CCA Statement on Lawsuit Filed by Four Western Pennsylvania School Districts

November 26, 2025

CCA Statement on Lawsuit Filed by Four Western Pennsylvania School Districts

HARRISBURG – Commonwealth Charter Academy (CCA) today issued the following statement in response to the lawsuit filed in the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania by Indiana Area School District, Pittsburgh School District, Leechburg Area School District, and Ligonier Valley School District.

“CCA is disappointed by this baseless lawsuit, which represents a direct attack on public cyber charter families instead of an honest attempt to address why thousands of parents are leaving their schools.

“Here are the facts: CCA follows the law. We are a public school and a non-profit organization, governed by state and federal laws since 2003. We file every required report with the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) and the IRS. Despite politically motivated attacks and unwarranted scrutiny, the Auditor General’s February 2025 performance audit found no financial mismanagement, waste, fraud, or abuse of taxpayer dollars. That alone speaks volumes.

“PDE has never revoked nor even threatened to revoke our charter. It is settled law in Pennsylvania that a charter remains valid until revoked by the authorizer. On four occasions, PDE initiated the charter renewal process with CCA, and during each process, CCA provided PDE with everything it requested. In fact, on one occasion, PDE officials verbally promised to renew CCA’s charter within a month. They reneged on that promise for no reason. We have been prepared and continue to be prepared to engage in a fifth charter renewal process, and have inquired about when that might begin.

“CCA has never had an enrollment goal. Families voluntarily choose us and refer others to us. Since the 2019-20 school year, enrollment in CCA from these four districts combined has increased by 271%. That kind of growth does not happen by accident – it reflects families’ frustration or dissatisfaction with the educational environment in those districts. When that many families leave, something is broken, and suing CCA does nothing to fix it. Instead, they are attempting to remove the public school choice option for families. CCA has become the most sought-after public cyber school because we listen to and respect the families we serve, and we address the needs of each student.

“Public cyber charter schools are required by law to inform families that alternative public schools exist. Incidentally, there are 13 other public cyber charter schools authorized to operate in Pennsylvania. Parents continue choosing CCA because their children need safety, flexibility, responsiveness, and respect for individual learning needs. These districts are not losing students to advertising; they are losing students because families feel unheard, unsupported, or underserved. Being a public cyber charter school parent is not easy, and our families do not make this choice lightly. These school districts are losing their families. CCA is not taking any of them.

“CCA proudly serves a diverse population of students from every county in Pennsylvania, including many at-risk students who need the personalized, stable, and innovative education that traditional school districts have refused to provide. These families deserve respect, not legal intimidation and not thinly veiled attacks disguised as litigation.

“Our Family Service Centers across Pennsylvania exist as regional locations where our staff work from, and so families have in-person access to support, educators, technology, and community resources – exactly the type of innovation the Charter School Law encourages and allows.

“This lawsuit is a frivolous waste of taxpayer dollars – money that would be far better spent addressing the conditions driving families out of traditional school districts in the first place. Apparently, blaming and pointing the finger at public cyber charter schools is much easier than looking internally to fix what is broken, which is where these school districts should be focusing their energy.

“Attacking CCA’s and other public cyber charter schools’ PSSA scores is a false indicator of the school’s true performance. Typically, parents of public cyber charter schools opt out of standardized tests, and low participation results in scoring penalties and misleading performance indicators. Parents are the best measure of their child’s academic growth and success at school. For the record, some of the plaintiffs in this filing have lower PSSA scores than what they accuse CCA of having.

“CCA will continue to defend the rights of students and families to choose a public school that works best for them, and deliver the high-quality, personalized, flexible, and innovative education they deserve.”