KANSAS CITY, Mo. — One week after ordering Hogan Preparatory Academy to close its high school campus, the Missouri Charter Public School Commission announced that the school has submitted a satisfactory safety plan and may be allowed to reopen after the Thanksgiving break.
“Hogan Preparatory Academy submitted a detailed safety plan covering each of its campuses,” the commission said in a letter posted Saturday to its website. “That plan has been reviewed by the Commission and external reviewers familiar with school safety and Kansas City. We found it meets the criteria established in Action 1 of the Commission’s Letter of Concern to the school.”
The commission closed Hogan Prep’s high school campus, citing "multiple recent incidents affecting the safety of students and staff at each of HPA’s campuses" in a Letter of Concern from Executive Director Robbyn G. Wahby dated Nov. 11.
Elementary school students were allowed to attend school last week and the middle school was allowed to remain open contingent on hiring “two additional security guards,” the commission’s letter ordered.
Hogan Prep Superintendent Jayson Strickland said in a statement to KSHB 41 News last week that the school was “absolutely committed to making all the necessary changes in our procedures and staffing to ensure a safe, healthy, and favorable environment for our students and teachers.”
Hogan Prep must now “demonstrate to the Commission’s satisfaction that it is implementing the plan” before it will be allowed to welcome students back to the high school, which moved into a new building for the 2022-23 academic year.
“We have provided feedback to the board and leadership to help them do that,” the Missouri Charter Public School Commission said in the Nov. 19 letter. “We will continue to monitor the situation carefully.”
Hogan Prep was required to submit a security trend by Nov. 17. The school also must present a plan for the second semester by Jan. 9, 2023.
The district promised parents in a Nov. 14 meeting via Zoom that it would comply with the commission’s directive and improve security at Hogan Prep.
"Hogan Preparatory Academy (HPA) strives to provide a safe, healthy, and favorable environment for learning," the district said in a statement dated Tuesday. "We are committed to implementing new policies and procedures approved by the Missouri Charter Public School Commission. These changes will enhance school safety, support our teachers and staff, communicate with our parents and families, and, most importantly, support students so they can thrive academically, emotionally, and socially. We look forward to having our students back on campus next week following the Thanksgiving break."
Some parents who spoke to KSHB 41 said fights were common at Hogan Prep and Kansas City, Missouri, police confirmed they had responded to four incidents at the school in the first few weeks of November.
The commission said Hogan Prep’s plan is a closed record under Missouri law in declining to provide details of the school’s new safety plan.
“Disclosing these records would impair Hogan’s ability to protect the safety of students, staff and property,” the commission said in its letter.
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