SALT LAKE CITY — It's like marital counseling for an elementary school.
The administration, teachers and parents at Dual Immersion Academy all want the same thing — a successful charter school that turns out completely bilingual (Spanish and English) students — but they can't agree on how to reach that goal. The resulting squabbles have both parties considering divorce.
More than 100 parents and students rallied Friday in front of Dual Immersion Academy, 1155 Glendale, calling for the charter school's director and business manager to step down. Parents passed around a petition. Children lobbied, waving signs that said, "We care."
Parent's insist, however, that they didn't picket because they're unhappy with the education their children get at Dual Immersion Academy, a tax-funded public school focused on teaching children in both English and Spanish.
"I couldn't be more happy with what my kids are learning," said Mac Newbold, who has two children at the Salt Lake City school. He and other parents decided to intervene, he said, to make sure Dual Immersion Academy keeps it up.
"Over the past six months, we're just watched as issues crept into the school," Newbold said. "We've tried to address them with the director. He's not listening, so we just keep getting louder and louder."
Demonstrators said director Laurencio Peña has created a "culture of intimidation" at the K-7 school and refuses to be a team player. The administration's lack of financial management experience, they said, is putting the school's future at risk.
For months, the school's books went unbalanced because administrators couldn't figure out the math, Newbold said. A parent had to come in to set things straight. Because of a lack of accounting expertise, teachers' W2 tax forms were fraught with errors, and retirement accounts have been neglected. At one point, the school had racked up $23,000 in unpaid lunch bills because administrators had improperly accounted for students who qualify for free and reduced lunch.
"If our good teachers leave because they don't feel valued, then we lose the school," Newbold said. "If the school goes under because we're not managing money correctly, then we lose the school. None of us want that to happen."
School leaders see the problems differently.
"I think many parents and employees believe the school should be run like a democracy, but it's not a democracy," said Barbara Fink, president of Dual Immersion Academy's board. "We follow a policy governance model. Yes, we appreciate parent involvement, but we hire a director to operate the school the way he sees fit."
The fighting, gossiping and refusal to communicate have gotten so bad that Fink had to call in a professional mediator.
Though Peña, tired of defending himself to a crowd of angry parents, submitted his resignation Wednesday, the school board Friday voted not to accept it.
"We believe it is in our best interest to continue to work together," Fink said. "If we can communicate, we can improve."
Fink said the board did a nationwide search to find Peña, who came to the Salt Lake City charter school in October 2009. The principal has a doctorate in education and more than 25 years experience in the field. He established a French and Spanish immersion elementary school in the Cincinnati Public School System and wrote a book about bilingual education.
Financially, Fink admitted the school is struggling.
"Money is tight and unpredictable," she said. "We are not as on top of things as we should be, but we are working vigilantly to catch up."
In a February board meeting, Peña said he "has an open door policy" and hoped parents felt comfortable coming to him with concerns.
"We are just a bunch of passionate people who are not communicating well," Fink said. "We all have the same goal, but we have different ideas about how to achieve that goal."
e-mail: estuart@desnews.com