Charter School Group Directed Work To Executive’s Husband
By Vanessa de la Torre, Matthew Kauffman, The Hartford Courant | |
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services |
Jumoke's payments to HSK Home Improvements included at least
State records show HSK Home Improvements is owned by
But Jumoke financial records show more than
Hollis did not respond to requests seeking comment on his relationship with Jumoke.
Jumoke officials are now bound by an anti-nepotism policy covering the hiring of employees, vendors and contractors, said
"It certainly appeared to have been inappropriate to have hired a relative to do any work at all for any project where public money is being spent," Michel said.
Jumoke enacted the new policy following a scathing letter from state Education Commissioner
Sharpe was one of the state's most prominent charter school leaders when he resigned
Reached Tuesday, Sharpe would not address the grant money and declined comment on any aspect of
Stainless Steel And Granite
Jumoke has long faced accusations of nepotism and, until recently, most of the executives at Jumoke and FUSE had relatives who were either employees or vendors of the operation. Among the highest-compensated was
<p>Jumoke hired Hollis's company for dozens of jobs, from small repairs to major construction projects, the largest of which was the renovation at 852 Asylum -- a stately, century-old mansion known as the Queen Anne building that Jumoke bought for
None of those buildings would ultimately be used for Jumoke classrooms.
For the three-story Queen Anne, Sharpe, as CEO of Jumoke, offered Hollis
On the second floor that Sharpe would later occupy, the budget included
Despite the extensive renovations throughout the building,
Although Hollis was the major contractor on the job, Jumoke also paid him
At the Queen Anne mansion, records show HSK's original
Hollis spent much of 2012 renovating the Queen Anne building. In
Costs Rise
Jumoke's acquisition of the three
More than two years later, Sharpe approached the state with a proposal to redirect the excess grant money to help the organization buy and renovate the Asylum Hill properties: 834 and 846 Asylum, the former home of the
But the space was inadequate for classrooms, former Jumoke employees have said, and Jumoke a year ago paid
The Scarborough property was never used as a school either, and is now a vacant, dilapidated and repeatedly vandalized building with substantial damage and graffiti inside.
Meanwhile, within months of his request to keep the grant money, Sharpe had drafted plans to update the interior and exterior of the Queen Anne. He originally envisioned spending
In that correspondence, the tone of negotiations over the budget ranged from genial to combative.
For interior painting, Sharpe offered
"10,350 is rock bottom," Hollis countered. "I'm at 13.5K," and records indicate the two men agreed on that price, although the final bill came in an additional
But after Hollis sought more money for renovating the basement -- work Sharpe believed was covered by payments elsewhere in the contract -- Sharpe became testy. "You can't keep having it both ways," he wrote to Hollis. "If I am paying you a premium for electrical, plumbing, and a line item for demo, then you claim an additional
The final budget allocated
In his revised grant application seeking to redirect state money to the
For now,
As work was underway on the Queen Anne building, some Jumoke employees groused that there seemed to be ample funds to create a brand new apartment while teachers scrounged for instructional materials during the inaugural year at Jumoke's
Former Jumoke teacher
"I had several parents say, 'What's your math textbook?'" said Martin, who taught fifth-grade math and language arts. "I would say, 'We don't have any.'
"I was surprised that we would pay to house the CEO, who makes what he makes, and then we're not getting materials," Martin added. "I didn't understand how that could work."
Another former teacher at Jumoke's
"They lied to us," said
On
Financial records show that Sharpe missed the rent payment due dates for the months of July, August and
After Sharpe resigned as CEO of FUSE and vacated the apartment in July, he owed nearly
Neither Sharpe nor Jumoke have answered whether he still owes that money.
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