Charter School Program

Charter School ProgramU.S. Department of Education

Office of Innovation and Improvement

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NCLB and the

Charter School Model

-Accountability for Results

-Flexibility and Local Control

-Expanded Parental Options

-Doing What Works

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Opportunities for Charter Schools

-Providing options for parents (and thus building “capacity” for school districts)

-Creating new governance arrangements for schools in “corrective action”

-Informing all of public education about results-based accountability

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Charter Schools

Programwww.ed.gov/policy/elsec/guid/cspguidance03.doc

• The Public Charter Schools Program (PCSP) was first enacted in 1994, reauthorized in 1998 (The Charter School Expansion Act) and then again in 2001.

• The Charter School Program (CSP) is authorized under Title V, Part B, Subpart 1 (formerly Title X, Part C) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), as amended by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001.

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The purpose of the Charter Schools Program (CSP) is to:

To increase national

understanding of the

charter schools model and

to expand the number of

high quality charter schools

available to students across

the nation.

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Charter School Program Funding Levels

1995 $6,000,000

1996 $18,000,000

1997 $51,000,000

1998 $80,000,000

1999 $100,000,000

2000 $145,000,000

2001 $190,000,000

2002 $200,000,000

2003 $200,000,000

"Charter public schools are a

critically important part of the education

landscape in this country . Thanks to

charter schools, more parents have more choices than ever before, and these

grants will help keep strong the charter

school movement in the United States and, most important help,

ensure that no child is left behind.” Secretary Rod Paige

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Accountability for Charter Schools

Sec. 1111(a)(2)(K) Accountability for Charter Schools . – The accountability provisions under this Act shall be overseen for charter schools in accordance with State charter schools law.

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Accountability

www.ed.gov/policy/elsec/guid/charterguidance03.pdf

Conference Report (107-334)

Charter Schools are public schools and therefore subject to the same accountability requirements of this Act as they apply to other public schools, including Sections 1111 and 1116, as developed in each state. However, there is no intent to replace or duplicate the role of authorized chartering agencies, as established under each state’s charter school law, in overseeing the Act’s accountability requirements for the charter schools that they authorize.

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Accountability

Conference Report (107-334) cont’

Authorized chartering agencies should be held accountable for carrying out their oversight responsibilities as determined by each state through its charter school law and other applicable state laws. This should be done in ways that do not inhibit or discourage the approval or oversight of innovative, high quality charter schools.

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TITLE I Empowering Parents

www.ed.gov/programs/titleiparta/reportcardsguidance.doc

No Child Left Behind…empowers parents like never before by requiring LEAs to let parents know that they can ask for specific information about teacher qualifications:

State qualifications & licensing requirements;

Waivers issued for emergency or provisional status;

Educational background of teachers; and

Qualifications of paraprofessionals.

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Public School ChoiceTitle I section 1116(b)(E)

All students enrolled in Title 1 schools identified for school improvement, corrective action, or the planning year of restructuring are eligible to transfer to another public school, including a public charter school, that is not in school improvement.

www.ed.gov/policy/elsec/guid/schoolchoiceguid.doc

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Supplemental Services

Title I, section 1116(e)

•Additional academic instruction designed to increase the academic achievement of students in low-performing schools. These services may include academic assistance such as tutoring, remediation and other educational interventions.

•Non-profit entities, for-profit entities, local educational agencies, public schools, public charter schools, private schools, public or private institutions of higher education, and faith-based organizations can serve as supplemental providers

www.ed.gov/policy/elsec/guid/suppsvcsguid.doc

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Teacher QualityTitle II, section 2101

www.ed.gov/programs/teacherqual/guidance.doc

•The new Title II, Part A program focuses on preparing, training, and recruiting high-quality teachers and principals.

•Teachers who teach the core academic subjects (English, reading/language arts, mathematics, science, foreign languages, civics and government, economics, arts, history, and geography) must meet the new requirements by the end of the 2005-2006 school year.

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Highly Qualified Teachers in All

Public Schools

All public elementary and secondary school teachers who teach a core academic subject must be:

1. Licensed by the state; and

2. Hold at least a bachelor’s degree; and

3. Demonstrate competence in their subject area.

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Highly Qualified Teachers in Charter Schools

Teachers of core academic subjects in charter schools must meet the same requirements that apply to public school teachers, including holding a four-year college degree; and demonstrating competence in the subject area in which they teach.

However, a teacher in a charter

school does not have to be licensed

or certified by the state if the state

does not require such certification

or licensure.

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Unsafe Schools Choice Option

Title IX, section 9532

This requires that students in unsafe situations be allowed to transfer to other safer, public schools. Specifically, transfers must be allowed for two reasons: (1) when a school is determined to be “persistently dangerous” and (2) when a student becomes the victim of a violent crime at a school.

www.ed.gov/programs/dvpformula/guidance.doc

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NCLB OnLine Resources Office of Innovation and Improvement

www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/oii/index.html

The Office of Innovation and Improvement is a nimble, entrepreneurial arm of the U.S. Department of Education. It

makes strategic investments in promising educational practices through grants to states, schools, and community

organizations. It also leads the movement for greater parental options and information in education

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NCLB Online Resources

Office of Innovation and Improvement Portfolio of Innovation and Improvement Grants

Advanced Credentialing

Advanced Placement

Arts in Education

Charter Schools

Charter School Facilities

Close-Up Foundation

Dropout Prevention

Fund for the Imprv. of Education

Historic Whaling Partnerships

Magnet Schools

National Writing Project

Parent Information Centers

Reading Is Fundamental

Ready to Teach

Ready to Learn TV

School Leadership

Star Schools

Teaching American History

Technology Innovation Challenge Transition to Teaching

Troops to Teachers

Voluntary Public School Choice

Women's Educational Equity

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NCLB OnLine Resources

No Child Left Behind: A Desktop Reference

No Child Left Behind Act of 2001

www.ed.gov/admins/lead/account/nclbreference/index.html

NCLB OnLine Resources

Religion and Public Schools Guidance

Guidance on Constitutionally Protected Prayer in Public Elementary and Secondary Schools

www.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/religionandschools/prayer_guidance.html

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NCLB OnLine Resources

Access to High School Students and Information on Students Military Recruiters

Policy Guidance - Access to High School Students and Information on Students by Military Recruiters

www.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/fpco/hottopics/ht-10-09-02a.html

Education for Homeless Children and Youth Program

www.ed.gov/programs/homeless/guidance.doc

NCLB OnLine Resources

Title VII-B of the McKinney-Veto Homeless Assistance Act

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NCLB OnLine Resources

PARAPROFESSIONALS

Paraprofessional Guidance

www.ed.gov/policy/elsec/guid/paraguidance.pdf

NCLB OnLine Resources

Title I, Part C

Education of Migratory Children

Education of Migratory Children

www.ed.gov/programs/mep/mepguidance2003.doc

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NCLB Online Resources

Equal Access to Public School Facilities

Title IX, Sec. 9524: Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no public elementary, public secondary school, local educational agency (LEA), state education agency (SEA) that has a designated open forum or a limited public forum and receives funding from the USDOE shall deny equal access or fair opportunity to meet, or discriminate against, any group officially affiliated with the Boy Scouts of America, or any other youth group listed in Title 36 of the United States Code as a patriotic society.

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America's Charter School Corporation, 639 Granite Street, Suite 310, Braintree, Mass. 02184Contact: Lawrence W. O'Toole, 781-849-8420Award amount: $4,950,000

Charter Schools Development Corporation, 1725 K Street, N.W., Suite 700, Washington, D.C. 20006Contact: Michelle Gelsino, 202-739-9579Award amount: $6,400,000

Low Income Housing Fund, 1330 Broadway, Suite 600, Oakland, Calif. 94612-2505Contact: Tom Miller, 510-893-3811Award amount: $3 million

NCB Development Corporation, 1725 Eye Street, N.W., Suite 600, Washington, D.C. 20006Contact: Annie Donovan, 202-336-7677Award amount: $6,400,000

Raza Development Fund, Inc., 111 W. Monroe, Suite 1610, Phoenix, Ariz. 85003Contact: Mark VanBrunt, 602-417-1402Award amount: $4,200,000

Charter School Facility Financing Demonstration/

Credit Enhancement for Charter School Facility

2001 Grant Recipients

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Massachusetts Development Finance Agency, 75 Federal Street, Boston, MA Contact: Todd Rassiger , 617-330-2000 Award amount: $6,000,000

Center for Community Self-Help, 301 West Main Street, Durham, N.C. Contact:  Marc Hunt, 828-253-5251 Award amount: $6,722,500

NCB Development Corporation, 1725 Eye Street, N.W., Washington, DC Contact: Annie Donovan, 202-336-7677 Award amount: $6,000,000

Local Initiatives Support Corporation, 733 Third Avenue, New York, N.Y.Contact: Barbara Page, 212- 455-9884 Award amount: $6,000,000

Charter School Facility Financing Demonstration/

Credit Enhancement for Charter School Facility

2001 Grant Recipients

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•USCharterschools Website www.uscharterschools.org

•Charter Friends National Network www.charterfriends.org

•Center for Education Reform www.edreform.com

•National Association of Charter School Authorizers www.charterauthorizers.org

•Thomas B. Fordham Foundation www.edexcellence.net

•Education Commission of the States www.ecs.org

•Goldwater Institute www.goldwaterinstitute.org

•Mackinac Center for Public Policy www.mackinac.org

•Black Alliance for Educational Options www.baeo.org

•Education Leaders Council www.educationleaders.org

•Nat’l Assoc. of State Directors of Special Education www.nasdse.org

Charter School Resources

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Public Charter Schools and NCLB comments to:

Dean Kern

Director, Charter School Program

Office of Innovation and Improvement

U.S. Department of Education

400 Maryland, SW

3E116

Washington, DC 20202

(202) 260-1882

dean.kern@ed.gov