A dozen charter schools, Horizon Science Academies, including the Horizon Science Academy of Youngstown, are suing the Ohio Department of Education over denied grant money, claiming the rules for the grant were changed after the application process. 

The funds were to be awarded as part of a two-year Quality Community Schools Support Grant (QSF) which recognizes schools that provide quality education to underserved populations.

According to the release from Horizon Science Academies, the lawsuit comes as a last-resort effort after the ODE refused to reconsider its improper decision.

The twelve schools are the plaintiffs in the lawsuit, which names the Ohio Department of Education, Gov. Mike DeWine, the state school superintendent and the director of community schools as respondents.

Horizon Science's press release said the lack of funding is negatively affecting nearly 4,500 students of the academy. On average, 83 percent of Horizon Science's students qualify for free or reduced lunch.

Tim Clements, an attorney with Nicola, Gudbranson & Cooper,  said that the Horizon schools met all the criteria of the grant as it was originally intentioned. "The new criterion retroactively used by the ODE, after the HSAs had already applied for the QSF, was not in HB 166 which the Ohio legislature passed when creating the funding," said Clements. "That's why we're claiming that the ODE exceeded its authority under Ohio law when it inappropriately used an undisclosed requirement for HSA's operator to be registered with Ohio's secretary of state to justify denying funding to these 12 schools."  The schools’ lawsuit points out that the requirement was never intended by Ohio’s legislature and has nothing to do with the quality education that the HSAs provide to their students.   

Ohio Department of Education officials has not publicly commented on the lawsuit.