Mississippi Administrative Code › Title 10 - Education Institutions and Agencies › Part 402 - MCSAB Board Policies › Chapter 1 - Request for Proposals 2013 › INSTRUCTIONS › Rule 10-402-1.1 - Instruction

Current through June 25, 2024
The Mississippi Charter School Authorizer Board (MCSAB)
					 invites proposals for high-quality charter schools seeking to open in the
					 2014-2015 school year, or thereafter. MCSAB will give preference to
					 applications for schools intended to help underserved students.
All applications should reflect how the proposed charter
					 school will:
1 improve student
				  learning;
2 close achievement gaps
				  between high- and low-performing groups;
3 increase educational opportunities for all
				  students, but especially for those with a likelihood of academic
				  failure;
4 allow teachers and
				  school administrators to have a direct voice in the operation of the
				  school;
5 encourage the use of
				  high-quality models of teaching, governing and scheduling;
6 provide for exceptional levels of results
				  driven accountability;
7 create
				  expanded opportunities for involvement in the education system by students,
				  parents and community members; and
8 encourage the replication of successful
				  charter schools, if applicable
All new schools approved through this process will be
					 public schools subject to the legal requirements set forth in Mississippi Code
					 §
											37-28-3
					 et seq.
Process Overview & Materials
The 2013-14 statewide timeline for charter approval or
					 denial decisions is as follows:
DATE
ACTIVITY
25-Nov
MCSAB Releases RFP
22-Jan
Letter of Intent Due
27-Jan
Technical Assistance Meeting in Jackson Or Remotely
							 via Webinar (date TBD)
14-March
Application Due
21-March
Affected School Districts Notified
28-March
Applications Reviewed for Completeness
11-April
Application Revisions Due
15-April
Capacity Interviews Begin
27-May
Capacity Interviews End
30-May
Final Review
2-June
Vote on Acceptance/Acceptance w/ Amendments/Deny
10-June
If needed, Amended Application Due
16-June
Amended Application Accepted/Denied
17-June
Contract Negotiations Begin
27-June
Contract Finalized
Application Content & Review
					 Process
:
The Mississippi Charter Schools Act,
					 Mississippi Code §§
											37-28-3
					 et seq., designates the contents required in a charter school application. This
					 Request for Proposals contains appropriately detailed questions and guidelines
					 concerning the format and content essential for applicants to demonstrate the
					 capacities necessary to establish and operate a successful charter school and
					 sets forth the mandatory elements which applicants must include in a proposed
					 school plan. This Request for Proposals also incorporates fully herein by
					 reference the Application Toolkit, which sets forth the performance framework
					 for charter school oversight and evaluation and provides templates for use in
					 the application. Finally, this Request for Proposals also incorporates fully
					 herein by reference the Mississippi Charter School Application Evaluation
					 Ratings and Sample Scoring Criteria, which sets forth the criteria that will
					 guide the Authorizer Board's decision to approve or deny a charter
					 application.
Letter of Intent
:
All
					 applicants are required to submit a Letter of Intent (LOI) prior to submitting
					 a completed application. The Letter of Intent template is available in the
					 Application Toolkit. This provides formal notice to MCSAB regarding applicants"
					 intention to submit an application to open a public charter school for during
					 the 2013-2014 charter approval process. This letter is non-binding.
Complete Application
:
1)
Cover Page
2)
Checklist
3)
Assurances:
A document of
				  assurances is required with necessary signatures or the application is
				  considered invalid. The assurances pages can be found within the Application
				  Toolkit.
4)
Proposal
				  Narrative
>
:
The narrative section herein seeks
				  information about all major aspects of the proposed school. A complete
				  application must include each section outlined in this application document in
				  the order given by the Applicant Checklist. Within the narrative of each
				  section, please use the outline headings that have been provided.
5)
Budget Forms:
The budget
				  and cash flow must be submitted in Microsoft Excel. There is no required budget
				  or cash flow template. The final proposal narrative and attachments must be
				  submitted in PDF form.
6)
Attachments
: Submit only those attachments that are referenced in this
				  Request for Proposals. Additional material beyond the narrative and attachments
				  referenced in the application
will not be considered
.
				  A complete list of attachments is available in the Application Toolkit.
Subsequent Information
:
Within 5 days of receipt of the application, it will be reviewed for
					 substantial completeness. Should the application fail to be substantially
					 complete, it will not be reviewed upon the merits. MCSAB may request additional
					 information at any time during the process, but will not accept unsolicited
					 information from the applicant. This includes e-mail explanations, alterations
					 to the plan, and/or comments to staff or board members. The plan submitted is
					 considered final.
Formatting and Submission Requirements
* The final application must be submitted on three separate
					 CD-ROMs. Each CD-ROM must contain the attachments, budget forms and proposal
					 narrative.
* The budget form(s) must be submitted in Microsoft Excel.
					 The final proposal narrative and attachments must be submitted in PDF
					 form.
* Submit a full version of the application, as well as PDF
					 versions of the narrative proposal and each individual attachment.
* Font must be either Arial or Times New Roman, with
					 one-inch page margins, single-spaced, no smaller than 11-point font.
* Each section of the application must adhere to the page
					 limits as indicated in the Request for Proposals. Attachments requested do not
					 count against the page limit.
* Templates and forms for several of the attachments are
					 provided in the Application Toolkit. Relevant attachments are to be completed
					 and included as part of the application.
* If a particular question is not applicable to the
					 proposal, please respond "Not Applicable."
A statement as to why
					 the question is not applicable to the proposal may be requested upon
					 review.
Deliver Letter of Intent by 5:00pm CT on January 22,
					 2014 via fax, e-mail, or mail and deliver Application by 5:00pm CT on March 14,
					 2014* via mail or in person to:
Mississippi Charter School Authorizer Board
Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning