Waugh ESD | BP 0420.41 Philosophy, Goals, Objectives and Comprehensive Plans
Charter School Oversight
The Governing Board recognizes its ongoing responsibility to ensure that any charter school authorized by the Board is successfully fulfilling the terms of its charter and is providing a high-quality educational program for students enrolled in the charter school.
(cf. 0420.4 - Charter School Authorization)
(cf. 0500 - Accountability)
The Superintendent or designee shall identify at least one staff member to serve as a contact for each charter school. (Education Code 47604.32)
The Board and Superintendent or designee may inspect or observe any part of the charter school at any time. The Superintendent or designee shall visit each charter school at least annually. (Education Code 47604.32, 47607)
Whenever a charter school operates as or is operated by a nonprofit public benefit corporation as authorized by Education Code 47604, the Superintendent shall recommend and the Board shall appoint a district representative, who may be the district's charter school contact, to serve as a voting or nonvoting member of the corporation's board of directors.
Provision of District Services
The district may charge for the actual costs of supervisorial oversight of a charter school not to exceed one percent of the charter school's revenue. If the district is able to provide substantially rent-free facilities to the charter school, the district may charge actual costs up to three percent of the charter school's revenue for supervisorial oversight. (Education Code 47613)
(cf. 7160 - Charter School Facilities)
The charter school may separately purchase administrative or other services from the district or any other source. (Education Code 47613)
At the request of a charter school, the Superintendent or designee shall create and submit any reports required by the State Teachers' Retirement System or Public Employees' Retirement System on behalf of the charter school. The charter school may be charged for the actual costs of the reporting services, but shall not be required to purchase payroll processing services from the district as a condition for creating and submitting these reports. (Education Code 47611.3)
Waivers
If the charter school wishes to request a general waiver of any state law or regulation, it shall request that the Superintendent or designee submit a general waiver request to the State Board of Education (SBE) on its behalf.
Material Revisions to Charter
Material revisions to a charter may be made only with Board approval. Material revisions shall be governed by the same standards and criteria that apply to new charter petitions as set forth in Education Code 47605 and shall include, but not be limited to, a reasonably comprehensive description of any new requirement of charter schools enacted into law after the charter was originally granted or last renewed. (Education Code 47607)
If an approved charter school proposes to expand operations to one or more additional sites within the district's boundaries, the charter school shall request a material revision to its charter and shall notify the Board of those additional locations. The Board shall consider approval of the additional locations at an open meeting. (Education Code 47605)
The Board shall have the authority to determine whether a proposed change in charter school operations constitutes a material revision.
Monitoring Charter School Performance
The Superintendent or designee shall regularly report to the Board on the charter school's performance, based on the academic and fiscal accountability measures specified in the approved charter.
In providing general oversight of a charter school, the Board and the Superintendent or designee shall determine whether the school complies with all legal requirements applicable to charter schools, including making all reports required of charter schools in accordance with Education Code 47604.32.
The Board shall monitor the fiscal condition of the charter school based on any financial information obtained from the charter school, including, but not limited to, the charter school's preliminary budget, first and second interim financial reports, and final unaudited report for the full prior year. (Education Code 47604.32, 47604.33)
The Board shall monitor each charter school to determine whether it is achieving the outcomes for student learning set forth in the charter agreement. In addition, the Board shall determine whether the charter school makes "adequate yearly progress" as defined by the SBE and federal Title I accountability requirements. If a charter school fails to make adequate yearly progress for two or more consecutive years, the Board shall take action for program improvement in accordance with law, Board policy, and administrative regulations.
(cf. 0520.2 - Title I Program Improvement Schools)
Evaluation data for the charter school shall be considered in the Board's determination of the renewal or revocation of a charter.
(cf. 0420.42 - Charter School Renewal)
(cf. 0420.43 - Charter School Revocation)
School Closure
In the event that the Board revokes or denies renewal of a charter or the school closes for any other reason, the Superintendent or designee shall provide assistance, when applicable in accordance with the charter and/or a memorandum of understanding, to facilitate the transfer of the charter school's former students and to finalize financial reporting and close-out.
The Superintendent or designee shall provide notification to the California Department of Education, within 10 calendar days, if the charter school will cease operation for any reason. Such notification shall include, but not be limited to, a description of the circumstances of the closure, the effective date of the closure, and the location of student and personnel records. (Education Code 47604.32; 5 CCR 11962.1)
Legal Reference:
EDUCATION CODE
220 Nondiscrimination
17365-17374 Field Act, fitness for occupancy
35330 Field trips and excursions; student fees
42100 Annual statement of receipts and expenditures
44237 Criminal record summary
44830.1 Certificated employees, conviction of a violent or serious felony
45122.1 Classified employees, conviction of a violent or serious felony
46201 Instructional minutes
47600-47616.7 Charter Schools Act of 1992
47634.2 Nonclassroom-based instruction
47640-47647 Special education funding for charter schools
48000 Minimum age of admission for kindergarten; transitional kindergarten
48010-48011 Minimum age of admission (first grade)
48907 Students' exercise of free expression; rules and regulations
48950 Student speech and other communication
49061 Student records
49110 Authority of issue work permits
51745-51749.3 Independent study
52052 Alternative accountability system
56026 Special education
56145-56146 Special education services in charter schools
60600-60649 Assessment of academic achievement
60850-60859 High school exit examination
CORPORATIONS CODE
5110-6910 Nonprofit public benefit corporations
GOVERNMENT CODE
3540-3549.3 Educational Employment Relations Act
54950-54963 The Ralph M. Brown Act
LABOR CODE
1198.5 Personnel records related to performance and grievance
PENAL CODE
667.5 Definition of violent felony
1192.7 Definition of serious felony
CALIFORNIA CONSTITUTION
Article 9, Section 5 Common school system
CODE OF REGULATIONS, TITLE 5
11700.1-11705 Independent study
CODE OF REGULATIONS, TITLE 24
101 et seq. California Building Standards Code
UNITED STATES CODE, TITLE 20
6311 Adequate yearly progress
6319 Qualifications of teachers and paraprofessionals
CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS, TITLE 34
300.18 Highly qualified special education teachers
COURT DECISIONS
Ridgecrest Charter School v. Sierra Sands Unified School District, (2005) 130 Cal.App.4th 986
ATTORNEY GENERAL OPINIONS
89 Ops.Cal.Atty.Gen. 166 (2006)
80 Ops.Cal.Atty.Gen. 52 (1997)
78 Ops.Cal.Atty.Gen. 297 (1995)
CALIFORNIA OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS DECISIONS
Student v. Horizon Instructional Systems Charter School, (2012) OAH Case No. 2011060763
Management Resources:
CSBA PUBLICATIONS
The Role of the Charter School Authorizer, Online Course
Charter Schools: A Manual for Governance Teams, rev. 2009
CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION PUBLICATIONS
Sample Copy of a Memorandum of Understanding
Pupil Fees, Deposits, and Other Charges, Fiscal Management Advisory 11-01, November 9, 2011
Special Education and Charter Schools: Questions and Answers, September 10, 2002
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION GUIDANCE
Charter Schools Program, July 2004
The Impact of the New Title I Requirements on Charter Schools, July 2004
WEB SITES
CSBA: http://www.csba.org
California Charter Schools Association: http://www.calcharters.org
California Department of Education, Charter Schools: http://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cs
National Association of Charter School Authorizers: http://www.charterauthorizers.org
U.S. Department of Education: http://www.ed.gov
Policy WAUGH SCHOOL DISTRICT
adopted: June 19, 2012 Petaluma, California