HEARNS SCHOOL TO RAISE FUNDS AT DINNER PARTY.

Byline: Karen Maeshiro Staff Writer

LITTLEROCK - Henry Hearns Charter School of Academic Excellence will hold a fund-raiser to help pay back money it owes the state because the school lacked documents to support the attendance it reported.

Plans for the dinner were announced Tuesday at a morning press conference held by school board members and supporters.

``Charter schools have proven themselves to be a viable option for young people to get an education,'' said Willie Thomas, a former Palmdale School District assistant superintendent and Hearns board member. ``It is important that the school remain solvent so it can continue its mission to provide academic excellence.''

The dinner fund-raiser will be held from 6:30 p.m. to 8:45 p.m. Feb. 17 in the Lilac Pavilion building at the Antelope Valley Fairgrounds, 2551 W. Ave. H. Tickets are $100 each.

Featured guests include Lucius Allen, a former UCLA Bruin and Milwaukee Bucks player, and John Fergione, a Lockheed Martin FA-22 Raptor test pilot. The theme will be ``An Educational Stair Step to Space.''

For tickets and information, call First Missionary Baptist Church, [phone], Ext. 10; Murrell's Community Service Center, [phone]; Thomas, [phone]; or the school, [phone].

Named for Lancaster's vice mayor and located next to the First Missionary Baptist Church that Hearns leads, the school is chartered through the Antelope Valley Union High School District.

``The fund-raiser is to strengthen the school and to pay some of the bills that are owing,'' Hearns said.

Karen Maeshiro, [phone]

karen.maeshiro(at)dailynews.com