BlueSky Charter School could face thousands of dollars in fines from the state Department of Education for offering inadequate curriculum and handing out diplomas to students who didn't deserve them, according to a letter sent to the school Tuesday.

The public online school, which is based in West St. Paul and serves about 700 students in grades 7-12, has until Dec. 1 to address a long list of concerns pointed out by state auditors. If those concerns aren't fixed, the state will fine the school more than $18,000 per day until the violations are corrected. The state said that's about 60 percent of the school's daily state funding, the maximum reduction allowed by law.

The school has undergone two curriculum reviews in the past two years in which several courses and graduation requirements were found to not meet state requirements, according to state officials.

"Since at least June 1, 2009, BlueSky has repeatedly failed to comply with Minnesota laws regarding academic standards and graduation requirements, and continues to fail to comply, even with significant technical assistance from the department," the Department of Education said in a written statement.

"We've given this school significant time and lots of technical assistance to make the corrective actions required from our first audit," Alice Seagren, state education commissioner, said in the statement. "With this notice of intent to withhold state funding, we expect they will make the changes needed to comply with state law and, more importantly, guarantee every student receives the quality education expected by Minnesota parents."

BlueSky officials didn't return calls seeking comment Tuesday. Officials there previously said that a recent audit of the school's curriculum included many errors and that all of its 2010 graduates met state requirements.

In August, the state gave BlueSky a new authorizer to oversee the school. The school has had three directors in the past two years and was recently sued by two teachers who claimed they were fired after reporting violations of state law at the school.

Daarel Burnette • 651-735-1695