Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
OR
OR
OR
State Scores for this Component
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Alabama law allows any local school board to register to become an authorizer with the state department of education.
It also creates the Alabama Public Charter School Commission. The commission may hear an application for the formation of a public charter school by an applicant only if one of the following factors is met:
* An application to form a public charter school is denied by the local school board overseeing that system and the applicant chooses to appeal the decision of the local school board to the commission.
*The applicant wishes to open a start-up public charter school in a public school system that has chosen not to register as an authorizer.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Alaska law requires applicants to apply to their local school boards. If the local school board approves the application, the local school board must forward the application to the state board of education and early development for review and approval.
If a local school board denies an application, the applicant may appeal the denial to the state commissioner of education. The law allows the state commissioner to remand the appeal to the local school board for further review, approve the application and forward it to the state board of education, or uphold the denial by a local school board.
If the state commissioner upholds the denial by the local school board, the applicant may appeal to the state board.
The law provides that a local school board that denied an application for a charter school approved by the state board shall operate the charter school.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Arizona law allows charter applicants to apply to the Arizona State Board for Charter Schools (ASBCS), the state board of education, a university, a community college district, or a group of community college districts. However, the state board of education has a self-imposed moratorium on charter authorizing, so ASBCS currently oversees all schools approved by both state boards.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Arkansas law requires conversion charter schools to be approved by the local school board and the state department of education. It allows new start-up charter school applications (known as open enrollment charter schools in the state) to be reviewed by the local school board prior to review by the state department of education. However, it provides that the local school board’s approval or denial has no binding effect on the state department’s decision.
The law allows a charter applicant, public charter school, and affected school district to submit in writing a request that the state board review the final decision by the department. The law provides that the state board of education may exercise a right of review of a charter determination made by the department on a motion approved by a majority vote. If the state board votes to review a final decision made by the department, the state board may decide by majority vote of the quorum to affirm the decision of the department, take other lawful action on the public charter, or request additional information from the department, public charter school, public charter school applicant, or affected school district.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
California law allows local school boards, county boards of education, and the state board of education to authorize charter schools. The law provides that a local school board may approve charter schools that will operate within the geographic boundaries of the school district.
The law allows a county board of education to approve a charter that will serve pupils for whom the county office of education would otherwise be responsible for providing direct education and related services or will operate at one or more sites within the county’s geographic boundaries as a countywide charter and provide instructional services not generally provided by the county office of education. In addition, the law provides that the county board must find that the charter will serve pupils who will benefit from those services and who cannot be served by a charter school that operates in only one school district in the county.
The law allows a charter applicant denied by a local school board to appeal first to the county board of education and then to the state board of education.
Recently enacted legislation largely curtailed appeals to the state board of education, subjecting them to an “abuse of discretion” standard in lieu of the current de novo standard. State and county appeals currently are reviewed under a so-called de novo standard under which county and state boards do not assume the local board was correct and must, instead, consider the entire record. As a result of recently enacted legislation, the state board of education would shift to an “abuse of discretion” standard wherein it is generally assumed that the local board was correct to deny the charter unless the charter proponents demonstrate that the local board was arbitrary or absurd in their decision.
This recently enacted legislation provided that appeals to county boards of education would remain under the de novo standard of review. However, if a district denied the petition based on new “fiscally distressed district” criteria contained in the legislation, the county must also consider any fiscal impact finding of the district.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Colorado law allows all local school boards to authorize charter schools, provided that a majority of students (other than online students) at a charter school authorized by a district reside in that district or in contiguous school districts.
In addition, Colorado law has established an independent Charter School Institute with statewide chartering authority except in districts granted “exclusive chartering authority” by the state board of education. The law provides that exclusive chartering authority is a privilege and allows the state board to remove it for authorizers not meeting expectations. Colorado law automatically provides exclusive chartering authority to districts enrolling fewer than 3,000 pupils. It requires other local school boards to apply to the state board for exclusive chartering authority within the geographic boundaries of their district. It also provides that each local school board that was granted exclusive chartering authority by April 17, 2008 retains that authority until the local school board voluntarily relinquishes it or the state board revokes it pursuant to Colorado law.
The law allows an applicant rejected by a local school board or the Institute to appeal the decision to the state board of education. The law allows the state board of education to order the local school board or the Institute to authorize the school.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Connecticut law provides that state charters must be approved by the state board of education and that local charters must be approved by the local school board and the state board of education. It also provides that the state board may grant initial certificates of approval for charters for local and state charter schools. Upon granting an initial certificate of approval for a charter, the state board must submit a copy of the certificate and a summary of the comments made at a required public hearing to the joint standing committees of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to education and appropriations and the budgets of state agencies. The law provides that the General Assembly may appropriate funds to the Department of Education for the purposes of providing funds to local and state charter schools. If such funds are appropriated, an initial certificate of approval for a charter shall be effective and deemed a charter as of July 1st of the fiscal year for which such funds are appropriated.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Delaware law requires applicants for public school conversions to apply to local school boards and applicants for new start-ups to apply to either local school boards or the state department of education with assent from the state secretary of education and the state board of education.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
The law established two authorizers, the DC Board of Education (BOE) and the DC Public Charter School Board (DC PCSB). However, the BOE is now defunct. In 2007, the DC PCSB assumed oversight of all the charter schools formerly overseen by the BOE. The law also permits the Council of the District of Columbia to designate another entity as an authorizer, which has not occurred.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Florida law allows local school boards, state universities (for lab schools only), community college district boards of trustees (for charter technical career centers only), and state universities and Florida College System institutions to serve as authorizers.
The law provides an appeals process in which a rejected applicant can appeal to a charter school appeal commission, which makes a recommendation to the state board of education. The law provides that the state board of education can vote to require an authorizer to accept an application. The law requires any appeals involving proposals to replicate a high performing charter school be made directly to the state board of education and requires the authorizer to provide clear and convincing evidence that the application does not meet the requirements specified in law.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Georgia law allows local school boards, a state charter school commission, and the state board of education to serve as authorizers. It requires those seeking a state charter school with a state-wide attendance area to apply directly to the commission and to provide a copy of their application as information only to the local district in which the school will be located. For those seeking a state charter school with a defined attendance area, the law requires the application to be submitted concurrently to the local board(s) impacted by the proposal and the commission. The law provides that the commission cannot consider the application until it is denied at the local level or no action is taken on it at the local level within 60 days of submission. The law requires the state board of education to review and allows it to overrule the approval or renewal of a state charter school by the state charter school commission within 90 days of such decision.
Georgia law also allows applicants to appeal denials by local school boards to the state board of education, who serves as the authorizer if it overturns the local school board’s denial. Such schools are called “state-chartered special schools.”
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Hawaii law creates a state public charter school commission that has statewide authorizing authority. In addition, the law allows accredited public and private postsecondary institutions, county and state agencies, and nonprofits to apply to the state board of education to become an authorizer.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Idaho law allows the following entities to authorize charter schools: local school boards, a state charter school commission, a state public college, university, or community college, and a private, nonprofit, state-based, nonsectarian college or university that is accredited by the same organization that accredits state public colleges and universities. The law also allows the state board of education to authorize schools upon appeal if denied by an authorizer other than a local school board and to redirect denials by local school boards to the state charter school commission. The law provides that virtual charter school applications may be submitted to any authorizer except a local school board.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Illinois law allows local school boards to serve as authorizers.
In 2019, Illinois enacted legislation that eliminated the Illinois Charter School Commission on July 1, 2020 and transferred the Commission’s duties and powers to the Illinois State Board of Education. Under this law, the State Board assumed the charters of all existing Commission schools, has the authority to grant renewals for all existing schools, has the power to grant expansions and amendments to all existing schools, and has the power to reverse a local school board’s decision to revoke or not renew a charter school.
The law also requires a local school board, whenever petitioned to do so by 5% or more of the voters of a school district or districts identified in a charter school proposal, to submit to the voters at a regularly scheduled election the question of whether a new charter school shall be established. The law provides that if the majority of voters approve the referendum, the State Board must enter into a contract with the charter school.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Indiana law allows local school boards, public four-year universities or their designated representative, the Mayor of Indianapolis, a state charter board, and a governing board of a nonprofit college or university that provides a four-year educational program for which it awards a baccalaureate or more advanced degree to authorize charters.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Iowa law requires charter applicants to apply to the state board of education.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Kansas law only provides one authorizing option for charter applications. First, the local school board must approve it. Second, the state board of education must approve it.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Louisiana law allows two types of authorizers: local school boards and the state board of education.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Maine law provides that any local school board or a collaborative of local school boards may become an authorizer by issuing a request for proposals. In addition, the law allows charter school applicants to apply directly to the State Charter Schools Commission. The law provides that only the Commission can approve virtual schools.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Maryland law provides county school boards as the only authorizer option. However, an applicant may appeal a county school board’s denial to the state board of education. If the state board reverses the decision, it shall remand the matter to the county board and may direct the county board to grant a charter and may, if necessary, mediate with the county board and the applicant to implement the charter.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Massachusetts provides only a single authorizer option in the state board of education.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Michigan law allows local school boards, intermediate school boards, community colleges, and state public universities to serve as authorizers, all subject to state board of education review for compliance with law. There is considerable authorizing activity by these authorizing entities.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Minnesota law allows the following types of entities to serve as authorizers: local school boards, intermediate school boards, cooperatives, charitable nonprofit organizations that meet certain criteria, private colleges, public postsecondary institutions, and single-purpose authorizers that are charitable, non-sectarian entities or limited liability corporations created just to authorize charter schools.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Mississippi law provides that applicants in districts rated “D” or “F” may apply directly to the Mississippi Charter School Authorizer Board. It also provides that in any school district rated "A," "B" or "C", the Mississippi Charter School Authorizer Board may authorize charter schools only if a majority of the members of the local school board votes at a public meeting to endorse the application or to initiate the application on its own initiative..
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Missouri law allows the following types of entities to serve as authorizers in the Kansas City school district, the St. Louis school district, and unaccredited districts: the Kansas City and St. Louis school boards; a special administrative board created by the state board of education to operate the Kansas City or St. Louis school districts; a community college, the service area of which encompasses some portion of the district; a public four-year college or university with an approved teacher education program that meets regional or national standards of accreditation; any private four-year college or university with an enrollment of at least one thousand students, with its primary campus in Missouri, and with an approved teacher preparation program; any two-year private vocational or technical school designated as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 which is a member of the North Central Association and accredited by the Higher Learning Commission, with its primary campus in Missouri; or the Missouri Charter Public School Commission.
In provisionally accredited school districts that have received scores on their annual performance reports consistent with a classification of provisionally accredited or unaccredited for three consecutive school years beginning with the 2012-2013 accreditation year, Missouri law allows local school boards and authorizers that have met the standards of accountability and performance as determined by the state department of education to authorize charters.
In accredited school districts, Missouri law only allows local school boards to authorize charters.
Missouri law requires that when an authorizer approves an application, it must forward it to the state board of education for its approval along with an assurance that it meets legal requirements and provides a monitoring plan for the school. The law allows the state board to find the application insufficient and decline to approve it.
If an authorizer turns down an application, the law allows the applicant to submit it to the state board, which can approve it and then act as the authorizer.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Nevada law allows applicants to seek approval from a local school board (if previously approved to be an authorizer by the state department of education), the State Public Charter School Authority, or a college or university within the Nevada System of Higher Education (if previously approved to be an authorizer by the state department of education).
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
In one route, New Hampshire law provides that the local school board and the state board of education approve the application. It also allows applicants denied by the local school board to appeal to the state board. In a second route, New Hampshire law allows applicants to apply directly to the state board of education.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
New Jersey law only allows the state commissioner of education to authorize charter schools.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
New Mexico law allows local school districts and the state public education commission to approve charter applications.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Under New York law, applicants can apply directly to two state-wide authorizers: SUNY Board of Trustees or the State Board of Regents, although only the State Board of Regents can officially issue a charter. By law, if SUNY approves an application and reasserts approval if the State Board of Regents rejects it, then the State Board of Regents must issue the charter for that school. Prior to 2010, district boards of education were also able to authorize charter schools, but now district boards of education are only able to approve conversions of schools from district schools to charter schools, with final approval given to the State Board of Regents.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
North Carolina law requires applicants to get approved by the North Carolina Charter Schools Advisory Board and the North Carolina State Board of Education.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Ohio law provides numerous charter authorizers including: (1) the board of education of the district in which the school is proposed to be located; (2) the board of education of any joint vocational school district with territory in the county in which is located the majority of the territory of the district in which the school is proposed to be located; (3) the board of education of any other city, local, or exempted village school district having territory in the same county where the district in which the school is proposed to be located has the major portion of its territory; (4) the governing board of any educational service center, as long as the proposed school will be located in a county within the territory of the service center or in a county contiguous to such county; (5) a sponsoring authority designated by the board of trustees of any of the thirteen state universities or the board of trustees for the university itself if the proposed school will serve as the university’s teaching demonstration site as approved by the state board of education; (6) any qualified education non-profit that meets the standards as outlined in the charter law; and (7) the Ohio Department of Education.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Oklahoma law permits the following entities to serve as authorizers:
* Local school districts, provided such charter school shall only be located within the geographical boundaries of the sponsoring district;
* A technology center school district if the charter school is located in a school district served by the technology center school district in which all or part of the district is located in a county having more than 500,000 population;
* A technology center school district if the charter school is located in a school district served by the technology center school district and the district has a school site that has been identified as in need of improvement by the state board of education pursuant to federal law;
* A comprehensive or regional institution that is a member of the Oklahoma state system of higher education or community college if the charter school is located in a school district in which all or part of the district is located in a county having more than 500,000 population;
* A comprehensive or regional institution that is a member of the Oklahoma state system of higher education or community college and has a teacher education program accredited by the Oklahoma Commission for Teacher Preparation and have a branch campus or constituent agency physically located within the school district in which the charter school is located in the State of Oklahoma, if the charter school is located in a school district that has a school site that has been identified as in need of improvement by the state board of education pursuant to federal law;
* A federally recognized Indian tribe, operating a high school under the authority of the Bureau of Indian Affairs as of November 1, 2010, if the charter school is for the purpose of demonstrating native language immersion instruction, and is located within its former reservation or treaty area boundaries;
* The State Board of Education in two instances: (1) when the applicant has first been denied a charter by the local school district in which it seeks to operate; and (2) when the applicant of the charter school is the Office of Juvenile Affairs or the applicant has a contract with the Office of Juvenile Affairs to provide a fixed rate level E, D, or D+ group home service and the charter school is for the purpose of providing education services to youth in the custody or supervision of the state;
* The statewide virtual charter school board when the charter school is for the purpose of establishing a full-time statewide virtual charter school.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Oregon law provides that local school boards are the only authorizers of first resort. If a local school board denies a proposal, an applicant may appeal the decision of the local school board to the state board of education or submit a proposal to an institution of higher education. If one of these entitiesthe state board approves the application, it becomes the authorizer.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Pennsylvania law provides the following potential authorizers: local school boards, two or more local school boards for regional charters, and the state department of education for virtual charter schools. It provides that applications denied by local school boards can be appealed to a state appeals board. If approved by the state appeals board, the law requires the chair of the state appeals board to sign the written charter if the local school board still refuses to grant the charter.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Under Rhode Island law, the only authorizer is the state board of education, and only after the charter school has been approved by a local school board or the state commissioner of elementary and secondary education.
Rhode Island law requires local written support for a proposed network charter school. “Written support” means a resolution or ordinance granted by the town or city council for each proposed sending district where the council considers the fiscal and educational welfare of the municipality and students after at least one public hearing. “A network charter school” is a charter school that encompasses or will encompass elementary and secondary schools or multiple elementary or multiple secondary schools. The definition of a “network charter school” exempts charter schools authorized as of the effective date of the act that creates “network charter schools.”
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Under South Carolina law, applicants can apply to their local school district, the South Carolina Public Charter School District, or a public or independent institution of higher learning that registers with the South Carolina Department of Education.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Tennessee law allows local school boards to authorize charter schools. The law also allows the achievement school district to authorize charter schools within a local educational agency (LEA) for the purpose of providing opportunities for students within the LEA who are zoned to attend or enrolled in a chronically low-performing school that is eligible to be placed in the achievement school district. It also allows the state public charter school commission to authorize charter school applications sponsored by local school boards or upon appeal from a denial of approval of a charter school application by an LEA.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Texas law allows applicants to apply to either local school boards or the state commissioner of education. The law requires the state commissioner to notify the state board of education of each charter the commissioner proposes to grant and allows the board to overturn the commissioner’s granting of a charter by a majority vote.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Utah law permits local school boards, the state charter school board, and designated higher education institutions to authorize charter schools, subject to state board of education approval.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Virginia law only allows local school boards to serve as authorizers (either independently or together in the case of regional charter schools). Statute requires that all applications besides those initiated by one or more local school boards must first be reviewed by the state board of education to determine if the application meets approval criteria established by the state board. However, only local school boards are subsequently allowed to approve applications.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Statute creates the Washington Charter School Commission, to which charter proposals for schools anywhere in the state can be directly submitted. In addition, statute allows any local school board to seek approval to become an authorizer from the state board of education.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
According to West Virginia law, authorizers include:
* A county school board when the charter school or application to form a charter school includes a primary recruitment area that is wholly within the county over which the board has jurisdiction;
* Two or more county school boards who must act together and function as a single authorizer in all respects under the law when the charter school or application to form a charter school includes a primary recruitment area that encompasses territory in the two or more counties over which the respective boards have jurisdiction, provided that if such two or more school boards functioning together as authorizer reject the application, then one or more of the individual county boards may approve the application, but in such instance the charter school site must be located in one of the counties where the application was approved;
* The West Virginia Professional Charter School Board; or
*The West Virginia Board of Education in the following instances: the charter school or application to form a charter school or to renew a charter contract is in a county where the state board has intervened in the operation of the school system and limited the authority of the county board to act or the application to form a public charter school or to renew a charter contract is approved by the affected county board or boards and is forwarded it to the West Virginia Board of Education with a request that it perform to the authorizer function.
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Wisconsin law allows the following entities to be authorizers:
*Local school boards
* The city of Milwaukee
* Any University of Wisconsin Chancellor
* Any technical college district board
* The college of Menominee Nation
* The Lac Courte Orielles Ojibwa community college
* The University of Wisconsin System via an Office of Educational Opportunity (whose director is appointed by the University of Wisconsin’s president)
* The County Executive of Waukesha County (in Waukesha County only)
Are non-district authorizers available to which charter applicants may directly apply?
Wyoming law allows local school boards and the state loan and investment board to authorize charter schools.
After a charter school authorized by the state loan and investment board has been in operation for one year or has been renewed by the state loan and investment board, the state loan and investment board may delegate to the school district where the charter school operates any of the functions of an authorizer provided that the charter school and the school district approve the delegation of functions and the charter school shall retain the right to seek renewal of the charter from the state loan and investment board.