Renewals

Per NC General Statute 115C-218.6(b), the State Board of Education (SBE) shall renew a charter upon the request of the chartering entity for subsequent periods of 10 years, unless one of the following applies:  

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

(2) The charter school's student academic outcomes for the immediately preceding 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, at the time of the request for renewal of the charter, substantially 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.  

If one of the conditions set forth in subdivisions (1) through (3) of this subsection applies, then the State Board may renew the charter for a period of less than 10 years or not renew the charter. (2016-79, s. 1.2.) 

Schools Seeking Renewal 

Schools that intend to seek renewal must notify the NCDPI Office of Charter Schools (OCS) of the request and be prepared to pay the renewal fee of $500 (due no later than December the year before renewal) and complete the renewal process. The renewal process is completed over a period of two years and consists of a self-study, renewal site visit with interviews, and Charter School Advisory Board review before recommendations are made to the State Board of Education. 

Self-Study 

This self-study provides information describing how the school is successfully fulfilling the mission formally approved by the State Board of Education. The school is asked to prepare an executive summary, describe the school’s goals for the next five years, and describe the school’s education program. 

Renewal Site Visit 

The Office of Charter Schools Personnel will make a site visit to the school to review the school's progress toward meeting its charter's mission. In order to get a more complete picture of the school, the Office of Charter Schools will tour the school and meet with three separate groups during the site visit: (1) Administrative/Board Committee, (2) Staff Committee, and (3) Parent Committee.  

Timeline 

The charter school renewal process lasts two years. This timeline will provide you with the process expectations for renewing a charter school. 

Current Renewal Cohorts 

The North Carolina Charter Schools Renewal Report  

Consistent with SBE policy CHTR 007, the Office of Charter Schools (OCS) will provide the State Board of Education with a North Carolina Charter Schools Renewal Report (NCCSRR) that is designed to contain all the information the SBE will need to evaluate the status of the school for renewal. The NCCSRR will reference data and reports from any NCDPI division that may have information pertinent to the evaluation of the school. Information from the school’s self-study will also be included in the report. Furthermore, as a public document, the NCCSRR shall be made available to federal, state, and local educators, policy makers, parents, and the community. 

Charter School Advisory Board Renewal Guidelines 

The Charter Schools Advisory Board has adopted the following framework for making renewal recommendations. This is a general guideline used to make recommendations. There will be other factors such as persistent patterns, site visits, statutory language, and the performance framework taken into consideration for renewal recommendations. Any renewal of the Charter can be revoked according to SBE Policy CHTR-010. CSAB and NCSBE reserve the right to add stipulations to any renewal period. 

Renewal Recommendations  

Renewal Criteria  

10 Year Renewal 
  • No Current Significant Compliance Issues 
  • Financially sound audits last 3 years 
  • Academic outcomes have been comparable to the local school administrative unit the last 3 years or have exceeded growth the last 3 years. * 

7 Year Renewal 
  • No Significant Compliance Issues last 2 years 
  • Financially sound audits last 2 years 
  • Academic outcomes have been comparable to the local school administrative unit at least 2 of 3 years or have exceeded growth last 2 of 3 years. * 

5 Year Renewal 
  • No Significant Compliance Issues last 2 years 
  • Financially sound audits last 2 years 
  • Academic outcomes have been comparable to the local school administrative unit at least 2 of 3 years or have exceeded growth last 2 of 3 years. * 
  • Not currently designated as continually low performing 

3 Year Renewal 

 
  • Compliance Issues more than 1 year creating a pattern 
  • Inability to provide sound audits for the immediately preceding year 
  • Academic outcomes have been comparable to the local school administrative unit at least 1 year of the last 3 years or met growth 2 of 3 years. * 

Non- Renewal or Assumption 
  • Current and persistent pattern of compliance Issues 
  • Financially unsound audits last 2 years of the immediately preceding 3 years 
  • Academic outcomes have not been comparable to the local school administrative unit in any of the immediately preceding 3 years and the school has not met growth in the last 2 years 
  • Recurring low-performance grade of D or F and a growth score of "met expected growth" or "not met expected growth" for the immediately preceding 3 years 

* Comparable is defined as a proficiency score that is no less than 5 points of the LEA's Composite score based on the EOG/EOC courses offered. 

** Pending State Board of Education adoption of bidding process. 

Assumptions 

SBE policy CHTR 017 details the rules and procedures for the Assumption Process.  

 

If you have any questions about the Renewal process, please email Jenna.Cook@dpi.nc.gov . 

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