Current through Register 1531, September 27, 2024
(1)
Charter Application
Process. Applicants shall submit to the Department application
materials in accordance with the schedule, application form, and guidelines
established by the Department for each type of charter school. Each applicant
submitting application materials for a Commonwealth charter school shall also
send a copy of the application to the superintendent of the school district(s)
from which the applicant is expected to enroll students.
(a) Horace Mann applications shall be
accepted in three categories with the corresponding district approvals:
1. A Horace Mann I application may be
submitted to create a new school, provided the application is submitted with
the approval of the local collective bargaining unit and the school committee
in the district in which it is located. All Horace Mann charters granted before
January 2010 are considered Horace Mann I.
2. A Horace Mann II application may be
submitted as a conversion of an existing public school provided the application
is submitted with the approval of the school committee. Horace Mann II
applications may be submitted at any time but shall participate in the
application process in accordance with guidelines issued by the Department,
with similar periods of time for review and charter granting. Horace Mann II
charter schools may not open until completion of the opening procedures
process.
3. A Horace Mann III
application may be submitted to create a new school provided the application is
submitted with the approval of the school committee. An agreement with the
local collective bargaining unit is not required prior to Board approval of a
Horace Mann III charter school.
(b) All Horace Mann charter schools may be
exempt from specified provisions of local collective bargaining agreements,
provided that employees of the school will continue:
1. to be members of the local collective
bargaining unit;
2. to accrue
seniority; and
3. to receive at
minimum, the salary and benefits established by the local collective bargaining
agreement. Consistent with M.G.L. c. 71, § 89, Horace Mann charter school
employees will be exempt from all agreed-upon provisions of the collective
bargaining agreement and school committee policies to the extent provided by
their charter and the Memorandum of Understanding with the local district or
collective bargaining unit or as voted by teachers as defined in M.G.L. c. 71,
§ 89.
(c)
Applications for Horace Mann charter schools shall describe in the charter
school application:
1. the type of Horace Mann
charter the applicant seeks (I, II, III);
2. the proposed opening date of the charter
school;
3. the elements of the
local collective bargaining agreement that apply to employees of the school;
and
4. the Memorandum of
Understanding under which the charter school proposes to operate.
(d) The Memorandum or Memoranda of
Understanding must be consistent with M.G.L. c. 71, § 89;
603 CMR
1.00; and any guidelines issued by the Department and
must include at a minimum:
1. the services,
both instructional and non-instructional, that the local school district will
provide to the charter school;
2.
the facilities provided by the district;
3. any waivers to applicable collective
bargaining agreements; and
4.
financial information, including, but not limited to:
a. the basis for calculating
tuition;
b. a method for
determining the arrangements between the charter school and the district
regarding costs of services;
c. the
date of the charter school's first annual budget allocation from the district,
consistent with the allocation for other public schools in the district and the
basis on which future tuition allocations will be made;
d. the schedule for school district funds to
be transferred into the charter school's bank account;
e. responsibility for securing federal and
state entitlement grants for the charter school; and
f. the procedures to be used for resolving
disputes.
(2)
Review Process.
The Department shall review application materials submitted in accordance with
deadlines established by the Department. The role of any reviewer is solely
advisory. Application materials will be reviewed and evaluated in accordance
with criteria outlined in 603 CMR 1.04 and the charter school application
itself. In addition, the Department will conduct interviews with all final
applicants in order to better assess their qualifications and capacity to start
and operate a charter school.
(3)
Evaluation and Approval of Charter Applications. The
Department reviews applications to ensure that the applicant has, at a minimum,
demonstrated the capacity:
(a) to further the
purposes for establishment of charter schools specified in M.G.L. c. 71, §
89;
(b) to conform with M.G.L. c.
71, § 89, and all other applicable laws and regulations, including any
guidelines the Board may issue, and including those related to English language
learners and students with disabilities;
(c) to meet its enrollment projections
through demonstration of support for the proposed charter school in the
communities from which students would be likely to enroll;
(d) to implement its recruitment and
retention plan;
(e) to involve
parents and guardians as partners in the education of their children;
(f) to develop a proposed program that
enhances options for students in the district(s) served;
(g) to collaborate with and disseminate
innovative practices to the school districts from which it draws students, if a
Commonwealth charter, and with other schools in its district, if a Horace Mann
charter;
(h) to develop a
management structure and plan which enables the charter school to achieve the
goals and mission set forth in its charter, including information about
proposed board members and the selection, roles, and responsibilities of the
board of trustees;
(i) to develop
bylaws that govern the board of trustees consistent with M.G.L. c. 71, §
89;
603 CMR
1.00; and guidelines issued by the
Department;
(j) to develop a
management structure and plan that enables the board of trustees to oversee a
network of charter schools, including the roles and responsibilities of school
leaders and administrators, if applicable;
(k) to assure that students will meet the
same performance standards and assessment requirements set by the Board for
students in other public schools;
(l) to develop an accountability plan that
meets criteria established by the Department, at the end of the first year of
the school's charter, establishing five-year performance objectives to help
measure the school's progress and success in fulfilling the terms of its
charter;
(m) to administer its
educational programs, school operations, and finances effectively;
(n) to establish a process to provide to
students, parents/guardians, the Board, other interested parties, and the
public all information required by law and regulation, as well as to provide
other information the Board may request;
(o) to develop an enrollment policy
consistent with M.G.L. c. 71, § 89, and
603 CMR
1.05;
(p) to develop a recruitment and retention
plan consistent with M.G.L. c. 71, § 89, and
603 CMR
1.05;
(q) to ensure the thoroughness and accuracy
of the charter school application;
(r) to provide school facilities that comply
with municipal building codes and other applicable laws and that are adequate
to meet the school's program requirements;
(s) to develop a board of trustees with the
capacity to effectively govern the school and to effectively govern more than
one school, if applicable; and
(t)
to build a network of charter schools, if applicable.
If a charter is granted, the drafts of documents submitted
during the application process are subject to Department review and approval
during the opening procedures process, and the additional requirements in 603
CMR 1.04(7).
(4)
Qualifications to Achieve Proven Provider Status. In
school districts performing in the lowest 10% statewide and in which the 9% net
school spending cap is or would be exceeded, applications will be considered
only from Proven Providers. The Commissioner will determine and grant proven
provider status.
Applicants for Proven Provider status must meet the
requirements in
603 CMR 1.02. The
applicant must submit evidence, satisfactory to the Commissioner, to
demonstrate a significant management or leadership role at a school or similar
program that is an academic success, a viable organization, and relevant to the
proposed charter school.
(a) The
applicant shall submit a detailed description of role(s) and responsibilities
at the successful school(s) or program(s).
(b) The applicant shall submit data
demonstrating success in student academic performance and evidence of academic
program success, including but not limited to:
1. Proficiency levels and growth measures on
the Massachusetts comprehensive assessment system or equivalent assessments for
all students and for one or more targeted subgroups as defined in M.G.L. c. 71,
§ 89(i)(3), which are similar to statewide averages in English Language
Arts and mathematics for all students in Massachusetts in comparable grades,
over no less than a three-year period for cohorts of students;
2. Student performance on other standardized
tests over no less than a three-year period for cohorts of students, if
available, which demonstrates student achievement levels that are similar to
statewide averages in English Language Arts and mathematics for all students in
Massachusetts in comparable grades;
3. attendance, retention, and attrition
data;
4. graduation and dropout
data, if applicable; and
5.
in-school and out-of-school suspension rates.
(c) The applicant shall submit evidence of
organizational viability, which shall include but not be limited to effective
governance, effective financial management, effective implementation of
recruitment and retention plans, if applicable, and compliance with applicable
laws and regulations.
(d) The
applicant shall provide evidence to demonstrate that the successful school
serves student population(s) similar to the population(s) to be served by the
proposed charter, and that the program to be offered at the proposed charter is
similar to, or represents a reasonable modification of the successful
school.
(e) Applicants shall
provide any other information as required by the Department.
For applicants with a current or previous relationship to a
Massachusetts charter school, the Commissioner may consider all information
related to such school's performance, including his evaluation in connection
with each renewal of its charter.
(5)
Public Comment.
The Board and the Department shall hold a public hearing for final applications
in the school district in which a proposed charter school is to be located in
order to solicit and review comments on the application from the school
committees of the school district(s) from which the applicant is expected to
enroll students and the public at large. At least one member of the Board shall
attend each public hearing soliciting comments on the merits of pending charter
school applications and shall report to the Board on the public
hearing.
(6)
Granting
of Charters.
(a) The Board shall
grant charters to charter boards of trustees under M.G.L. c. 71, § 89, and
under such conditions and at such time as the Board specifies under 603 CMR
1.04.
(b) The Board shall grant new
charters in the month of February, except that for Horace Mann II schools as
described in 603 CMR 1.04(1)(a)2., the Board may grant such charters at such
other times as designated, dependent upon the intended opening date.
(c) A charter granted by the Board shall be
effective for five years, beginning July 1st of the
first fiscal year in which the charter school enrolls students, unless revoked
pursuant to M.G.L. c. 71, § 89, and
603
CMR 1.12. If no students are attending a
charter school within 19 months from the date the charter was granted, the
charter will be null and void, unless a waiver and extension is granted by the
Board according to the process outlined in
603 CMR
1.03(2).
(d) Should the Board elect to award fewer
than the number of charters specified under M.G.L. c. 71, § 89 in any
given cycle, the Board may grant those charters not awarded in subsequent
application cycles in addition to the number of charters scheduled to be
awarded and notwithstanding any limitations on the number of new charters
authorized in such year.
(e) The
Board may award any charter revoked or returned to the Board in subsequent
application cycles in addition to the number of charters scheduled to be
awarded and notwithstanding any limitations on the number of new charters
authorized in such year.
(f) The
Board will use the most recent United States Census estimate to determine the
population of a city or town proposed as the location for a charter
school.
(g) Private and parochial
schools shall not be eligible for charter school status. If members of a
charter applicant group are on the governing board or management of a private
or parochial school that plans to close or closes around the time of seeking a
charter, it creates a rebuttable presumption that the private or parochial
school seeks charter status for the purpose of securing public funding. To
rebut this presumption, the applicant group must establish facts sufficient for
the Department to determine that funding is not the primary reason they are
seeking a charter while the private or parochial school is closing. In making a
determination, the Department will compare the governance, management, and
other characteristics of the private or parochial school and the governance,
management, and other characteristics of the charter school, including but not
limited to curriculum, student body, staff, leadership, location, and the
financial plan for the school.
(7)
Conditions for Opening New
Charter Schools. Charters shall be awarded subject to the
conditions listed in 603 CMR 1.04(3) and (7) and any additional conditions that
the Board or Department may specify. The Board may temporarily waive such
conditions and award a charter, provided that the applicant submits adequate
written assurance that all such conditions will be met prior to the opening of
the charter school. If a new charter school fails to comply with any such
specified condition, the Commissioner may prohibit the school from opening.
Upon receiving a charter, the charter school must successfully
complete the opening procedures process specified by the Department. This
process begins with the awarding of a new charter by the Board and ends in the
following June when the school submits a draft Accountability Plan to the
Department. Opening procedures requirements include, but are not limited to,
provision of the following:
(a) the
terms of the proposed contract, for review and approval, in such cases where
the board of trustees intends to procure substantially all educational services
from another person or organization;
(b) policies and procedures including, but
not be limited to, approved bylaws, an enrollment policy, and a recruitment and
retention plan;
(c) criteria and
procedures for suspension and expulsion of students;
(d) written documentation that criminal
background checks have been performed as required by state law;
(e) written documentation that the facilities
to be used by the charter school are approved for use as a school by the
building inspector in the municipality in which the building is
located;
(f) written documentation
that the facilities occupied by the charter school have been inspected by the
Fire Department of the municipality in which the facilities are
located;
(g) written documentation
that approval under M.G.L. c. 148 has been secured from the licensing authority
of the municipality in which the building is located if explosives or flammable
compounds or liquids are used in connection with courses taught at the school;
and
(h) written documentation that
the school is in compliance with all other applicable federal and state health
and safety laws and regulations, including evidence of compliance with any
required insurance coverage.
(8)
Information for Distribution
of Public Funds. Upon receiving a charter, all charter schools
shall provide the Department with a federal tax identification number issued
solely to the charter school, and banking information regarding a bank account
solely in the name of the charter school, as required by the State Treasurer
for the transfer of public funds.
(9)
Lowest 10%. The
Commissioner shall annually publish a ranking of all districts that are subject
to charter school tuition charges, for the purpose of determining the lowest
10% as specified in M.G.L. c. 71, § 89(i)(2), and (i)(3). Such ranking
shall be calculated by determining the average ranks for each district's
English language arts, mathematics, and science composite performance index;
the percentage of students scoring warning or failing in English language arts,
mathematics, and science; the percentage of students scoring advanced in
English language arts, mathematics, and science; and student growth percentiles
for English language arts and mathematics, using statewide student performance
scores released in the two consecutive school years immediately preceding the
school year in which applications are submitted. These calculations shall use
weighting consistent with the Department's approved methodology for the state
accountability system. Districts without data for each component of the
calculation will not be included. In the event that all statewide student
performance scores were not released in the two consecutive school years
immediately preceding the school year in which applications are submitted, such
ranking shall be calculated for districts, including those that may lack data
for some components, using the two most recent years in which statewide student
performance scores were released. Additional charter school seats resulting
from a district's designation in the lowest 10% may be awarded by the Board to
a new charter applicant, to existing charter schools, or to any combination
thereof. The Board may provisionally award seats to new charter applicants and
to existing charter schools that will become available in future years pursuant
to the schedule set forth in St. 2010, c. 12, § 9, provided, that if a
district is no longer in the lowest 10%, any remaining provisional seats may
not be used.
(10)
Seat
Availability. In considering an application for the creation or
expansion of a regional charter school, the board shall independently assess
the availability of seats for each sending district within the proposed region,
and may limit the number of students who may be enrolled from each such
district.
