Renewal Application Phase During charter renewal, authorizers assess the degree to which operators have met the goals outlined in their charter application and the resultant contract. In general, to date, renewal rigor has not met expectations. In practice, many charter schools are renewed regardless of whether they meet academic standards and other important terms of their charter. Charter schools without ultimate accountability for results do not create opportunities to meaningfully improve educational opportunities for students. The renewal application phase of the rubric should help authorizers to construct a rigorous renewal process that examines the quality of a charter school’s special education program. Where the performance of a school as a whole or for the subpopulation of students with disabilities does not meet expectations, closure may be the appropriate action by the authorizer. This rubric is specifically designed for authorizers in locations in which charter schools are empowered and required under state law to function as a local education agency (LEA).
Handling Problems Review of how school handled problems related to delivery of special education and related services. How has the charter school documented and resolved complaints related to educating students with disabilities? Have complaints been resolved informally or progressed to formal due-process complaints filed with the state? Has the school proactively sought to work with parents as partners to resolve any problems associated with evaluations, provision of FAPE, LRE, and transitioning planning? School leaders should strive to establish highly transparent policies and procedures and engage parents to the maximum extent possible. By recognizing and engaging parents as essential partners in their child’s education, school leaders can minimize and diffuse problems that may arise. Evidence of a commitment to involving parents is clear and regular communication about services with parents. Charter operators should also consult with legal counsel and document evidence of advice from counsel regarding resolution of issues. Performance Measures Identify and track performance metrics that document the degree to which students with disabilities are benefiting from access to the general education curriculum. Has the school developed a means to track progress of students with disabilities aside from standardized state tests (e.g., progress on goals of the IEP, degree of inclusion in the general education classroom, student retention and graduation, or post-graduation opportunities)? If the school has a virtual or blended learning component, how does the learning management system track progress, including provision of special education and related services? Annual standardized assessments are a relatively blunt instrument to track student progress. School personnel have the ability to identify a variety of measures to track the academic progress of students with disabilities that are more nuanced than annual tests and more substantive than review of inputs (e.g., complete and up-to-date IEPs and compliance with IEPs). If the school has a virtual or blended learning component, the learning management system should include a means to track a variety of performance metrics and potentially include tracking provision of special education and related services.