GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 2015

S                                                                                                                                                    D

SENATE DRS35193-MK-116A  (03/12)

 

 

 

Short Title:        Charter School Modifications.		(Public)
Sponsors:	Senator Tillman (Primary Sponsor).
Referred to:

 

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT to make changes to the charter school statutes and to direct the state board of education to adopt rules regarding replication of certain charter schools.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  G.S. 115C‑218.5(e) reads as rewritten:

"(e)       A material revision of the provisions of a charter application shall be made only upon the approval of the State Board of Education.

Except as provided in subsection (f) of this section, enrollment growth shall be considered a material revision of the charter application, and the State Board may approve such additional enrollment growth of greater than twenty percent (20%)(20%). In exercising its discretion in approving additional enrollment growth of greater than twenty percent (20%), only if the State Board finds all of the following:shall consider the following factors:

(1)        TheWhether the actual enrollment of the charter school is within ten percent (10%) of its maximum authorized enrollment.

(2)        TheWhether the charter school has commitments for ninety percent (90%) of the requested maximum growth.

(3)        TheWhether the charter school is not currently identified as low‑performing.

(4)        TheWhether the charter school meets generally accepted standards of fiscal management.

(5)        It is otherwise appropriate to approve the enrollment growth.Any other factor deemed relevant by the State Board."

SECTION 2.  G.S. 115C‑218.95(b) reads as rewritten:

"(b)      The State Board shall adopt criteria for adequate performance by a charter school and shall identify charter schools with inadequate performance. The criteria shall include a requirement that a charter school which demonstrates no growth in student performance and has annual performance composites below sixty percent (60%) receives an overall performance grade calculated pursuant to G.S. 115C‑83.15 of F in any two years in a three‑year period is inadequate.

(1)        If a charter school is inadequate in the first five years of the charter, the charter school shall develop a strategic plan to meet specific goals for student performance that are consistent with State Board criteria and the mission approved in the charter school. The strategic plan shall be reviewed and approved by the State Board. The State Board is authorized to terminate or not renew a charter for failure to demonstrate improvement under the strategic plan.

(2)        If a charter school is inadequate and has had a charter for more than five years, the State Board is authorized to terminate, not renew, or seek applicants to assume the charter through a competitive bid process established by the State Board.Board; however, the State Board shall not terminate or not renew an inadequate charter school solely for its inadequate performance if the charter school's academic achievement is comparable to the traditional public schools located in a local school administrative unit within a 20‑mile radius of where the charter school is located or if the charter school has implemented a strategic improvement plan and is making measurable progress toward adequate student performance goals. The State Board shall develop rules on the assumption of a charter by a new entity that include all aspects of the operations of the charter school, including the status of the employees. Public assets would transfer to the new entity and not revert to the local school administrative unit in which the charter school is located pursuant to G.S. 115C‑218.100(b)."

SECTION 3.  G.S. 115C‑218.5(d) reads as rewritten:

"(d)      The State Board of Education may grant the initial charter for a period not to exceed 10 years. The State Board of Education may renew the charter upon the request of the chartering entity for subsequent periods ofnot to exceed 10 years each. TheAny renewal mayshall be for less than a period of 10 years if anyunless one of the following applies:

(1)        The charter school has not provided financially sound audits for the prior three years.

(2)        The charter school's student academic outcomes for the past three years have not been comparable to the academic outcomes of students in the local school administrative unit in which the charter school is located.

(3)        The charter school is not in compliance with State law, federal law, the school's own bylaws, or the provisions set forth in its charter granted by the State Board of Education.

The State Board of Education shall review the operations of each charter school at least once every five years to ensure that the school is meeting the expected academic, financial, and governance standards."

SECTION 4.  By September 15, 2015, upon recommendations made by the Charter Schools Advisory Board, the State Board of Education shall adopt a process and rules for replication of high‑quality charter schools in which the board of directors of a charter school agrees to contract with an education management organization or charter management organization that can demonstrate that it can replicate high‑quality charter schools in the State with proven student academic success and financial soundness. The State Board of Education shall report to the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee by November 15, 2015, on the process and rules for charter school replication as required by this section.

SECTION 5.  This act is effective when it becomes law. Sections 1 and 2 of this act apply beginning with the 2015‑2016 school year. Section 3 of this act applies to any renewal of a charter on or after the date this act becomes law.