A Guide For State. Partnerships Between Charter Schools and Other Organizations

Transcription

1 A Guide For State Policymakers Parterships Betwee Charter Schools ad Other Orgaizatios October 2008

2 About the NRC The Natioal Resource Ceter o Charter School Fiace ad Goverace was established i fall 2006 with fudig from the U.S. Departmet of Educatio s Office of Iovatio ad Improvemet (Grat No. U282N060012) uder the Charter Schools Program Natioal Leadership Activities Grat Program. The Natioal Resource Ceter (NRC) develops ad dissemiates tools, iformatio, ad techical assistace to help charter leaders at all levels operators, authorizers ad state policymakers take steps to improve charter school fiace ad goverace. For more iformatio, visit the NRC website at or the Ceter at ifo@charterresource.org. about the parters The NRC is a collaborative effort amog: Ceter o Educatioal Goverace (CEG) at the Uiversity of Souther Califoria a iterdiscipliary research ceter of the Uiversity of Souther Califoria s Rossier School of Educatio that focuses o the likages of policy, educatioal goverace ad the improvemet of school systems. The Fiace Project (TFP) a specialized o-profit research, cosultig, techical assistace ad traiig firm for public ad private sector leaders atiowide that helps leaders make smart ivestmet decisios, develop soud fiacig strategies, ad build solid parterships that beefit childre, families ad commuities. WestEd a o-profit research, developmet, ad service agecy that works with educatio ad other commuities to promote excellece, achieve quality, ad improve learig for childre, youth, ad adults. Priscilla Wohlstetter, Ph.D., Project Director Lori Coors-Tadros, Ph.D., Co-Project Director Joh Flaherty Amy Shustack, Ph.D. Elizabeth A. Butler Rebecca Cohe Guilbert C. Hetschke, Ph.D. Chua Ally Kuzi Michelle B. Nayfack Cecilia Sam Joaa Smith, Ph.D. Jarle Crocker, Ph.D. Jeifer Gager Cheri Hayes Eric Keller Robert LaVallee William Schmid Nichole H. Stewart, Ph.D.

3 A Guide For State Policymakers Preface This report o parterships betwee charter schools ad other orgaizatios is oe i a series of state policy guides o charter school fiace ad goverace created by the Natioal Resource Ceter o Charter School Fiace ad Goverace (NRC). The policy guides were created as a result of research coducted by the NRC betwee Jauary ad August of The charter school laws i 40 states ad the District of Columbia were reviewed to gai a better uderstadig of the policy cotext affectig charter school fiace ad goverace. I additio, approximately 80 iterviews were coducted with admiistrators from charter school offices i state departmets of educatio ad with leaders of state charter school associatios, resource ceters, or techical assistace ceters. The policy guides are iteded to help state policymakers uderstad the charter school fiace ad goverace legislative ad policy ladscape atiowide, the rage of approaches available to states, ad the challeges ad opportuities that states are pursuig to stregthe charter school fiace ad goverace. Each guide begis by idetifyig the challeges posed by the particular fiace or goverace area. Policy optios showcase the rage of strategies curretly udertake i differet states to address these challeges, highlightig specific examples i the legislatio as well as experieces i the field. The NRC does ot advocate oe policy optio over aother; the guides provide the pros ad cos of each optio so states ca decide for themselves what course to take. Fially, additioal resources are idetified i each fiace ad goverace area so policymakers ca lear more about topics of importace to their state. The cotets of this state policy guide do ot ecessarily represet the policy of the Departmet of Educatio ad you should ot assume edorsemet by the Federal govermet. Parterships Betwee Charter Schools ad Other Orgaizatios 1

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5 A Guide For State Policymakers Parterships Betwee Charter Schools ad Other Orgaizatios Summary This state policy guide looks at parterships betwee charter schools ad commuity, faith-based, ad for-profit orgaizatios as oe way for these schools to access essetial goods ad services. Each type of partership poses specific challeges ad opportuities, ad, based o a review of charter school legislatio ad iterviews with state charter school admiistrators, the guide explores ways i which state laws ad policies address partership developmet. Commuity ivolvemet is icluded as oe itetio of the charter school law i 13 states. Fiftee states require evidece of commuity ivolvemet or support i the charter school applicatio, ad 5 states ecourage commuity ivolvemet o the charter school board. State laws ad policies are more restrictive aroud parterships betwee charter schools ad faith-based orgaizatios: 15 states prohibit faith-based orgaizatios from applyig to ope a charter school, 26 states iclude broad restrictios agaist the ivolvemet of faith-based orgaizatios with charter schools, ad 3 states allow parterships with faith-based orgaizatios solely for facility use. For-profit ivolvemet is restricted i some cases ad allowed i others: Laws i 16 states prohibit for-profit orgaizatios from applyig to ope a charter school; i two states, charter schools must report ay ivolvemet with for-profit etities. Thirtee states allow parterships with for-profit orgaizatios for facilities, 17 states allow parterships for services, ad three states allow A partership is defied for-profit orgaizatios to apply to ope a charter school. as orgaizatios workig The guide outlies the pros ad cos of each policy optio with illustrative together to solve issues of examples from existig state law ad practice. It raises issues that state policymakers mutual cocer based o may wat to cosider related to charter school parterships ad aims to help them the beefits of collective idetify approaches to parterships that best meet the eeds of charter schools i actio, addressig eeds their states. ad problems that are beyod the capacity of either orgaizatio to resolve aloe. Parterships Betwee Charter Schools ad Other Orgaizatios 3

6 A Guide For State Policymakers Itroductio Ulike traditioal public schools, which deped o district cetral offices for resources such as fudig, persoel, facilities, admiistrative support, ad curriculum ad istructio, charter schools must idetify their ow sources for these essetial goods ad services. The eed to amass resources o their ow poses a sigificat challege for charter schools, especially ewly established, stad-aloe charter schools. For the more tha 15 years that charter schools have existed, charter operators cosistetly report operatioal difficulties exacerbated by isufficiet fiacial resources, limited expertise, ad iadequate facilities. Studies have show that most charter school failures occur for oacademic reasos; goverace ad fiace cotiue to be the two primary roadblocks to creatig ad sustaiig successful charter schools. 1 Sice charter schools caot look up to districts for assistace ad support, they ofte have to look out to other orgaizatios for the fiacial, huma, political, ad orgaizatioal resources they eed to survive ad thrive (see Resources Parterships Provide). These operatioal challeges create icetives for charter schools to form parterships with outside orgaizatios. Typically described as a wi-wi situatio, a partership is defied as orgaizatios workig together to solve issues of mutual cocer based o the beefits of collective actio, addressig eeds ad problems that are beyod the capacity of either orgaizatio to resolve aloe. Exemptios from may district ad state regulatios eable charter schools to seek parterships more readily tha traditioal public schools, ad laws i may states ecourage such outside ivolvemet. Well-costructed parterships ca provide eeded resources, such as facilities, fudig, admiistrative support, ad curriculum ad istructio, as well as less tagible beefits, such as icreased visibility, goverace expertise, ad help i gettig charter school applicatios approved. I some cases, members of parter orgaizatios participate o charter school boards. I other cases, the orgaizatios provide or supplemet the curriculum that forms the focus of the school. I still other cases, parterships with social services providers offer wrap-aroud resources that help meet the eeds of the school s studets ad their families. At the same time, parterships with charter schools ca help the parter orgaizatios achieve their ow goals. Ofte, parter orgaizatios are able to expad the services they provide by parterig with a charter school. For example, museums geerally have educatio outreach fuctios, i additio to their core missio, ad parterig with a charter school provides a meas to itegrate the museum s programs ito a school s curriculum rather tha beig limited to the peripheral curricular supplemets provided to traditioal public schools i Resources Parterships Provide Parterships ca provide a host of fiacial, huma, political, ad orgaizatioal resources: Fiacial resources iclude grats, loas, gifts, i-kid resources, ad fudraisig expertise. Huma resources iclude board expertise, back-office support, ad tutors ad metors for the school s studets. Political resources iclude credibility to secure a loa, ame recogitio to attract studets, ad legitimacy to aid i charter school applicatio approval. Orgaizatioal resources iclude facilities, curriculum, materials, ad supplies. For more iformatio o the resources that parterships ca provide charter schools, see Priscilla Wohlstetter et al., Improvig Service Delivery i Educatio: The Role of Cross-Sectoral Alliaces, Social Sciece Quarterly 85 (2004): See Todd Ziebarth et al., The Charter Schools Ladscape i 2005, i Hopes, Fears, ad Reality, ed. Robi J. Lake ad Paul T. Hill (Seattle.: Uiversity of Washigto, 2005): Parterships Betwee Charter Schools ad Other Orgaizatios

7 Commo Charter School Parters Sector Types of Orgaizatios Noprofit For-profit Public Commuity-based orgaizatios (recreatioal ceters, eighborhood outreach agecies) Cultural istitutios (museums, local performace groups) Educatioal istitutios (private colleges, uiversities) Faith-based orgaizatios (churches) Noprofit charter maagemet orgaizatios (CMOs) Race ad/or ethicity-based orgaizatios Social services providers (child ad family welfare agecies) Private foudatios Educatio maagemet orgaizatios (EMOs) Local busiesses Cultural istitutios (art museums, sciece museums) Educatioal istitutios (school districts, commuity colleges, uiversities) Public health providers (hospitals) Govermet (city offices, mayor s offices) Police departmets Source: Ceter o Educatioal Goverace, Charter School Laws ad Parterships: Expadig Opportuities ad Resources (Dever.: Educatio Commissio of the States, 2004). a oce-a-year field trip. As oe iterviewee described, Oe charter school we have is located o the site of the Rochester Museum of Sciece. So the school has access to all of the programs, services, ad staff at the museum, which has really bee a absolutely woderful kid of partership.... Ad a museum represetative [sits] o the school s board of trustees. Charter schools have formed parterships with a rage of oprofit, for-profit, ad public orgaizatios (see Commo Charter School Parters). With the potetial beefits of parterships i mid, charter school laws i may states facilitate, or sometimes require, parterships with outside orgaizatios. Commuity ivolvemet is ofte ecouraged before a charter school eve opes, with some states requirig evidece of commuity support i the applicatio stage. I cotrast, may charter school laws prohibit or limit certai types of orgaizatios from servig as parters, most otably faith-based orgaizatios ad for-profit orgaizatios. The Bush admiistratio has bee fairly proactive i brigig resources from faithbased orgaizatios ito the public sector, sigifyig greater acceptace of ivolvemet from these orgaizatios. At the same time, for-profit orgaizatios, while ofte prohibited from establishig charter schools, ofte work with charter schools i some capacity. Educatio Maagemet Orgaizatios (EMOs), for example, provide services ragig from curriculum ad istructioal packages to whole school maagemet. This guide explores the ways that states have addressed parterships betwee charter schools ad other orgaizatios. It looks specifically at state laws ad policies that facilitate ad/or restrict parterships with commuity orgaizatios, faith-based orgaizatios, ad for-profit orgaizatios. Data come from a review of the charter school laws i each state ad the District of Columbia a total of 41 as of Jauary 2007 as well as iterviews coducted i each state with charter schools to idetify the commo challeges ad opportuities shared by the charter commuity atiowide. Nearly 80 iterviews were coducted with admiistrators from state departmet of educatio charter school offices ad with leaders of state charter school associatios, resource ceters, or techical assistace ceters. The guide is iteded to assist state policymakers i idetifyig approaches to parterships that best meet their state s goals ad their schools eeds. Parterships Betwee Charter Schools ad Other Orgaizatios 5

8 A Guide For State Policymakers Parterships with Commuity Orgaizatios Charter schools ofte seek parterships with commuity orgaizatios such as YMCAs. States have pursued several policy optios to facilitate this type of partership. The Challege: Accessig Resources from Commuity Orgaizatios Commuity ivolvemet i public educatio ca provide umerous resources, from retirees willig to tutor ad metor studets to social services providers offerig itegrated service delivery to at-risk youth to board membership ad advocacy (see Commuity Ivolvemet i the Hardig Charter Preparatory High School). However, despite the kow beefits of commuity ivolvemet, oly a little more tha half of state charter school laws (=23) curretly iclude provisios that explicitly ecourage or require commuity ivolvemet (see Table 1). This rages from Hawaii s requiremet that a school s goverig board iclude a member of the commuity to Delaware s requiremet that certified teachers, parets ad members of the commuity i which the school is to be located must be ivolved i the developmet of the proposed charter school (Sectio 512(1)). Some charter schools i states without laws requirig them to do so take the iitiative to parter with commuity orgaizatios. I other cases, commuity orgaizatios have bee proactive i establishig charter schools as a outgrowth of their orgaizatio, thus creatig a atural partership. Noetheless, may idividual charter schools do ot have the tools or capacity to seek parterships o their ow. What States Ca Do There are three commo policy optios states are usig to ecourage commuity ivolvemet with charter schools, discussed i the followig sectios: Iclude commuity ivolvemet as oe itetio of the charter school law; Require commuity ivolvemet or support i the charter school applicatio; ad Ecourage commuity ivolvemet o the charter school board. Commuity Ivolvemet i the Hardig Charter Preparatory High School A iterviewee described the strog commuity ivolvemet i the Hardig Charter Preparatory High School, which grew out of the school s stadig i the commuity prior to it becomig a charter school: I years past, before court-ordered busig hit Oklahoma City i 1970, [Hardig] was a [grades] 7 through 12 school.... [It] had the reputatio as beig the best high school, private or public, i Oklahoma City. Ad, admittedly, it had a majority white populatio. Ad it was ot i the ier city at that time. It was right i the middle of a historic part of Oklahoma City. With court-ordered busig, white flight was rapid [ad] very proouced.... Ad the area uderwet decay, ad the high school was shut dow ad became a middle school.... The school was missig AYP requiremets [ad] had a lot of behavior problems.... [S]o the district closed it dow ad moved the kids to other locatios. The alumi from the high school years were... very distressed over what was happeig i what they called our school. Whe the college-prep charter high school opeed, a very strogly orgaized alumi associatio came i to support the school because [the members] said, You guys thik you re ew ad facy, but you re doig exactly what we did, back i the begiig, i the 30s, ad o up through the 70s. Ad so we have two members of [the alumi associatio] board o [the charter school s] board. They have bee very helpful, both with busiess coectios i Oklahoma City ad goverace of the school. [The alumi have a] big vested iterest i the success of the school. The rest of [our] board is made up of parets of studets i the school.... It works just great. 6 Parterships Betwee Charter Schools ad Other Orgaizatios

9 Policy Optio: Iclude Commuity Ivolvemet as Oe Itetio of the Charter School Law State charter school laws geerally iclude a ratioale for adoptio of the law. This laguage costitutes a specific message from legislators ad guides implemetatio of the law. The ratioale sectio of charter school laws commoly icludes metio of providig parets with additioal school choice or providig laboratories of iovatio to test ew curricular methods ad ideas. I 13 states, commuity ivolvemet also is icluded as oe itetio of the law. For example: I New York, the charter school law states: The purpose of this article is to authorize a system of charter schools to provide opportuities for teachers, parets, ad commuity members to establish ad maitai schools that operate idepedetly from the existig school district structure (Sectio 2850). I Idiaa, the law specifies: A charter school may be established uder this article to provide iovative ad autoomous programs that do the followig:... (5) Provide parets, studets, commuity members, ad local etities with a expaded opportuity for ivolvemet i the public school system (Sectio ). The Orego law icludes a provisio statig that the establishmet of charter schools is iteded to provide a legitimate aveue for parets, educators ad commuity members to take resposible risks to create ew, iovative ad more flexible ways of educatig childre withi the public school system.... The goals of public charter schools shall be to:... (4) Build stroger workig relatioships amog educators, parets ad other commuity members (Sectio ). Policy Optio: Require Commuity Ivolvemet or Support i the Charter School Applicatio Curretly, charter school laws i 15 states require evidece of commuity ivolvemet or support i the charter school applicatio, with some laws stressig that this support must be available o a ogoig basis, ot just durig the school s establishmet. For example: The Arkasas law specifies: The State Board of Educatio shall review the petitio for charter school status ad may approve ay petitio that:... (3) Icludes a proposal to directly ad substatially ivolve the parets of studets to be erolled i the charter school, as well as the certified employees ad the broader commuity, i the process of carryig out the terms of the charter (Sectio ). The District of Columbia ad Pesylvaia laws require, respectively: a descriptio of how parets, teachers, ad other members of the commuity have bee ivolved i the desig ad will cotiue to be ivolved i the implemetatio of the proposed school (Sectio (14)) ad demostrated, sustaiable support for the charter school pla by teachers, parets, other commuity members ad studets (Sectio A(2)(i)). The Kasas law states: The charter [school applicatio] must cotai the followig key elemets:... (2) a descriptio of the level of iterest ad support o the part of school district employees, parets, ad the commuity (Sectio (c)). These laws are put ito practice, i may cases, by groups hopig to establish a charter school approachig a commuity orgaizatio to help with the applicatio process. For example, as oe iterviewee explaied, What happes i may, may cases is you ll have a group of parets ad commuity folks who wat to start a charter school, but they do t have stadig as a eligible There s a school that etity uder the law. So has parterships with what they ll do is they ll basically everyoe i approach a oprofit the commuity: local orgaizatio whose theaters, local doctors missio is cosistet offices, local oprofits with the type of school where the studets do they wat to establish, iterships. ad that oprofit orgaizatio will agree Parterships Betwee Charter Schools ad Other Orgaizatios 7

10 A Guide For State Policymakers Beefits of Commuity Ivolvemet Iterviewees reported various beefits of commuity ivolvemet: Existig service providers that are locally coected to the commuity have a easier time havig some credibility with that local commuity. Ad, therefore, if they parter with a charter school, [the school] has a easier time gaiig credibility with the authorizers. A lot of the charter schools i the state have parterships with local groups.... Some of them get buildigs from local orgaizatios; they re located i a church, i a art buildig, or i some type of commuity buildig ad they parter with that orgaizatio. [For example], oe [charter school] is located i a YMCA, ad [it has] a partership with the YMCA. Several foudatios have put thousads of dollars together to create a coalitio of techical assistace for charter schools. Oe beefit is that the oprofit or the commuity-based orgaizatio ows space that you ca lease. Aother huge beefit is that they have expertise i gettig grats or ca help ru the charter school s back office or provide tutors. May [charter schools] have... a istitutioal parter. It may be somethig fairly formalized, such as a relatioship with the Boys & Girls Club to provide after-school activities. We have a couple of charter schools that really have ivested i parterships with their commuity. [Oe] parters with commuity orgaizatios to rebuild homes ad buildigs i the urba area that eed rebuildig. The Iteratioal School was established by the Iteratioal Istitute of Rhode Islad, which is a oprofit that provides multiple services to [the state s] immigrat groups.... As a extesio of [the orgaizatio s] programs to provide educatioal opportuities to the childre of the adults receivig services, the istitute applied for ad received a charter to ru Iteratioal Charter School. to sposor the applicatio. Some oprofit orgaizatios get directly ivolved i a school. Some just serve as that sposorig etity, with represetatio o the board of the school but miimal ivolvemet i the actual operatio of the school. Aother iterviewee observed that charter schools i their state ofte approach commuity parters oce the school is operatioal, sayig, May of our charter schools are very etrepreeurial i eterig ito partership agreemets with a lot of commuity service orgaizatios as a way of brigig people from the commuity ito the school. Aother iterviewee reported, There s a school that has parterships with basically everyoe i the commuity: local theaters, local doctors offices, local oprofits where the studets do iterships. Commuity ivolvemet goes a step further i cases i which oprofit commuity orgaizatios establish charter schools. For example, oe iterviewee oted, There is ecouragemet [i the state] for charter schools to have relatioships with commuity orgaizatios, ad several of our schools have started out of a existig oprofit that wated to expad to actually provide a school. I aother case, a iterviewee reported that some of the logtime service providers for some of the miority populatios i [the state] that have bee doig more of the before-school ad after-school wraparoud [care] ad providig services to the families of these studets... are becomig established eough, i terms of their oprofit goverace structure ad their ability to... ru a busiess, that they re startig to... realize that their ext area of developmet is a school. They ve already got good parterships with local districts... ad the beefits are that some of the 8 Parterships Betwee Charter Schools ad Other Orgaizatios

11 populatios that are beig served are traditioally the studets who are t scorig as well i terms of the stadards ad the assessmets (see Beefits of Commuity Ivolvemet). Policy Optio: Ecourage Commuity Ivolvemet o the Charter School Board Five states ecourage commuity ivolvemet through sittig o the charter school board. For example: I Virgiia, the charter school law specifies: A public charter school shall be admiistered ad maaged by a maagemet committee, composed of parets of studets erolled i the school, teachers ad admiistrators workig i the school, ad represetatives of ay commuity sposors (Sectio (B)). I the District of Columbia, the law requires charter school boards to have a odd umber of members that does ot exceed 7 out of which a majority shall be residets of the District of Columbia (Sectio ). I South Carolia, the charter school applicatio must iclude the ature ad extet of paretal, professioal educator, ad commuity ivolvemet i the goverace ad operatio of the charter school ( (F)(7)). I some cases, this type of commuity ivolvemet occurs without the law prescribig it. For example, oe iterviewee described a school i Georgia with a goverig board composed of a variety of stakeholder groups, icludig a couple of parets, a accoutat, a lawyer, a real estate perso, a local busiess executive, ad local activists. But what makes [the school] uique is that [it has] partered with the Cousis Foudatio. Tom Cousis is oe of the biggest real estate developers here i tow, he has a foudatio set up for charitable purposes, ad he built a buildig for the school back i 98 as part of a large eighborhood revitalizatio project that icluded buildig the charter school, puttig i a YMCA, buildig mixed-icome housig that was to replace public housig that had bee there for 30 years, ad buildig a grocery store across the street from the charter school to serve a eighborhood that had t had a grocery story withi 25 miles for the past 15 years. Ad so there s a awful lot of atioal attetio paid to Drew Charter School as a model of how a charter school ca be a small piece of a larger eighborhood revitalizatio. I aother case, a iterviewee oted, We have some very ivolved commuity members. I oe case, the board chair of the Italia Cultural Ceter i Kasas City sits o the board of a local charter school... ad they draw from the people that he kows i that cultural commuity to get ivolved at the school. Aother iterviewee metioed a charter school for the arts i the state that has a partership with the Toledo Symphoy ad the Toledo Museum of Art. Their 19-member board has commuity members, busiesspeople, ad leaders from dace ad the arts. It s just a great commuity partership. Weighig the Optios Charter schools that parter with commuity orgaizatios receive a rage of resources, as do the orgaizatios that parter with the schools. However, there are time, huma resource, ad fiacial costs to creatig ad sustaiig meaigful parterships. The idea of requirig charter schools to parter with a outside orgaizatio ca seem atithetical to the very otio of autoomy that drives the creatio of charter schools, eve if the additio of a well-respected commuity parter with a history of high-quality service provisio eases a school s struggle to survive. States address the issue of commuity ivolvemet differetly; several cosideratios ca guide decisio-makig i this area: The itetio of a law does little to guaratee that policy will traslate ito practice. Charter schools have ofte bee held up as lighthouses of iovatio for the public educatio system, but little evidece exists to suggest that ideas tested i charter schools have spread to traditioal public schools. Similarly, simply icludig commuity ivolvemet as a itetio of the law may ot create sufficiet icetive for charter schools to seek commuity parters. Requirig commuity ivolvemet or support i the charter applicatio ca provide some assurace to a authorizer that the school has broad appeal. Parterships Betwee Charter Schools ad Other Orgaizatios 9

12 A Guide For State Policymakers As the most commo type of authorizer, school districts may be wary of approvig a charter school without evidece that the school has the political support to survive. Moreover, commuity parters ca help covice a authorizer that the school ca brig i the fiacial ad other resources it eeds to survive. Ecouragig commuity ivolvemet o the charter school board helps esure broad participatio i school decisio-makig. Yet attaiig this level of commitmet from commuity members may be urealistic for some schools. State Optios Pros Cos Iclude commuity ivolvemet as oe itetio of the charter school law Require commuity ivolvemet or support i the charter school applicatio Ecourage commuity ivolvemet o the charter school board Gets charter fouders thikig about ways to ivolve commuity members from the time the idea of establishig a school is hatched. Provides some assurace to the authorizer that the school has broad appeal. Commuity orgaizatios ofte have expertise they ca share i terms of settig up structures ad processes for ruig a oprofit orgaizatio. Ecourages a greater variety of stakeholders to help prevet arrow iterests from makig policy decisios. Fails to esure that charter schools will seek parterships with commuity orgaizatios, ad thus access much-eeded resources. Some fouders may ot have the local coectios required to show such support. Does ot guaratee that support will be sustaied oce the school is operatioal. Some schools may fid it difficult to fid commuity members who are willig to commit the time eeded to serve o the board. 10 Parterships Betwee Charter Schools ad Other Orgaizatios

13 Table 1: How State Laws Address Commuity Ivolvemet Alaska Arizoa Iclude commuity ivolvemet as oe itetio of the charter school law Require commuity ivolvemet or support i the charter school applicatio Arkasas Califoria Colorado Coecticut Delaware District of Columbia Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illiois Idiaa Iowa Kasas Louisiaa Marylad Massachusetts + Michiga Miesota Mississippi Missouri Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey Ecourage commuity ivolvemet o the charter school board New Mexico New York North Carolia Ohio Oklahoma Orego Pesylvaia Rhode Islad South Carolia Teessee Texas Utah Virgiia * * Wiscosi Wyomig No relevat provisios * Virgiia s law specifies that support durig the applicatio phase ad ivolvemet o the board is oly required if the school is sposored by a oprofit orgaizatio. + Massachusetts law does ot require commuity ivolvemet i charter school applicatios, but it gives approval priority to schools that have demostrated broad commuity support (Sectio 89(i)). Parterships Betwee Charter Schools ad Other Orgaizatios 11

14 A Guide For State Policymakers Parterships with Faith- Based Orgaizatios I cotrast to requirig charter schools to parter with commuity orgaizatios, or facilitatig such parterships, may state laws restrict or prohibit parterig with faith-based orgaizatios. Notwithstadig the difficulties, however, some states still see the beefits of such parterships (see Beefits ad Challeges of Parterships with Faith-Based Orgaizatios). States have pursued several policy optios to regulate the ivolvemet of these orgaizatios. The Challege: Fidig the Appropriate Role for Faith-Based Orgaizatios Separatio of church ad state is a fudametal priciple of public policy i this atio. Without erodig that priciple, parterig with a religious istitutio to secure facility space is a commo way charter schools alleviate the high costs of retig, reovatig, or purchasig their ow facilities. Faith-based orgaizatios geerally use their buildigs o weekeds ad eveigs, creatig a perfect match for charter schools that eed facility space durig weekdays. I states with laws restrictig charter school ivolvemet of ay kid with faith-based orgaizatios, charter schools ofte are forced to sped a high proportio of their operatig budgets o facilities or to make do i iadequate facilities. States have respoded differetly to charter schools eed to amass resources, while maitaiig the separatio of church ad state. Although 11 out of 41 state charter school laws are silet o the issue, others provide broad restrictios o the ivolvemet of faithbased orgaizatios without specifyig whether certai types of parterships are permitted. A few laws are very Beefits ad Challeges of Parterships with Faith-Based Orgaizatios Iterviewees oted a rage of beefits ad challeges of parterships with faith-based orgaizatios: Beefit: [I oe case], the church itself wated to ope [a charter school] ad the school district wet to the [the church] ad said, You kow, let s work o this together. This ca be a wi-wi situatio. We ca provide the trasportatio, the food, ad the teachers. We eed to do more for our at-risk studets... but we do t have the extra facility, you have the facility. So they came together ad submitted a applicatio for a coversio charter. The church is providig the facility ad all the utilities; the public school district is providig the teachers, the food service, studet trasportatio, ad all of that. Challege: We have see schools that have closed because the church that was providig the facility was too much i bed with the board. Ad i oe case a couple years ago, the authorizer pulled the plug ad said, No, this church is chargig you exorbitat ret ad the board is ot beig resposible ad is allowig that to happe. Beefit: If you cotract with a Catholic diocese for busiess fuctios, ad that s a osectaria fuctio of that diocese, that s fie. I mea, that does t bother me, because whoever provides the best service should get the job, so log as it does t broach ay costitutioal issues or aythig like that. Challege: There s a eed to esure that there is t a overwhelmig presece of the church, or of aother orgaizatio that s parterig with the school, o the board. So [board members] have to make sure they re recruitig from various places ad they re ot just focusig o tryig to advace the missio of the church. Beefit: Private colleges ad uiversities i [the state] ca sposor charter schools. I do t thik it s really bee a issue to this poit, ad I do t see it becomig a huge issue. I mea, for example, I have o problem with a Baptist Uiversity sposorig a charter school. Challege: Charter schools are ot restricted from utilizig [a faith-based orgaizatio s] resources or facilities, but I fid that the church s expectatios are that [it is] goig to develop the resources ad facilities for [its] ow beefit for the beefit of a particular group of studets rather tha for the beefit of the etire local school system. 12 Parterships Betwee Charter Schools ad Other Orgaizatios

15 explicit about the roles that faith-based orgaizatios ca ad caot play (see Table 2). What States Ca Do There are three commo policy optios states are usig to regulate the ivolvemet of faith-based orgaizatios with charter schools, discussed i the followig sectios: Prohibit faith-based orgaizatios from establishig charter schools; Prohibit charter school ivolvemet with faithbased orgaizatios; ad Allow parterships with faith-based orgaizatios for facilities. Policy Optio: Prohibit Faith- Based Orgaizatios from Establishig Charter Schools Fiftee states prohibit faith-based orgaizatios from applyig to ope a charter school. I may cases, this restrictio specifically applies to private schools ru by faith-based orgaizatios, prohibitig them from covertig to charter status. I some cases, the law leaves ope the possibility of a charter school parterig with a faith-based orgaizatio for services, facilities, or huma resources, while may of the states that iclude these restrictios have additioal prohibitios o faithbased ivolvemet with charter schools. For example: I Idaho, the law states: No charter shall be approved uder this chapter: (a) Which provides for the coversio of ay existig private or parochial school to a public charter school (Sectio (4)) ad also specifies a public charter school shall be osectaria i its programs, affiliatios, admissio policies, employmet practices, ad all other operatios; shall ot charge tuitio, levy taxes or issue bods; ad shall ot discrimiate agaist ay studet o ay basis prohibited by the federal or state costitutios or ay federal, state or local law (Sectio (1)). The New Jersey charter school legislatio, i cotrast, cotais oly oe provisio related to the ivolvemet of faith-based orgaizatios: A private or parochial school shall ot be eligible for charter school status (Sectio 18A:36A-4). Marylad s law states, A applicatio to establish a public charter school may be submitted to a couty board by: (iii) A osectaria oprofit etity; (iv) A osectaria istitutio of higher educatio i the State.... A public charterig authority may ot grat a charter uder this title to: (i) A private school; (ii) A parochial school; or (iii) A home school (Sectio 9-104). Policy Optio: Prohibit Charter School Ivolvemet with Faith-Based Orgaizatios Curretly, 26 states iclude broad restrictios i their state charter school laws agaist the ivolvemet of faith-based orgaizatios. The laguage teds to take oe of two forms. Either the provisio says, A charter school shall be osectaria (e.g., New Mexico ad Orego) or the law specifies that a charter school must be osectaria i its educatioal program, admissios policies, employmet policies, ad operatios (e.g., Florida ad Virgiia). See Laguage i State Charter School Laws to Limit Faith-Based Ivolvemet for more o this. Although these provisios restrictig the ivolvemet of faith-based orgaizatios serve to maitai the separatio of church ad state, the vague laguage creates room for some ambiguity about what is ad is ot allowed. For example, if a charter school is prohibited from beig sectaria, the law may leave ope the possibility of parterig with a faith-based orgaizatio for facility space, oe-o-oe tutors, or back-office tasks. Similarly, prohibitig the ivolvemet of faithbased orgaizatio i educatioal programs, admissios policies, employmet policies, ad operatios may ot ecessarily prevet ivolvemet i other areas, such as fudraisig or publicity. The ospecific ature of these provisios leaves it up to authorizig agecies, or the state departmet of educatio, to iterpret the itet of the law. For example, i the District of Columbia, seve formerly private Catholic schools coverted to charter status i 2007, despite a provisio requirig charter schools to be osectaria i educatioal program, admissios policies, employmet policies, ad operatios. (Sectio ). The schools will remai housed i parish buildigs ad will ot iclude religious educatio but will Parterships Betwee Charter Schools ad Other Orgaizatios 13

16 A Guide For State Policymakers emphasize 13 values cosistet with Catholic teachigs, accordig to a article i The Washigto Times. 2 Five of the 26 states with these provisios make their restrictios o parterships with faith-based orgaizatios more explicit, specifyig that charter schools are ot allowed to have ay affiliatio with these orgaizatios. For example: Louisiaa s law states: A charter school shall ot: (1) Be supported by or affiliated with ay religio or religious orgaizatio or istitutio (Sectio 17:3991). The Massachusetts law specifies: If the charter school iteds to procure substatially all educatioal services uder cotract with aother perso, the terms of such a cotract must be approved by the board either as part of the origial charter or by way of a amedmet thereto; provided, further that the board shall ot approve ay such cotract terms, the purpose or effect of which is to avoid the prohibitio of this sectio agaist charter school status for private ad parochial schools (Sectio 89(j)(5)). These prohibitios would seem to preclude parterships. However, i North Carolia s law, which states that a charter school shall ot be affiliated with a opublic sectaria school or a religious istitutio (Sectio 115C F(b)), allowace is made for a charter school to lease a facility from a faith-based orgaizatio (see below). Policy Optio: Allow Parterships with Faith-Based Orgaizatios for Facilities Aother optio that three states, Delaware, Miesota, ad North Carolia, use is to be explicit i allowig parterships with faith-based orgaizatios specifically for facilities ad, i Delaware s cases, services. For example: Laguage i State Charter School Laws to Limit Faith-Based Ivolvemet Coecticut: The Commissioer of Educatio may at ay time place a charter school o probatio if (1) the school has failed to... (D) maitai its osectaria status (Sectio 10-66bb(h)). Michiga: A public school academy shall ot be orgaized by a church or other religious orgaizatio ad shall ot have ay orgaizatioal or cotractual affiliatio with... a church or other religious orgaizatio (Sectio (1)). Orego: Upo receipt from a citize of Orego of a complait that o its face is colorable that a school district or public charter school sposors, fiacially supports or is actively ivolved with religious activity, the Superitedet of Public Istructio or the superitedet s desigated represetative shall udertake promptly a prelimiary ivestigatio of the facts alleged i the complait (Sectio (1)). Pesylvaia: A charter school shall ot provide ay religious istructio, or shall it display religious objects ad symbols o the premises of the charter school (Sectio A(5)). Teessee: Sposor meas ay idividual, group, or other orgaizatio filig a applicatio i support of the establishmet of a public charter school, provided, however, that a sposor caot be a for-profit etity, a private school, a religious or church school, or promote the ageda of ay religious deomiatio or religiously affiliated etity (Sectio (7)). 2 Arlo Wager, 7 Catholic Schools Become Charter, The Washigto Times, November 6, Parterships Betwee Charter Schools ad Other Orgaizatios

17 I Delaware, the law states: A charter school may... cotract with a sectaria or religious college or uiversity icorporated i the State ad operatig a program or programs for teacher educatio withi the State empowered to eter ito cotracts for such property ad services, so log as the property cotracted for is used i a oreligious ad osectaria maer ad the services cotracted for are provided i a oreligious ad osectaria maer ad are of a oreligious ad osectaria type (Sectio 504A(6)). I Miesota, the law states: If the school is uable to lease appropriate space from public or private osectaria orgaizatios, the school may lease space from a sectaria orgaizatio if the leased space is costructed as a school facility ad the Departmet of Educatio, i cosultatio with the Departmet of Admiistratio, approves the lease (Sectio 124D.10(17)). I North Carolia, the law states: If a charter school leases space from a sectaria orgaizatio, the charter school classes ad studets shall be physically separated from ay parochial studets, ad there shall be o religious artifacts, symbols, icoography, or materials o display i the charter school s etrace, classrooms, or hallways. Furthermore, if a charter school leases space from a sectaria orgaizatio, the charter school shall ot use the ame of that orgaizatio i the ame of the charter school (Sectio 115C E(e)). Weighig the Optios Faith-based orgaizatios are ofte able to offer charter schools essetial resources, particularly facility space that typically is uderused durig school hours ad geerally coforms to code without eed of sigificat reovatio. Some states have carefully crafted provisios to allow for limited parterships betwee charter schools ad faith-based orgaizatios, while maitaiig the separatio of church ad state. Several cosideratios ca guide state decisiomakig o such parterships ad the ivolvemet of faith-based orgaizatios. Although 15 states prohibit faith-based orgaizatios from applyig to start charter schools, this provisio does ot prevet parterships betwee faith-based orgaizatios ad charter schools. I may cases, a faith-based orgaizatio ca provide essetial goods ad services, such as facility space or tutors ad metors for the school s studets, while adherig to the priciple of separatio of church ad state. Prohibitig parterships with faith-based orgaizatios, while maitaiig the separatio of church ad state, reduces the resources that might otherwise be available to charter schools, which ofte struggle to survive o their ow. Allowig parterships specifically for facilities places a clear limit o faith-based orgaizatios ivolvemet. Yet, without oversight by authorizers or the state, this ivolvemet may drift ito other areas, icludig goverace, curriculum, ad school missio. Also, without a sufficiet public iformatio campaig, a charter school that is housed i the facility of a faith-based orgaizatio may deter some studets ot associated with that religio from erollig eve if the partership does ot cross ito other areas of the school s operatio. Parterships Betwee Charter Schools ad Other Orgaizatios 15

18 A Guide For State Policymakers State Optios Pros Cos Prohibit faithbased orgaizatios from establishig charter schools Prohibit ivolvemet with faith-based orgaizatios Allow parterships with faith-based orgaizatios for facilities Maitais the osectaria ature of the school. Does ot preclude parterships for facilities, tutors, or other resources. Maitais the osectaria ature of the school. Reduces public distrust of charter schools. Helps resource-strapped charter schools devote their full operatig budget to curriculum ad istructio. Takes advatage of the fact that faith-based orgaizatios ted to have facilities that are uderutilized durig school hours. Reduces the supply of potetial operators with educatio backgroud ad expertise. Reduces resources otherwise available to help charter schools survive. Blurs the separatio of church ad state. May discourage some studets from erollig i the charter school. May ecourage a faith-based orgaizatio to believe it is etitled to have a say i policy, curricular, or goverace matters. 16 Parterships Betwee Charter Schools ad Other Orgaizatios

19 Table 2: How State Laws Address Parterships with Faith-Based Orgaizatios Prohibit faith-based orgaizatios from establishig charter schools Prohibit ivolvemet with faith-based orgaizatios Allow parterships with faith-based orgaizatios for facilities No relevat provisios Alaska Arizoa Arkasas Califoria Colorado Coecticut Delaware District of Columbia Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illiois Idiaa Iowa Kasas Louisiaa Marylad Massachusetts Michiga Miesota Mississippi Missouri Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolia Ohio Oklahoma Orego Pesylvaia Rhode Islad South Carolia Teessee Texas Utah Virgiia Wiscosi Wyomig Parterships Betwee Charter Schools ad Other Orgaizatios 17

20 A Guide For State Policymakers Parterships with For-Profit Orgaizatios States vary i the extet to which they allow for-profit ivolvemet i charter schools. Some states restrict for-profit orgaizatios from opeig or ruig charter schools, while others give for-profit orgaizatios broad access to charter schools. Still other states are silet o the issue (see Table 3). I a few states, icludig Coecticut, Delaware, Florida, Massachusetts, ad New Hampshire, the charter school law ecourages the creatio of charter schools liked to places of work (see Workplace Charters as a Way to Attract Resources ad Families). The Challege: Guidig For-Profit Ivolvemet with Charter Schools For-profit busiesses provide a host of essetial services to traditioal public schools, icludig textbooks, test preparatio services, food services, ad jaitorial services. Charter schools eed these same resources to effectively serve their studets, ad they ofte look to for-profit parters differet from vedors or cotractors that have a geuie iterest i seeig the school succeed. Parters ofte provide these eeded goods ad services at a lower cost tha district cotractors, or sometimes they provide them for free (see Resources Offered by For-Profit Parters). Workplace Charters as a Way to Attract Resources ad Families Istead of the ope-erollmet policies foud i other charter schools, i workplace charter schools erollmet preferece is geerally give to the childre of employees. The Florida charter school law, which requires workplace charters to adhere to desegregatio requiremets, specifies: (a) I order to icrease busiess parterships i educatio, to reduce school ad classroom overcrowdig throughout the state, ad to offset the high costs for educatioal facilities costructio, the Legislature iteds to ecourage the formatio of busiess partership schools or satellite learig ceters ad muicipal-operated schools through charter school status. (b) A charter school-i-the-workplace may be established whe a busiess parter provides the school facility to be used; erolls studets based upo a radom lottery that ivolves all of the childre of employees of that busiess or corporatio who are seekig erollmet, as provided for i subsectio (10); ad erolls studets accordig to the racial/ethic balace provisios described i subparagraph (7)(a)8 (Sectio ). The idea is ot a ew oe, but rather a extesio of the o-site child care or preschool program offered i some workplaces. However, charter schools attached to workplaces have the dual beefit of havig the studets i the same locatio as their parets ad of providig a ready-made force of voluteers. Oe workplace charter school i Florida, The Villages Charter Elemetary School, opeed i 2000 ad serves studets i kidergarte through grade 12 o three campuses. It serves childre of employees at the Villages Retiremet Commuity ad childre of employees of surroudig busiesses. The JFK Medical Ceter Charter School opeed i It serves studets i kidergarte through grade 5 whose parets work at the JFK Medical Ceter i Florida. 18 Parterships Betwee Charter Schools ad Other Orgaizatios

21 However, some see the charter school area as ope to misuse by for-profit orgaizatios. They worry these busiesses will cut costs to esure profits, puttig studets best iterests after the bottom lie ad takig advatage of charter operators who lack the busiess savvy to make iformed decisios about service provisio. What States Ca Do There are five commo policy optios states are usig to guide the ivolvemet of for-profit orgaizatios with charter schools, discussed i the followig sectios: Prohibit for-profit orgaizatios from applyig to ope a charter school; Require charter schools to report ivolvemet with for-profit etities; Allow parterships with for-profit orgaizatios for facilities; Allow parterships with for-profit orgaizatios for services; ad Allow for-profit orgaizatios to establish charter schools. Policy Optio: Prohibit For-Profit Orgaizatios from Applyig to Ope a Charter School Curretly, 16 state laws prohibit for-profit orgaizatios from applyig to ope a charter school. This esures that although for-profit orgaizatios may provide services, the charter holder is ot a for-profit orgaizatio. The charter school laws prohibitig for-profit orgaizatios from establishig charter schools ofte list these orgaizatios amog other groups that are ieligible to apply. For example, the District of Columbia law states: Applicat meas a perso, group, or orgaizatio, icludig a private, public, or quasi-public etity that is oprofit, oreligious, osectaria, ad ohome-based (Sectio ). The New Mexico law states: Muicipalities, couties, private post-secodary educatioal istitutios ad for-profit busiess etities are ot eligible to apply for or receive a charter (Sectio 22-8B-6). Policy Optio: Require Charter Schools to Report Ivolvemet with For-Profit Etities I Idiaa ad New York, state law requires charter schools to report their ivolvemet with for-profit etities, givig charter schools the flexibility to parter with for-profit orgaizatios ad authorizers the ability to moitor such ivolvemet. I Idiaa, the law requires charter schools to submit a aual report listig the umber ad types of parterships with the commuity, busiess, or higher educatio (Sectio ). I New York, the law states: For charter schools established i cojuctio with a for-profit busiess or corporate etity, the charter shall specify the extet of the etity s participatio i the maagemet ad operatio of the school (Sectio 2851). Policy Optio: Allow Parterships with For-Profit Orgaizatios for Facilities As with allowig parterships with faith-based orgaizatios for facilities, allowig parterships with for-profit orgaizatios for facilities is oe way to meet charter schools eed for affordable, suitable classroom space. Such parterships are curretly allowed i 13 states. For example: I some cases, the charter school law explicitly permits for-profit orgaizatios to provide a facility. For example, the Texas law states: I accordace with this subchapter, the State Board of Educatio may grat a charter... to operate i a facility of a commercial or oprofit etity, a eligible etity, or a school district (Sectio ). I other cases, the law states that a facility may be acquired from public or private sources without specifyig whether the private sources are limited to oprofit orgaizatios or iclude for-profit orgaizatios. For example, the Pesylvaia law specifies: (a) A charter school... [has] the power to:... (3) Acquire real property from public or private sources by purchase, lease, lease with a optio to purchase or gift for use as a charter school facility (Sectio A). Parterships Betwee Charter Schools ad Other Orgaizatios 19