Equity - The authorizer develops/guides the ongoing work of creating system-wide equitable practices
Proficiency: Create/ensure an understanding of a set of performance measures (academic, behavior, and culture) that will hold schools accountable while celebrating innovation, diversity, and cultural differences
Legal - The authorizer works to understand and implement appropriate legal practices including autonomy and accountability measures within the charter school(s) under their authorization
Proficiency: Develop/refine authorizer's understanding of legal and philosophical roles and responsibilities
Performance Monitoring and Accountability - The authorizer develops/maintains accountability measures and implements systems that hold the charter school to high standards
Proficiency: Create/ensure an understanding of a set of performance measures (academic, operation, and finance) that will hold schools accountable while also honoring their uniqueness
Learning
Introduction
This module highlights strategies for monitoring high performing charter schools. It describes steps school board authorizers should take to identify charter schools that fit well in the district and to set up infrastructure needed to authorize and monitor charter schools. This module contains a downloadable monitoring guide along with a video tutorial about how to put the guide into practice. This module allows authorizers to review and reflect upon their own essential practices as a high-quality authorizer and creates a plan for continuous improvement unique to their school(s).
Opening and Operating High Quality Charter Schools
Opening and operating high quality charter schools Accompanying slides View narrated PowerPoint describing steps school board authorizers should take to identify charter schools that fit well in the district and to set up infrastructure needed to authorize and monitor charter schools. Note, even though the narrator calls out certain section names in this video, this is a stand-alone video for this module. Format: Narrated Slides Length: 20 minutes
Defining Performance and Accountability Standards
Defining performance and accountability standards Accompanying slides View narrated PowerPoint presentation examines needed components for a comprehensive performance accountability and program compliance monitoring system. Note that although the narrator labels this video as corresponding to Section 8, this is a stand-alone video for this module. Format: Narrated Slides Length: 11 minutes
Monitoring Performance and Compliance
Monitoring Charter School Performance, Finance, and Contract Compliance Accompanying slides View narrated PowerPoint presentation examines needed components for a comprehensive performance accountability and program compliance monitoring system. Note that although the narrator labels this video as corresponding to Section 8, this is a stand-alone video for this module. Format: Narrated Slides Length: 11 minutes
Authorizer Quickstart Monitoring Guide Use the performance monitoring Guide document and the following video to better understand how to monitor your success as an authorizer. Format: Google Doc Length: 5 pages
Authorizer Best Practices
Wisconsin Authorizer Best Practices Use this document and the following recorded webinar to better understand the roles and responsibilities around being a charter school authorizer. Format: Google Doc Length: 5 pages
Opening and operating high quality charter schools
Reflection 1: Brainstorm, reflect and briefly describe your school board’s vision for quality instruction and student achievement. Identify one or more goals that will help you achieve your district’s vision that might be met by authorizing a charter school and describe how the charter school will help you reach those goals.
Reflection 2: Identify a population of students not well served by current programming in your district and prepare a one to two paragraph request for proposals (RFP). The RFP should describe the student population to be served, programming currently provided to those students, information about student achievement in that program and the outcomes you seek from a successful applicant.
Defining performance and accountability standards
Reflection 3: Reflect and briefly describe one or more standards that your school board has set for student achievement in your district. Next describe how those standards would be articulated in a charter school contract, including a description of the data you would expect to receive from the charter school.
Reflection 4: Identify a population of students with unsatisfactory student achievement in your district. Identify a performance goal for that group of students and a standard for determining if that goal is met, including identification of measures of student achievement to be used to judge performance.
Monitoring charter school performance, finance, and contract compliance
Reflection 5: Outline a monitoring plan and timeline. Identify categories of charter school performance to be monitored, measures of performance and data points to be collected, standards used to measure performance, staff or department responsible for monitoring and dates for completing various steps of the monitoring process.
Reflection 6: Describe how a school board authorizer monitors a charter school while avoiding interference with charter school autonomy. Address the following:
How can student performance data be collected in a manner that protects charter school autonomy and minimizes administrative burdens on charter school staff?
When would you use monitoring reports from the charter school administration to collect data and when would it be necessary for authorizer staff to visit the charter school?
Performance Monitoring Guide Use this guide with the video to guide monitoring of charter schools and will help you develop the basic information you need for your site visit and annual report.
Wisconsin Authorizer Best Practices This document takes a look at authorizer best practices to ensure sustainable high-performing charter schools.
