FILE: HC
CHARTER SCHOOL MONITORING, INTERVENTION, AND CLOSURE
It is the responsibility of the Bogalusa City School Board (BCSB) to hold charter schools accountable for achieving the performance standards set forth in policy, the BCSB Performance Framework, and the school’s operating agreement.
MONITORING AND REPORTING
In order to determine quality standards for all schools and intervene appropriately in instances when student needs are not being met, the Superintendent shall monitor and require corrective actions by a charter school with respect to compliance with School Board policy, state law, or terms of the charter contract in accordance with the provisions of this policy HC.
Pursuant to this authority and according to the provisions of the schools operating agreement, charter schools shall be required to provide BCSB with prompt access to any requested records and facilities to ensure compliance.
The School Board, through its Accountability Committee, shall receive at least annually a report detailing the performance of each charter school against the standards established in policy and the BCSB Charter School Performance Framework. The report may be used by the school, its students and families, and the public to ascertain the effectiveness of the charter school, and shall be used by the School Board as the primary basis for any action involving the charter school.
The annual report may be transmitted to the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE), in compliance with state law and policy.
INTERVENTION TRIGGERS
Intervention is a tiered series of escalating sanctions and supports for charter schools that fail to meet the performance standards adopted by the School Board. The Superintendent may place a school into Intervention at any time, based on a determination that issues of concern or deficiencies require action. The Superintendent shall report Intervention placements at Tier 2 or 3 at the next regular meeting of the School Board Accountability Committee.
Schools shall automatically enter Intervention for the reasons provided below:
Critical Indicators: Schools may be required to enter Intervention based on the Critical Indicator Deficiency Triggers, as these are defined in policy HB, Charter School Evaluation.
Performance Framework: Schools may enter Intervention by earning a rating of “Does Not Meet Standard” or “Falls Far Below Standard” on the BCSB Charter School Performance Framework, as provided below:
2 or more Academic Performance Framework indicators
3 or more Organizational or Financial Performance Framework indicators
Any single Performance Framework indicator for multiple years
Sustained Academic Decline: Schools may enter Intervention based on sustained academic decline, measured by the School Performance Score.
Sustained academic decline is defined based on the standards set forth in the following table:
|
Letter Grade |
Sustained Academic Decline |
|
A |
4 consecutive years OR 5 total years of decline during current charter term |
|
B |
3 consecutive years OR 4 total years of decline during current charter term |
|
C |
2 years during current charter term |
|
D |
1 year during current charter term |
|
F |
Critical Indicator – school subject to immediate Board reconsideration |
Notwithstanding the above provisions, a charter school may be placed in Intervention by the Superintendent for reasons other than those provided for here. Such action shall require written notification to the school of the reasons for the recommendation, and an opportunity for the school to respond and correct all identified issues prior to such action.
INTERVENTION TIERS AND REQUIRED ACTIONS
The Superintendent shall give charter schools timely notice of any charter agreement violations or performance deficiencies justifying Intervention. Notices shall state the deficiency, the applicable statutory, regulatory, performance or contractual provision(s) not satisfactorily met, the expected remedy, including whether a Corrective Action Plan is required, and the time frame by which the charter school is expected to remedy the deficiency and/or submit a Corrective Action Plan. Charter Schools shall be given reasonable time, generally not less than one week, to fully remedy noticed deficiencies prior to entering Intervention, unless the noticed deficiency poses an imminent threat to the health, safety, or welfare of students.
Unless otherwise provided for in policy, schools enter Intervention at Tier 1, and remain in Intervention for either one year, or until the identified issues are satisfactorily addressed, as determined by the Superintendent or his or her designee. The tiers and required actions for schools subject to Intervention are defined below:
|
Tier |
Triggers |
Required School Actions |
|
1 |
a. Sustained academic decline b. Does Not Meet/Falls Far Below Standard on APF Measures 2, 3 c. Below Standard on 3-5 OPF/FPF indicators d. Below Standard for 2+ years on any single indicator |
Corrective Action Plan, to be submitted to Superintendent |
|
2 |
a. Sustained academic decline b. Below Standard on 6 or more OPF/FPF indicators in a single year c. Previously subject to Intervention during current charter term |
Corrective Action Plan, to be presented to BCSB Accountability Committee & Superintendent
Quarterly follow-up meeting with Superintendent to assess progress |
|
3 |
a. Falls Far Below Standard on APF Measure 1 (F letter grade) b. Below Standard on 10 or more PF indicators in a single year c. Below Standard for 3+ years on any single indicator d. Previously subject to Intervention twice during current charter term |
All Tier 1 and Tier 2 Required Actions
Reconsideration of charter, including hearing before Superintendent, following the guidelines established in this policy |
A Corrective Action Plan shall include specific improvement objectives and indicators of success. The charter school shall submit its Corrective Action Plan to the Superintendent or his or her designee for approval within the timelines prescribed by the Superintendent.
REVOCATION, NON-RENEWAL, AND CLOSURE
When a school remains unable to meet the performance standards established for it, it is the obligation of the School Board to close the school. In addition to the Intervention process as set forth in this policy, a charter school may also be subject to reconsideration of its operating agreement and potential revocation or closure for the following reasons, as identified in statute and/or the terms of the school’s operating agreement:
Imminent threat to the health, safety, or welfare of students
Commission of a material violation of the Operating Agreement
Failure to substantially achieve within the agreed timelines the academic results specified in the Operating Agreement
Failure to meet generally accepted accounting standards for fiscal management
Egregious and/or consistent violations of federal, state, or local laws
Gross mismanagement of public funds
Financial malfeasance
Failure to retain adequate facilities
Failure to retain sufficient enrollment to meet financial obligations
Schools identified as Academically Unacceptable per the state accountability system (assigned state letter grade of F, or Falls Far Below Standard on BCSB Academic Performance Framework Measure 1a) in the year prior to the end of the school’s current charter term shall be automatically recommended for closure.
The Superintendent may recommend a waiver of this provision for an individual charter school based on the Superintendent’s determination that closure of the charter school would result in its students attending an academically lower-performing school. Approval of such waiver shall require a majority vote of the membership of the School Board. Upon approval of such waiver by the School Board, the charter school shall be granted a probationary three-year renewal term according to conditions and timelines determined by the Superintendent. Such waiver and probationary renewal shall be recommended by the Superintendent no more than once for each charter school.
This provision of this subsection shall not apply to Alternative Education Schools, pursuant to policy HA, School Board Chartering Authority.
The School Board has established the following guidelines to provide clarity to students, families, school employees, and the community regarding the school closure process.
All potential school closures (revocations, non-extensions, and non-renewals) shall be presented by the Superintendent to the School Board for review by not later than the December School Board meeting of each school year.
The Superintendent may implement such recommendations once submitted, unless rejected by a majority vote of the full membership of the School Board by not later than the School Board’s next meeting following the presentation of such recommendations.
Written notice of proposed school closure, including the findings and reasons for the proposed action, shall be provided to the school’s governing board by the method identified in the school’s operating agreement, not later than thirty (30) calendar days prior to the Superintendent’s closure recommendation to the School Board.
Written notice of proposed school closure shall be provided to all school staff, and the parents or guardians of all current school students, not later than twenty (20) calendar days prior to the Superintendent’s closure recommendation to the School Board.
Prior to any revocation of a school’s operating agreement, the school shall have the opportunity to appear before a meeting of the School Board, recorded and transcribed at the school’s expense, with witnesses if necessary, to answer all identified findings and reasons for the action.
Notwithstanding the foregoing guidelines, the Superintendent reserves the right to immediately suspend a school’s operating agreement upon a determination that the health, safety, or welfare of students is threatened, in accordance with state statutes and BESE policy.
Under an emergency suspension, the notice provisions of this policy shall be waived, and the school shall immediately cease all operations. The Superintendent shall be required to provide public notice of the emergency suspension, including to the families of all students, staff, and governing board members, as soon as practical, but not later than three (3) school days following the determination. A School Board hearing to consider the Superintendent’s actions shall be convened as soon as practical following the public hearing, but no later than seventy-two (72) hours following public notification.
The Superintendent may implement the termination immediately following the School Board hearing unless rejected by a majority vote of the full membership of the School Board.
New policy: April 26, 2018
Ref: La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§17:10.7.1, 17:3972, 17:3973, 17:3974, 17:3975, 17:3976, 17:3977, 17:3978, 17:3979, 17:3991, 17:3991.1, 17:3992, 17:3993, 17:3994, 17:3995
Charter Schools, Bulletin 126, §§306 -307 and §1701, Louisiana Department of Education,
Board minutes, 4-26-18
Bogalusa City School Board