General Information
1. What are charter schools?
Charter schools are public schools that operate under a performance contract, or a “charter” which frees them from many regulations created for traditional public schools while holding them accountable for academic and financial results. The charter contract between the charter school governing board and the sponsor details the school’s mission, program, goals, students served, methods of assessment and ways to measure success. The length of time for which charters are granted varies but most are granted for three to five years.
The legislative guiding principles behind charter schools are to meet high standards of student achievement while increasing parental choice; align responsibility with accountability; and provide parents information on reading levels and learning gains of their children. Charter schools are intended to improve student learning; increase learning opportunities with special emphasis on low performing students and reading; and measure learning outcomes. Charter schools may create innovative measurement tools; provide competition to stimulate improvement in traditional schools; expand capacity of the public school system; and mitigate the educational impact created by the development of new residential units.
2. Who is eligible to attend charter schools?
Charter schools are open to all students residing within the district; however, charter schools are allowed to target students within specific age groups or grade levels, students considered at-risk of dropping out or failing, students wishing to enroll in a charter school-in-the-workplace or charter school-in-a-municipality, students residing within a reasonable distance of the school, students who meet reasonable academic, artistic or other eligibility standards established by the charter school, or students articulating from one charter school to another. Enrollment preference may be given to siblings of current charter school students or children of the charter school governing board members or employee.
Additionally, a charter school may limit the enrollment process in order to target the following student populations:
- Students within specific age groups or grade levels;
- Students considered at-risk of dropping out of school or academic failure;
- Students who wish to enroll in a charter school-in-the-workplace or a charter school-in-a-municipality;
- Students residing within a reasonable distance of the charter school;
- Student who meet reasonable academic, artistic, or other eligibility standards established by the charter school;
- Students articulating from one charter school to another.
3. How are charter schools created, organized, and operated?
Charter schools are created when an individual, a group of parents or teachers, a business, a municipality, or a legal entity submits an application to the school district; the school district approves the application; the applicants form a governing board that negotiates a contract with the district school board; and the applicants and district school board agree upon a charter or contract. The district school board then becomes the sponsor of the charter school. A state university may grant a charter to the university lab school and is considered to be the school’s sponsor. The negotiated contract outlines expectations of both parties regarding the school’s academic and financial performance.
A charter school is organized and privately operated by teachers, parents, community leaders, businesses, or legal entities (which may include a for-profit management company). The charter school may serve at-risk students, or offer a specialized curriculum or core academic program, provide early intervention programs, or serve exceptional education students.
Charter schools operated by for-profit management companies represent about 22% of charter schools in Florida in 2002-2003. The management companies are responsible for establishing the educational philosophy and design, including curriculum; assessment methods and tools; handling administrative, compliance, and business responsibilities; hiring and supervising personnel; and recruiting students.
4. How does the application process work for a charter school?
As required in s.1002.33(6), F.S., a school board receives and reviews all charter school applications and, within 60 days of receipt, must approve or deny the application. All charter applications must:
· Demonstrate how the school will use the guiding principles.
· Provide a detailed curriculum
· Contain goals and objectives for improving student learning.
· Describe the separate reading curricula and strategies.
· Contain an annual financial plan
If a school board denies an application, it must provide specific written reasons within 10 calendar days. The charter school applicant then has 30 calendar days to appeal after denial or after the school board has not rendered a decision within 60 days of receiving the application. The appeal is to the State Board of Education and the State Board’s decision is a final action subject to judicial review.
5. What is the Charter School Appeal Commission?
The Charter School Appeal Commission assists the State Board of Education for fairly and impartially reviewing the following types of appeals:
· Denial of charter applications;
· Non-renewal or termination of charter contracts;
· Disputes over contract negotiations that have not been resolved through mediation.
The Commission may also hold dispute resolution hearings for the following appeals:
· Disputes over services contracted in a separate contracts from the charter contract;
· Disputes over contractual matters not included in the charter.
The 10-member commission is comprised of charter school operators, school district staff, and Department of Education staff.
6. What specific statutory requirements apply to charter school operations?
A charter school is statutorily required to (s.1002.33(9),F.S.):
· Be nonsectarian in its programs, admission policies, employment practices, and operations;
· Be accountable to the school district for its performance;
· Not charge tuition and fees;
· Comply with all applicable state and local health, safety, and civil rights requirements;
· Not discriminate on the basis of race, national origin, sex, handicap, or marital status;
· Subject itself to an annual financial audit;
· Maintain all financial records that constitute its accounting system in accordance with current law;
· Annually adopt and maintain an operating budget;
· Fully participate in the state’s education accountability program.
7. Are charter schools exempt from state statutes?
Charter schools are generally exempt from the Florida K-20 Education Code (Ch. 1000-1013, F.S.), except those statutes specifically applying to charter schools; pertaining to the provision of services to students with disabilities; pertaining to civil rights; and pertaining to student health, safety, and welfare.
Charter schools are not exempt from any statute governing public records; public meetings and records; public inspection; and penalties (Ch. 119, F.S.).
The 2004 Legislature provided that:
· Charter schools are exempt from compliance with the State Requirements for Educational Facilities (SREF) but are required to comply with the Florida Building Code and the Florida Fire Prevention Code.
· A local governing authority may not impose local building requirements more stringent than those in the Florida Building Code.
Charter schools are exempt from fees charged for building licenses.
8. What are conversion charter schools?
Conversion charter schools are traditional public schools that have been converted to charter schools. The school must have operated for at least two years as a traditional public school (including a school-within-a-school) in a school district before conversion. Application for a conversion may be made by a parent, teacher, principal, district school board or school advisory council, but must be approved by a majority of the teachers and a majority of the parents. A majority of the parents must participate in the vote. Nine conversion charter schools operated in Florida in 2002-2003 representing about 5% of the total number of charter schools in the state.
The charter for a conversion charter school must identify the alternative arrangements that will be put in place to serve current students that choose not to attend the school after it is converted.
Conversion charter schools are not eligible for charter school capital outlay funding if the conversion charter school operates in facilities provided to them by the school district.
9. What are charter schools-in-the-workplace?
Charter schools-in-the-workplace are sponsored by local school districts in partnership with a company or business. Such charter schools usually target the children of the employees of a company or business.
10. What are charter schools-in-a-municipality?
Charter schools-in-a-municipality are sponsored by local school districts in partnership with a municipality. Such schools enroll students based upon a random lottery that involves all of the children of the residents of the municipality and according to the racial/ethnic balance reflective of the community or other public schools in the same school district.
11. What are community college charter schools?
Community college charter schools are statutorily authorized when a public community college, in cooperation with the school board or boards within the college’s service area, develops a charter school that offers secondary education and allows students to obtain an associate’s degree upon graduation from high school.
12. How do the instructional and administrative personnel of a charter school compare with the personnel of a traditional public school?
Florida Statutes require that teachers employed by or under contract with a charter school be certified in the same manner as all other public school teachers in Florida.
On average, charter schools have 21% more instructional staff than traditional public schools and 4% more administrative staff than traditional public schools.
13. How are charter schools held accountable?
First and central to charter school accountability is the charter or contract between the charter school and the sponsor, usually the school district. The sponsor may close a charter school if the school fails to meet the student performance outcomes agreed upon in the charter, fails to meet generally accepted standards of fiscal management, violates the law, or shows other good cause.
The foundation for a charter school’s evaluation based on the charter agreement is the school’s annual report submitted to the sponsor. The sponsor then submits the report to the Commissioner of Education. At a minimum, the annual report must include:
· Student achievement performance data.
· Data on the financial status of the charter school.
· Documentation of the currently used and planned facilities.
· Descriptive information about the charter school’s personnel.
Charter schools are evaluated and assigned a school grade using the same standards and criteria as traditional public schools.
The Department of Education is statutorily required to annually provide an analysis and comparison of the overall performance of charter school students to traditional public school students. The comparison is to be based on the statewide assessment program and information reported by the charter school to the school district. Florida Charter Schools 2002-2003 Annual Accountability Report, was released by the Department of Education in August 2004.
14. How are the constitutionally mandated class size reduction requirements being implemented in charter schools?
Although traditional public schools are allowed to measure compliance based upon district averages until 2006-2007, charter schools are not included in district averages because they are independently governed and are administratively outside of the school districts. Until 2006-2007, charter schools, in conjunction with their sponsors, are required to:
· Develop individualized class size reduction plans for the use of class size reduction funds, and
· To measure progress toward meeting school-level compliance.
All charter schools receive class size reduction funds, which is an operating categorical. Charter schools that are not in compliance with the constitutional maximums may use the funds to help achieve the class size requirements. For those charter schools that achieve and then maintain, the maximum allowable class sizes prior to the 2010 deadline, the funds may be used for operational expenses, with priority given to increasing teacher salaries.
In 2006-2007 and 2007-2008, compliance with the class size reduction requirements for all public schools, including charter schools, will be measured at the school level. In 2008-2009, compliance will be measured at the classroom level. All Florida public schools, including charter schools, must be in full compliance with the constitutional provisions beginning in 2010-2011.
15. How are charter school operations funded?
Charter schools are funded by the state in the same way as all other public schools in the school district. The charter school receives operating funds from the Florida Education Finance Program (FEFP) based on the number of full-time (FTE) students enrolled. Charter school funding includes gross state and local funds, discretionary lottery funds, and funds from the school district’s current operating discretionary millage levy; divided by the total funded weighted full-time equivalent (FTE) students in the school district; multiplied by the weighted FTE students in the charter school. Charter schools are entitled to their proportionate share of categorical program funds, for eligible students and programs.
Charter schools may also access federal funds through a competitive grant process.
· During the first two years of operation, charter schools may apply for and receive implementation grants. In 2002-2003, there were 61 first year charter school implementation project awards, totaling about $8.5 million. The average project award was about $200,000 per school. Forty-nine charter schools in the second year received a total of approximately $11 million. Each award was approximately $233,000.
· Charter schools that have been in operation for at least three consecutive years and have demonstrated overall success may apply for a dissemination grant. In 2002-2003, eleven grants were awarded totaling $810,000 with awards ranging from $40,000 to $100,000 each.
16. What services does the district provide for the charter school?
The sponsor, or school district, must provide certain administrative and educational services to charter schools:
· Contract management services
· FTE and date reporting services
· Exceptional student education administration services
· Test administration services, including payment of costs of state-required or district-required student assessments
· Processing of teacher certificate data services
· Information services, including equal access to student information systems that are used by public schools in the district in which the carter school is located
The school district may charge a charter school, including a conversion charter school, a total administrative fee based on 5% of the available per student FEFP funds. The fee is to cover district costs for administrative services. School districts may not charge additional fees or surcharges for services unless the school district contracts with the charter school to provide additional goods and services.
17. How do charter schools provide transportation?
Charter schools are entitled to their proportionate share of transportation funds for eligible students. The charter school and the school district are required to cooperate in making arrangements so that transportation is not a barrier to equal access for all students residing within a reasonable distance of the charter school. Transportation of charter school students must be consistent with the district school board requirements for transportation of all public K-12 students.
