Board of Regents rejects bid for new charter school, citing state cap

Four K-8 charter schools that planned to open a shared high school in New York City were rejected Monday by the state Board of Regents, which accused the group of trying to circumvent the city’s cap on new charters.

The board said in its decision that Public Prep Charter School Academies and Brilla College Preparatory Charter Schools’ plan “appear[s] to be an attempt to create a new school in potential violation of the NYC charter limits.”

The decision specifically cited the group’s website — which explicitly notes that its proposal “would allow more high-quality, high school to open despite a cap on charters.”

“There are no charters available for issuance in New York City,” the Regents wrote.

“Although the proposed charter actions are identified as revisions, the nature of the proposed charter actions and a review of supporting documentation evidence the creation of a new charter high school, in potential violation of the law.”

The application for a new high school came from the State University of New York trustees, who recommend new charters for approval from the Board of Regents.

SUNY Board of Trustees Chairwoman Merryl Tisch supports lifting the cap — but doing so requires approval from the state legislature.

New York City’s teachers union, the United Federation of Teachers, opposes the creation of new charters. The union’s president praised the board’s decision on Monday.

“This is a blatant attempt to make an end run around New York City’s charter cap,” Michael Mulgrew said in a statement. “These applications should not only be rejected, but they should become part of the record about why we need stricter oversight of the charter sector – because charters are always trying to get more than their fair share.”

Mayor Bill de Blasio is a longtime charter school antagonist.

But charter advocates hope the city’s likely next chief executive Eric Adams will be more open to the new schools, and put millions of dollars behind his bid for mayor.

Adams, for his part, has not supported lifting the charter school cap. He told The Post in May that he would support transferring 20 unused licenses from failed or closed charter schools to new ones.

Vertex Partnership Academies, which hoped to operate the new secondary school, did not immediately return a request for comment.