Ex-charter school head admits theft
Guilty plea could lead to prison, deportation
By DANI McCLAIN
dmcclain@journalsentinel.com
Posted: June 3, 2008

A former operator of a Milwaukee public charter school pleaded guilty Tuesday to embezzling more than $300,000 in federal funds intended for the school she founded and led from 2003 to 2006.

Rosella Tucker, 55, faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and $250,000 in fines.

She also will have to pay Milwaukee Public Schools $200,000, according to the plea agreement Tucker signed last month.

Tucker, a native of Sierra Leone, may also face deportation. She has lived in the U.S. for nearly 20 years and recently became a legal permanent resident.

Though she said little Tuesday beyond responding to the judge's questions, Tucker appeared in federal court to acknowledge taking $300,000 in U.S. Department of Education money intended for the New Hope Institute of Science and Technology, which she started through a charter agreement with MPS.

She spent about $200,000 on personal expenses, including cars, funeral arrangements and home improvement, according to court documents. Tucker has argued that the remainder of the money she received was legitimate reimbursement for school-related expenses.

In most criminal cases involving people with green cards, a federal immigration judge will review immigration status after the sentence has been served, said Gail Montenegro, a spokeswoman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Because the fraud involves an amount greater than $10,000, Tucker's conviction will likely be classified an aggravated felony, said John Sesini, an immigration attorney in Milwaukee who is not involved in the case.

"At some point she most likely will be facing deportation proceedings, and it will be very difficult for her to remain here," Sesini said.

Tucker might get a break if she can prove that she faces persecution in her home country, he said.

Tucker's sentencing hearing is set for Sept. 4.

Tucker and her attorney, Jeremy Levinson, would not comment on the case.

Until recently, Tucker also was a full-time science teacher at Milwaukee Area Technical College.

The Milwaukee School Board voted to close New Hope Institute of Science and Technology in February 2006, amid problems that included unpaid bills and lack of appropriate teacher licensure.

The following month, the state Department of Public Instruction ordered Tucker to return $740,000 she had received in voucher payments over two years to operate a separate school, Tucker's Institute of Learning, in the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program.


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From the June 4, 2008 editions of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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