Charter Schools

Promoting Innovation, Promoting Innovation, Excellence, and CommunityExcellence, and Community

Dr. Nicole M. WahabCEO and Founder of School Reform Catalyst, Inc. and www.charterstrategy.com

• Consultant and California Administrator

• Wife and Mother - Two wild and crazy boys

• Pre-K, Elementary, Middle School, and High School teacher 1997 - 2004

• Graduate School of Education Adjunct Professor 2003 - current

• District Program Coordinator - Student Support Services 2004 - 2006

• Continuation High School TOSA - AP 2006 - 2007

• Start-up Charter High School Principal 2007 – 2009

• Atypical Principal 2009 -

IntroductionNicole M. Wahab Ed.D

In the News4/09/09 – Office of the Governor• Governor Schwarzenegger today made California among the first-in-the-nation to tap

into the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds that will deliver billions to California K-12 schools and higher education.

4/10/09 – Wall Street Journal• Typically, banks are reluctant to lend to charters because they have little collateral,

no long-term funding, and a five-year license to operate that may not be renewed. That is the reality that will confront President Barack Obama if he tries to make good on his promise to expand charter schools. These schools serve a public good, but they are also risky borrowers.What's more, while charters receive per-pupil funding from the state, they aren't given start-up money to buy or lease classroom space -- one of the misguided restrictions put on charters that hamper their growth. The president may want more charters -- see, for example, his March 10 speech, where he called for increasing the number of charters in states that imposed limits -- but is he willing to do more to help charters cover capital costs? At the moment, private organizations step in to fill the void in public funding for these public schools.

• A Los Angeles Daily News editorial calls the charter school movement “the greatest hope for reforming public education in Los Angeles.” The data is “irrefutable”: more than 70% of L.A. charters outperforming their district counterparts; 10 charters among L.A.’s 12 California Distinguished Schools; 12 charters out of the state’s 15 highest-performing public schools serving low-income students.

Strategic Planning

Stage 1 – Charter School Planning •Mission and Vision•Educational Options•Marketing Plan•Management Team•Financial Plan

Stage 2 – Charter Petition•Educational Program Design•Charter Specific Student Outcomes•Outcome Measurement Methodology•Governance and School Structure•Employee Qualifications•Health and Safety•Racial and Ethnic Policy•Admissions policy•Financial Audits•Expulsion/Suspension Policy•Staff retirement and benefits•Attendance Alternatives•Employee Rights•Dispute Resolution Policy•Collective Bargaining•School Closure

Stage 3 – Revisions and Approval

Stage 4 – LAUNCH

• Start-up costs could be augmented by advanced apportionment funding

• Timely response to school reform and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act

Factors Leading To The Timely Response of the

Charter Petition

Charter Law Middleton, Young & Minney, LLP is proud to be California’s most experienced, knowledgeable and respected firm working in the unique area of charter school law.

• Chapter 781, Statutes of 1992 (SB 1448, Hart)—Authorized the Creation of Charter Schools in California.

• Chapter 34—Instituted Significant Charter School Reforms.

• Chapter 162, Statutes of 1999 (SB 434, Johnston)—Applied Independent Study Laws to Charter Schools.

• Chapter 78, Statutes of 1999 (AB 1115, Strom-Martin)—Created Charter School Funding Model.

• Chapter 892—Reduced Funding for Nonclassroom-Based Charter Schools.

• Chapter 1058, Statutes of 2002 (AB 1994, Reyes)—Established Geographic Restrictions and Enhanced County Oversight.

Charter Law and Compliance

A charter school is generally exempt from most laws governing school districts, except where specifically noted in the law. California public charter schools:

• participate in the statewide assessment test, called the STAR (Standardized Testing and Reporting) program.

• are nonsectarian in its programs, admission policies, employment practices, and all other operations • prohibited from being a conversion of a private school to a charter school.

• may not charge tuition and may not discriminate against any pupil on the basis of ethnicity, national origin, gender, or disability.

San Diego UnifiedSchools of Choice

Key objectives are to:

* Provide choices for parents and students within the public school system for innovative, high-quality learning opportunities. * Stimulate competition in the educational market.

To meet these objectives, charter schools are granted increased autonomy in exchange for increased accountability for results. A school charter is typically granted for five years. During its term, the school must meet all the student performance and operational goals listed in its charter, or the charter may be revoked.

Charter PetitionTo operate in California, a charter school must submit a petition to a charter authorizer. A petition must include specific information that is delineated in statute, such as a description of the education program of the charter school and the student outcomes the school will use to measure its performance.

•Educational Program Design•Charter Specific Student Outcomes•Outcome Measurement Methodology•Governance and School Structure•Employee Qualifications•Health and Safety•Racial and Ethnic Policy•Admissions policy•Financial Audits

Required by San Diego Unified School District

•Expulsion/Suspension Policy•Staff retirement and benefits•Attendance Alternatives•Employee Rights•Dispute Resolution Policy•Collective Bargaining•School Closure

Charter Schools Offer Two General Modes of Instruction—Classroom-Based and Nonclassroom-Based.

Educational Options

Classroom-Based Instruction

• 80% or more of instruction takes

place in the traditional classroom

• CDE Legal requirements

Nonclassroom-Based Instruction

• Independent study-20% off-site

• Master Enrollment Agreements and Public Hearing

1. Production and Outcomes

2. # of missed assignments

3. Legal requirements

Educational Program

• Program description

• Identify who are the primary educators

• 21st century learning goals

• Identification of how learning occurs and how the program will replicate the expected school wide learning results

• High Schools will identify how students will receive counseling and A-G requirement

• EL instructional learning Strategies

• Special education instruction

• Identification of core courses

Funding Options

Loans and Grants

• Charter School Revolving Loan Fund

• Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP)

• Planning & Implementation Grants

• 2007-2010 Public Charter Schools Grant Program

Local or Direct Funding and Apportionment

• Funds not run through the LEA

• Consolidated Application Part I

• Advanced apportionment - Application due on May 21st, 2009

• 1/4 of California school age children go to a school other than the one they are assigned.

• 50% of California school age children attend a school of choice

• Why are parents exercising CHOICE options?

• Lottery, Auditions, and admissions OH MY!

School of Choice

• What draws kids to schools?

• Distinctive curriculum

• “Outsiders”

• Diversity an an explicit purpose

Magnet Schools

• Hybrid models

• Online

• Alternative Instruction

• What is the importance of flexibility to the 21st century learner?

Independent Study Schools

Q and A