Kairos Academy will remain closed after administrators abandoned their plans to contest the school’s termination.
The Utah Board of Education announced Wednesday that a Sept. 5 hearing for the West Valley City charter school had been cancelled, due to the school withdrawing its appeal of a July closure vote of the State Charter School Board.
“Staff from Kairos Academy, the Utah State Charter School Board, and the Utah State Board of Education are working with nearby school districts and charter schools to find appropriate placement for students who had been attending Kairos,” the Board of Education‘s announcement states.
Last year, roughly 90 students attended Kairos Academy, an all-girl charter school geared toward young mothers and pregnant teens. The school opened in 2014, but remained on probationary status from 2015 until its closure due to concerns related to low enrollment and poor academic performance.
State school board spokeswoman Emilie Wheeler said the board was notified of Kairos Academy’s decision to withdraw on Tuesday. The appeal panel was subsequently disbanded, Wheeler said, effectively ending the possibility that Kairos could continue operating.
”The State Charter School Board’s decision to terminate the Kairos charter will stand,” Wheeler said.
The Salt Lake Tribune will update this story as more information becomes available.