South-central Idaho charter school faces financial trouble

JEROME (AP) - A charter school in south-central Idaho is drawing a $50,000 line of credit to cover summer expenses, and it plans on using state funds to pay it back.

Heritage Academy in Jerome is facing multiple challenges managing its budget.

"We always function on a really, really tight budget," said Christine Ivie, superintendent at Heritage Academy, which teaches 170 students.

Heritage Academy currently owes $140,000 from buying a school building. Officials have negotiated a payment plan, but they have since depleted their reserve funds. The school expects to pay off the building by 2017.

"In the next five years, our goal is to work to build up that reserve little by little," Ivie said. The school plans to set aside $10,000 to $15,000 per year.

School official agreed on Thursday to use a state payment slated for August to close out the line of credit. In total, the school receives $1.1 million from the state.

State education officials are now requiring the school to file quarterly financial reports because of its financial instability.

Unlike school districts, charter schools are barred from using voter-approved bonds to help cover the costs of running a school.