 |
|
| Table 4.5. Charter school reporting requirement and start-up fund characteristics, by state: 2008 | ||
| State | Reporting requirements | Start-up funds1 |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | † | † |
| Alaska | Quarterly reports to local school board and annual report for parents, local school board, and state board of education that indicate academic progress. Charters will perform fiscal accounting and audits by an independent certified accountant. | Federal funds available; no state funding |
| Arizona | Charter schools, like all schools in the state, must prepare an annual report card for parents and the department of education; charter schools must also undergo an annual audit. | Federal and state funds available |
| Arkansas | Annual reports to parents, local school boards, and state boards of education; state board must prepare biennial report for legislature. | Federal funds available; no state funding |
| California | Annual financial reports that indicate progress made by the charter school in the previous year. | Federal funds available; state offers revolving loan fund |
| Colorado | Charter school renewal application must include a report on school's progress in meeting its educational goals; state board of education must prepare a report for the legislature comparing performance of charter school students with that of comparable students in other public schools and reviewing the regulations and policies for which waivers were sought. | Federal funds available; no state funding |
| Connecticut | Annual report profiling school to local school boards (local charters only); annual report profiling the school sent to the commissioner (state charters only). Commissioner must prepare annual report for legislature on operation of charter schools. | Federal funds available; no state funding |
| Delaware | Annual reports that include discussion of the school's progress in meeting overall student performance goals and standards and contain a financial statement setting forth appropriate categories the school's revenues and expenditures and assets and liabilities. | Federal funds available; no state funding |
| District of Columbia | Annual reports to the chartering authority and District of Columbia Financial Responsibility and Management Assistance Authority. | Federal funds available |
| Florida | Same as all other public schools in Florida. | Federal and state funds available |
| Georgia | Same as all other public schools in Georgia. | Federal and state funds available |
| Hawaii | Self-evaluation at the end of each school year. Charter School Review Panel will conduct a multi-year evaluation of schools that have been chartered 4 or more years. | Federal and state funds available |
| Idaho | Annual financial, operational, and student progress reports. | Federal funds available; some state funds available |
| Illinois | Charter school must submit an annual financial and administrative audit (conducted by an independent outside auditor); local school board must submit annual evaluations of charter schools to state board of education; state board must submit annual report to legislature and governor comparing performance of charter school students with that of comparable students in other public schools. | Federal funds available; state offers a school loan fund |
| Indiana | Annual reports similar to those of traditional public schools. The charter school must also undergo an annual financial audit. | State funds are available for first-year schools and those with growing enrollments; federal funds available |
| Iowa | Charter school must report annually to the school board, advisory council, and state board, and provide the information required by any of those entities. | Federal funds available |
| Kansas | Each year, local school boards must evaluate impact of charter schools on district educational system; those evaluations are compiled by the state board of education and submitted to legislature and governor. | Federal funds available; no state funding |
| Kentucky | † | † |
| Louisiana | Charter school must report to parents, community, local school board, and state board of education at the end of each semester regarding progress toward performance objectives; school must prepare more comprehensive reports at the end of the school year; local school board must report annually to state board. | Federal funds available; state has a no-interest loan fund |
| Maine | † | † |
| Maryland | Each charter school must submit an annual report to its authorizer and the parents of its students that discusses the progress made and the expenditures. | None |
| Massachusetts | Annual report including audited financial statement and description of progress toward academic goals, as well as state reports required of all other public schools; each charter school must prepare an accountability contract that specifies performance goals and assessment procedures in greater detail than the charter does; state will commission an independent evaluation under the direction of the state Education Reform Review Commission. | Federal funds available; some state funds available |
| Michigan | State board must prepare annual report for legislature that includes, among other items, aggregate test scores of charter school students. | Federal funds available; no state funding |
| Minnesota | Annual reports to the chartering authority and state board of education; must report to sponsoring body at the end of contract, prior to renewal. | Federal and state funds available |
| Mississippi | Annual reports that indicate progress to parents, community, local school board, and state board of education. | No state funding |
| Missouri | Annual report cards distributed to sponsor, the local school district, and the state board of education that include teaching methods, any educational innovations, and the performance results. | Federal funds available; no state funding |
| Montana | † | † |
| Nebraska | † | † |
| Nevada | Annual reports as required of district public schools. | State funding available through revolving loan fund |
| New Hampshire | Quarterly reports to local school board and annual report for parents, local school board, and state board of education that indicate academic progress. Charters will perform fiscal accounting and audits by an independent certified accountant. | Federal funds available; no state funding |
| New Jersey | Annual reports to parents, local school board, and state board of education that verify compliance with statutes, regulations and the terms of the charter; state board must prepare biennial report for legislature. Same financial report as other school districts. | Federal funds available; no state funding |
| New Mexico | Annual accountability reports to parents, local school board, and department of education. | State stimulus fund available |
| New York | Annual report that includes progress to educational objectives, financial statement, and indicators of parental and student satisfaction. State University of New York charters require annual accountability plan progress reports. Renewal is dependent upon the reporting. Reporting is statutory for all public schools. | Federal funds available, as well as state stimulus fund |
| North Carolina | Charter school must comply with reporting requirements established by state board of education in the Uniform Education Reporting System; charter school must prepare annual report for chartering authority and state board; state board must prepare annual report on academic progress, best practices, and effect of charter schools on districts, for the legislature. | Federal funds available; no state funding |
| North Dakota | † | † |
| Ohio | Annual reports to parents and sponsor as required of district public schools that include program and financial audits. | Federal funds available; no state funding |
| Oklahoma | Same as other public schools in Oklahoma. | Federal funds available; state Charter School Incentive Fund may be used for start-up costs |
| Oregon | Annual audit and yearly report on academic progress. | Federal funds available; no state funding |
| Pennsylvania | Annual reports to the local school board and state secretary of education. Every 5 years the secretary of education must commission an evaluation by an independent consultant for the governor, secretary and general assembly, including recommendations for continuation, modification, expansion, or termination of the program. | Federal funds available; no state funding |
| Rhode Island | Annual reports to parents, the community, the local school committee, and the commissioner of elementary and secondary education that indicate the progress made by the charter public school during the previous year in meeting the charter objectives. | Federal funds available |
| South Carolina | Annual reports to sponsor and the department of education that include all information including, at a minimum, the number of students enrolled in the charter school, the success of students in achieving the specific educational goals for which the charter school was established, and the identity and certification status of the teaching staff. | Federal funds available |
| South Dakota | † | † |
| Tennessee | Annual reports that include a discussion of the school's progress in meeting overall student performance goals and standards and contain a financial statement setting forth by appropriate categories the school's revenues and expenditures and assets and liabilities. | Federal funds available |
| Texas | Charters must participate in state's general public-school reporting system (PEIMS); Commissioner shall designate an impartial annual evaluation of open-enrollment charter schools. | Federal funds available |
| Utah | Annual financial audit reports as required of district public schools. The governing body of a charter school shall make annual progress reports to the state board of education and the legislature through its Education Interim Committee. | Federal and state funds available |
| Vermont | † | † |
| Virginia | Annual reports as required of district public schools. | Federal funds available |
| Washington | † | † |
| West Virginia | † | † |
| Wisconsin | Charter schools must file the same reports with the Department of Public Instruction as other public schools must file. | Federal funds available |
| Wyoming | Local school board must prepare an annual report for state board of education on each charter school operating within the district; after 3 years, state board must prepare a report for the legislature. | Federal funds available; no state funding |
| † Not applicable. State does not have a charter school law. 1 Some states provide capital funding to start-up charter schools. Recent federal legislation provides funding to help charters with start-up costs, if the state applies. SOURCE: Charter School Laws Across the States, Rankings and Scorecard: 2008, Center for Education Reform, 2008. Data Source | ||
