible not to see the beauty they form together. Students coming from Nigeria, the UK, Yemen, the US, Mexico, Tajikistan, Australia and 108 other countries around the world, hand-in-hand, are the perfect assurance for a better tomorrow… What about the friendship between Iraqi Sazgar Darabek from Sulaimaniya Girls College and American Denise Stacy Uraias from Texas Science Academy?…

The fatigue and pain that needed to be contended with in order for these teachers to deliver a fruitful outcome cannot be underestimated. They made the sacrifice of moving to countries far from Turkey that most of their fellow countrymen have never even heard of and where the climates are not so pleasant…

…Each year, contestants are selected from every country where there is at least one Turkish school by a jury of teachers working at that particular institution…

This blogger, a Turkish teacher in Thailand, also lists some of the international Gulen schools.

Click to watch "HAYAL EDIN" a propaganda video about the event produced by Samonyolu TV, a known Gulenist Turkish TV station (hayal = n. dream, fantasy, etc., edin = v. obtain, acquire, etc.).

From the official Web site of the International Turkish Olympiad: "...from our land the power of the Turkish language would spread throughout the world.”

Read more about the international aspect of this movement here.

Table 2: “TOP 100 H1B VISA SPONSORS IN SECONDARY SCHOOL EDUCATION SINCE 2008”:

SCHOOL DISTRICTS AMONG THE TOP-20 LARGEST SCHOOL DISTRICTS IN THE U.S.

Visa Rank

Company

H1B Visa Applications

Number of schools

Number of students

4

Prince George s County Public Schools (MD) #17

288

197

131,014

6

Los Angeles Unified School District (CA) #2

133

658

707,627

11

New York City Public Schools (NY) #1

82

1450

999,150

16

Houston ISD (TX) #7

57

300+

202,936

28

School District of Philadelphia (PA) # 10

28

291

178,241

41

Chicago Public Schools (IL) #3

20

675

413,694

64

School Board of Broward County (FL) #6

14

260

262,813

Total

622

3,831

2,895,475

----------

About Gulen charter schools The Gulen (or Hizmet) movement is an international religious and cultural movement being carried through by followers of Fetullah Gulen, a controversial Turkish Islamic leader. One of the primary activities is the establishment of schools which are supported and operated by members of the movement. Evidence points to the likelihood that U.S. public dollars are supporting this private ideology via charter schools. 

VIEW THE FULL LIST OF U.S. GULEN CHARTER SCHOOLS HERE. 

Perhaps at some point the American national press will alert themselves to this phenomenon and produce a news story which stimulates public awareness and discussion. Perhaps at some point, our national, state, and local educational leaders will learn about this movement and its charter schools and take appropriate action. In the meantime, this site can provide the public with useful information about the schools.

Taken individually, the Gulenist schools seem quite promising and their oddities are not noticeable. However, despite the schools and school clusters claiming to have no, or minimal, affiliation with one another, they have extremely unusual similarities, which they even share with the international Gulen schools such as PakTurk (check the Web site's News & Events). The characteristics of these schools will include most of the following:

  • Emphasis on math and science; yet little experimental science
  • Science fairs; math competitions, robotics clubs (“modem” education)
  • Major emphasis on awards, mostly won by a small fraction of the students; many of the competitions are sponsored by a set of affiliated organizations (I-SWEEP, Pacifica Institute, etc.)
  • High scores on standardized tests, even in cases of very challenging demographics
  • Chronic problems with special education compliance
  • Excessive information requested upon application which can be used to screen students (test scores, home language, parental workplace, etc.)
  • Relentless self-promotion through press releases and the courting of local public officials
  • Schools occasionally featured on known Gulist news outlets, such as Today’s Zaman,Ebru TV, or Samonyolu TV
  • A number of the supposedly-unrelated schools have unusually similar websites and logo motifs
  • High teacher turnover; teachers, administrators disappear and appear mysteriously
  • Departed administrators will appear at other supposedly-unrelated schools in the network
  • Large number of Turkish or Turkic teachers, many with poor English skills
  • Excessive use of H1B Visas to fill staffing needs (See Gulen schools and their booming H1B visa applications)
  • 99.9% of the founders, board members, and administrators are male and have Turkish or Turkic names
  • Administrators and many teachers lack experience working in any schools outside the network
  • Teachers socialize to an unusual degree with students; character education often taught by male Turkish or Turkic teachers
  • Home visits offered to all families; school sleepovers
  • Turkish language classes, during or after school (Turkish does not rank as a major language but it is stressed as being extremely important)
  • Turkish cultural activities such as Turkish clubs, elaborately costumed student participation in regional "Turkish Olympiads" (see "Learning to love Turkey") and class trips to Anatolian/Turkish festivals
  • School-sponsored trips to Turkey, usually disguised as “International” or “Europe” trips (scan the photo galleries on the school Web sites)
  • The dominant Turkish and Turkic presence in staff members, curriculum and student activities is never mentioned as a feature of the school in the original charter school application
  • School leaders deny, deflect, or minimize their connections to the Gulen Movement.
 * * * * * * * *

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION



 

http://www.charterschoolwatchdog.com