Tierra Encantada Charter School does not spend enough of its funding on the classroom, needs to develop a capital plan and has some gaps in its personnel practices, according to a report by Santa Fe Public Schools.

Though the report also spotlights some other potentially problematic issues -- including a close personal relationship between two employees in the business department that could negate the checks-and-balances system -- district Superintendent Bobbie Gutierrez said Monday that the findings are "not serious."

"I would hope that the school will take a close look at how it is choosing to spend its funds and perhaps invest more dollars in the classroom in terms of technology and furnishings," she said. "Compared to our other charter schools, Tierra Encantada may be administratively top-heavy -- and yet that is up to the board and leadership to determine."

Gutierrez said the district was approached by both concerned parents and staff members late last August regarding questionable financial choices and human-resource failings at the school. The district completed its report right before the winter break in December, but waited until last week to release it, per the request of the school's legal counsel, Susan Fox.

Fox wanted the chance to respond to the district's report and, in doing so, she redacted the name of the two employees with a close relationship who work in the same office at the school.

Gutierrez indicated the two work in the school's business office, but, she said, "We found no evidence of it being a problem."

Fox's response also pointed out that the charter's renewal application was reviewed and approved by the district just last year, and "none of the items referenced in the report were raised by SFPS as an issue of concern at that time."

Jay Selnick, president of the seven-member governance council at Tierra Encantada, said the school welcomed the audit.

"A lot of the recommendations, particularly in terms of human resources, are accurate and have been or will be enacted as soon as possible," he said. "There are of course differences in philosophy in terms of methodology or approach, which is not uncommon for a charter school.

"Yes, there were criticisms, and that's fine. Anything constructive we feel we can use, we absolutely will use."

For instance, Selnick acknowledged that Tierra Encantada has not been doing background checks on teachers, as the report notes. But, he said, the Santa Fe Indian School, as the school's former landlord, performed that function for the school until Tierra Encantada moved to its current site in the former Alvord Elementary School this year.

The expeditionary-learning charter opened in 2006 as Charter School 37 on the campus of the Indian School on Cerrillos Road. It employs 21 staff members, said Daniel Benavidez, director of the school, and currently serves about 180 students in grades seven and nine through 12. Next year, it will add an eighth grade.

Tierra Encantada is the third locally chartered high school to be investigated by the district in the last year. In May, the district released a report on the Academy for Technology and the Classics that stated that the governing council of that charter high school was not adhering to policies of the state's Open Meetings Act.

Among other issues, that report also noted a lack of compliance with the academy's Manual of Procedures, leading to poorly managed salaries and benefits for employees, as well as little oversight regarding purchasing authority within the school.

The district suspended that school's charter for a year and is overseeing its administrative and financial management, though Gutierrez said the school board may vote to return the charter by the end of this school year.

In September, the district released a less condemning report on Monte del Sol Charter School, charging that school was violating its own bylaws, failing to provide proper fiscal oversight and violating the state's Open Meetings Act.

The deadline for student applications for Tierra Encantada is Feb. 23. The lottery date for admissions is March 23. Visit tierraencantadachs.org for more information.

Contact Robert Nott at 986-3021 or rnott@sfnewmexican.com.