The WRCCS school competencies are designed to help schools personalize their professional development and continued improvement. They are designed to prepare schools to be dynamic and sustainable with the ever-changing demands of the educational landscape. These competencies can help schools recognize learning that has not been considered, learning that is in process, as well as prior learning.
For more information on the WRCCS Competencies, see the WRCCS Competencies Explained video below.
Provides community resources explaining school options
Establishes/reviews charter contract to ensure alignment with WRCCS/DPI benchmarks
Plans/sets mission for authorizer with clear goals that align with the community and geography allowing autonomy for charter schools
Develops/refines authorizer's vision and understanding of legal and philosophical roles and responsibilities
Creates/refines practices that set high standards for schools and assist schools via corrective action plans, and navigate revocation, or renewal decisions
Understands how to hold charter school accountable to specific measures in contract
Creates/refines annual monitoring of school success, including monitoring tool/rubric
Creates/refines application process, including timeline and priorities
Creates/refines a plan and procedure for soliciting applications for new charter school concepts
Creates/refines a plan and procedure for reviewing new charter school applications
Creates/implements a communications and marketing action plan – finalize name, create logo, and establish marketing plan for student recruitment and enrollment
Creates/implements a marketing plan including social media, community meetings, Q+A sessions, and materials for distribution.
Creates/refines plan for auditing, reviewing, and reporting on finances annually.
Examines/finalizes the potential needs for contracting out services to support business operations
Outlines/defines how the charter school business plan supports the school mission, student achievement, and stakeholder satisfaction.
Creates/refines plan for how to engage community partners and volunteers in collaborating with your school
Defines/revisits what leadership means in relation to the charter school organizational structure.
Develops/revisits methods and mechanisms to provide the communication necessary to transparently express vision and ideas to board members, teachers, students, and parents
Clarifies/revisits the board's role in governance (not management) of the school. Autonomy is developed and extended to school leaders and teachers to make curricular decisions, hire staff, manage day-to-day affairs of the school, interact with parents, report to the board, implement the board's suggestions and strategies
Creates/refines a system to recognize school operational deadlines and dates while following recommended DPI reporting and filing.
Esures/confirms the governance board fully understands its role and responsibilities
Establishes/refines effective procedures for how the board functions. ( ex. set goals and create metrics for measurement, approve budget, create school policies, know local and state charter school laws, and fundraise for the school.)
Establishes/ensures governance board subcommittees for efficient operations
Establishes/revisits methods or systems for frequent and transparent communication between the board and the school leader.
Establishes/confirms a diverse governance board who agree with the school's mission, have time to give, and can offer vital expertise and resources on all operations areas (such as: finance and accounting; real estate and facilities; legal and human resource services; fundraising; marketing; community partnerships; and academic programming)
Creates/implements evaluation procedures to evaluate the school leader(s)
Develops/revisits a priority needs list relating to the "best" location for the charter school (list should be related to the mission and school culture goals)
Searches/acquires school building and facilities (may need to partner with nonprofits, community, or apply for grants
Establishes/reviews charter contract to ensure alignment with WRCCS/DPI benchmarks
Develops/revisits the understanding of the Governance Board's roles and legal responsibilities
Fulfills/revisits legal processes checklist (legal entity formed, articles of incorporation, board members, bylaws, legal entity enters into charter contract, 501c3 organization)
Fulfills/revisits policy handbook checklist: employment, teacher contracts, employee handbook, employee harassment policy, HR payroll, etc., student and parent handbook, student policies, nondiscrimination including complaint procedure, grievance policy, service animal, Title IX, bullying, harassment, student records, record retention, open records, weapons on school property, attendance and truancy, discipline – suspension and expulsion, Special Ed policies and procedures -- LEA, 504 policies and procedures, information management system, digital use policy (devices, internet)
Creates/articulates the rationale for starting/sustaining a school and the mission that meets this rationale
Creates/refines a mission and vision that clearly defines what will be accomplished, how the school will meet its student's academic needs, and what differentiates this school from others. Statements should also include an action plan for bringing those to fruition.
Drafts/revisits a school, student, or community needs statement that will be addressed by creating a new educational opportunity
Facilitates/revisits research on charter schools/models and provides written summaries including critiques of different models.
Creates/refines in charter contract the specific measures designed to hold the school and its stakeholders accountable to the mission
Develops/implements relevant interim assessments to monitor progress internally and change course needed.
Determines/revisits enrollment capacity and a nondiscriminatory student application process
Develops/revisits a lottery system that follows all state and federal guidelines and ensures that enrollment procedures are fair.
Creates/implements a marketing plan that advertises and promotes the school, enrollment periods, and application procedures.
Creates/reviews a plan to prioritize spending based on school mission.
Designates/revisits a lead grant writer and applies for DPI charter funding. Attend DPI charter grant informational sessions.
Designates/revisits a working committee to develop fundraising activities (community foundation grants, fundraisers, and corporate sponsorships)
Drafts/documents a business plan including annual budget needs and 3 to 5 year budget forecasts.
Plans/builds a reserve fund (fund balance) as part of the corporation to support school needs and ensure sustainability.
Develops/revisits understanding of the financial responsibilities of governance board
Selects/designates school leadership (principal or lead teacher)
Determines/revisits a plan of growth or sustainability of enrollment for school, which may include expansion of students and/or grade levels
Develops/refines project management tools and processes
Develops/refines strategic business planning tools and processes
Creates/refines a plan for student teacher ratios that support the mission and vision of the charter school.
Creates/refines a plan for special education instruction requiring thoughtful attention and resources to meet the needs of diverse learners.
Creates/refines a School Improvement Plan in which the academic plan is divided into stages in order to meet goals, consideration is given to changing to meet student need or new directions that support the mission.
Creates/refines assessment strategies that align with mission and needs of students
Develops/refines academic program using a school improvement/planning framework that aligns to school mission and vision (EMLSS, Future Ready, etc.)s
Develops/refines academic programs that include universal design for learning strategies to support the development of equitable learning opportunities for all students.
Develops/refines academic programs that match the mission and vision of the charter school and well researched academic program that meets identified student needs.
Develops/conducts surveys for both parents and students to support the academic program development and implementation.
Outlines/revisits your school's level of student autonomy
Creates/refines a plan to determine social-emotional expectations and resources to support them.
Develops/implements mechanisms for including all stakeholders; parents, students, staff, and community in developing a positive supportive student learning culture
Develops/implements practices focused on equity for English Language Learners
Develops/implements practices focused on equity including support for Special Education students
Develops/implements practices focused on equity including support for racial/ethnic minority students
Develops/implements practices focused on equity including support for economically disadvantaged students
Develops/implements student culture practices and measurement tools
Facilitates mental health supports for students
Uses a school improvement framework to gather information and demonstrating both students and teachers alike truly believe in their school's mission, rules, and expectations
Orders appropriate furniture and equipment based on needs and priorities of school/facility
Identifies/selects order required materials and equipment
Ensures a grading system that clearly communicates student outcomes of the academic programming and ties to DPI information system
Investigates/implements content management, data management, and/or learning management systems and electronic portfolios (i.e. Google Classroom, Seesaw, Canvas)
Outlines how to facilitate Innovative Digital Citizenship for Students
Outlines your level of Blended/Online learning integration
Develops/implements a plan for the integration of technology to create equitable learning opportunities.
Develops/refines classroom and schoolwide assessment tools and processes
Identifies/performs school needs assessment (may include visits of other innovative schools)
Coordinates/revisits activities and creates timelines for establishing and opening the school.
Develops/implements a plan for leadership and management of the school's business operations
Designs/communicates goals, mission, and accountability measures (transparent to all constituents)
Elicits staff input and feedback on the perceived greatest student need(s) and school improvement priorities (discuss results publicly)
Creates/sustains a behavioral and school climate expectation system
Develops/sustains a positive and empowering work environment where teachers can experience working conditions that sustain energy and dedication for years.
Develops/sustains checkpoints to review and keep school culture positive, likely tied to School Improvement Frameworks which have surveys and rubrics for monitoring school culture.
Develops/sustains practices focused on Equity
Develops/sustains practices focused on staff culture and school climate
Ensures/sustains a plan to engage stakeholders in mission, vision, culture, and expectations of school and school community
Facilitates/revisits mental health supports for teachers and students
Promotes/ensures student ownership of the school, linking culture and academics
Determines/revisits educator effectiveness model used for teacher and principal evaluation. (Implementation resources can be found at https://dpi.wi.gov/ee/district-resources)
Develops/revisits building level SLOs (Student/School Learning Objectives)
Assigns all new staff members a mentors for at least the first year (Teacher mentors provide induction support to new-to profession and new-to-district teachers as required in Wis. Administrative Code sec. PI 34)
Offers/promotes a professional development plan for faculty and staff that fulfills the mission of the school
Builds/revisits a continuous growth model for the professional culture of the school
Develops/revisits staffing needs and priorities matrix which includes both academic, social, and personal skills and experiences required to be a flexible and creative founding staff member
Promotes/facilitates team leadership with staff
Develops/improves an accessible school website including application form, information on school mission, curricular methods, educational model, and vision for student learning outcomes
Creates/refines a plan for student teacher ratios that support the mission and vision of the charter school.
Creates/refines a plan for special education instruction requiring thoughtful attention and resources to meet the needs of diverse learners.
Creates/refines a School Improvement Plan in which the academic plan is divided into stages in order to meet goals, consideration is given to changing to meet student need or new directions that support the mission.
Creates/refines assessment strategies that align with mission and needs of students
Develops/refines academic program using a school improvement/planning framework that aligns to school mission and vision (EMLSS, Future Ready, etc.)s
Develops/refines academic programs that include universal design for learning strategies to support the development of equitable learning opportunities for all students.
Develops/refines academic programs that match the mission and vision of the charter school and well researched academic program that meets identified student needs.
Develops/conducts surveys for both parents and students to support the academic program development and implementation.
Outlines/revisits your school's level of student autonomy
Develops/refines classroom and schoolwide assessment tools and processes
Identifies/performs school needs assessment (may include visits of other innovative schools)
Creates/implements a communications and marketing action plan – finalize name, create logo, and establish marketing plan for student recruitment and enrollment
Creates/implements a marketing plan including social media, community meetings, Q+A sessions, and materials for distribution.
Creates/refines plan for auditing, reviewing, and reporting on finances annually.
Examines/finalizes the potential needs for contracting out services to support business operations
Outlines/defines how the charter school business plan supports the school mission, student achievement, and stakeholder satisfaction.
Coordinates/revisits activities and creates timelines for establishing and opening the school.
Develops/implements a plan for leadership and management of the school's business operations
Creates/refines a plan to determine social-emotional expectations and resources to support them.
Develops/implements mechanisms for including all stakeholders; parents, students, staff, and community in developing a positive supportive student learning culture
Develops/implements practices focused on equity for English Language Learners
Develops/implements practices focused on equity including support for Special Education students
Develops/implements practices focused on equity including support for racial/ethnic minority students
Develops/implements practices focused on equity including support for economically disadvantaged students
Develops/implements student culture practices and measurement tools
Facilitates mental health supports for students
Uses a school improvement framework to gather information and demonstrating both students and teachers alike truly believe in their school's mission, rules, and expectations
Defines/revisits what leadership means in relation to the charter school organizational structure.
Develops/revisits methods and mechanisms to provide the communication necessary to transparently express vision and ideas to board members, teachers, students, and parents
Creates/sustains a behavioral and school climate expectation system
Develops/sustains a positive and empowering work environment where teachers can experience working conditions that sustain energy and dedication for years.
Develops/sustains checkpoints to review and keep school culture positive, likely tied to School Improvement Frameworks which have surveys and rubrics for monitoring school culture.
Develops/sustains practices focused on Equity
Develops/sustains practices focused on staff culture and school climate
Ensures/sustains a plan to engage stakeholders in mission, vision, culture, and expectations of school and school community
Facilitates/revisits mental health supports for teachers and students
Promotes/ensures student ownership of the school, linking culture and academics
Clarifies/revisits the board's role in governance (not management) of the school. Autonomy is developed and extended to school leaders and teachers to make curricular decisions, hire staff, manage day-to-day affairs of the school, interact with parents, report to the board, implement the board's suggestions and strategies
Creates/refines a system to recognize school operational deadlines and dates while following recommended DPI reporting and filing.
Esures/confirms the governance board fully understands its role and responsibilities
Establishes/refines effective procedures for how the board functions. ( ex. set goals and create metrics for measurement, approve budget, create school policies, know local and state charter school laws, and fundraise for the school.)
Establishes/ensures governance board subcommittees for efficient operations
Establishes/revisits methods or systems for frequent and transparent communication between the board and the school leader.
Establishes/confirms a diverse governance board who agree with the school's mission, have time to give, and can offer vital expertise and resources on all operations areas (such as: finance and accounting; real estate and facilities; legal and human resource services; fundraising; marketing; community partnerships; and academic programming)
Creates/implements evaluation procedures to evaluate the school leader(s)
Orders appropriate furniture and equipment based on needs and priorities of school/facility
Develops/revisits a priority needs list relating to the "best" location for the charter school (list should be related to the mission and school culture goals)
Searches/acquires school building and facilities (may need to partner with nonprofits, community, or apply for grants
Establishes/reviews charter contract to ensure alignment with WRCCS/DPI benchmarks
Establishes/reviews charter contract to ensure alignment with WRCCS/DPI benchmarks
Develops/revisits the understanding of the Governance Board's roles and legal responsibilities
Fulfills/revisits legal processes checklist (legal entity formed, articles of incorporation, board members, bylaws, legal entity enters into charter contract, 501c3 organization)
Fulfills/revisits policy handbook checklist: employment, teacher contracts, employee handbook, employee harassment policy, HR payroll, etc., student and parent handbook, student policies, nondiscrimination including complaint procedure, grievance policy, service animal, Title IX, bullying, harassment, student records, record retention, open records, weapons on school property, attendance and truancy, discipline – suspension and expulsion, Special Ed policies and procedures -- LEA, 504 policies and procedures, information management system, digital use policy (devices, internet)
Plans/sets mission for authorizer with clear goals that align with the community and geography allowing autonomy for charter schools
Develops/refines authorizer's vision and understanding of legal and philosophical roles and responsibilities
Creates/articulates the rationale for starting/sustaining a school and the mission that meets this rationale
Creates/refines a mission and vision that clearly defines what will be accomplished, how the school will meet its student's academic needs, and what differentiates this school from others. Statements should also include an action plan for bringing those to fruition.
Drafts/revisits a school, student, or community needs statement that will be addressed by creating a new educational opportunity
Facilitates/revisits research on charter schools/models and provides written summaries including critiques of different models.
Creates/refines practices that set high standards for schools and assist schools via corrective action plans, and navigate revocation, or renewal decisions
Understands how to hold charter school accountable to specific measures in contract
Creates/refines in charter contract the specific measures designed to hold the school and its stakeholders accountable to the mission
Develops/implements relevant interim assessments to monitor progress internally and change course needed.
Determines/revisits educator effectiveness model used for teacher and principal evaluation. (Implementation resources can be found at https://dpi.wi.gov/ee/district-resources)
Develops/revisits building level SLOs (Student/School Learning Objectives)
Selects/designates school leadership (principal or lead teacher)
Assigns all new staff members a mentors for at least the first year (Teacher mentors provide induction support to new-to profession and new-to-district teachers as required in Wis. Administrative Code sec. PI 34)
Offers/promotes a professional development plan for faculty and staff that fulfills the mission of the school
Builds/revisits a continuous growth model for the professional culture of the school
Develops/revisits staffing needs and priorities matrix which includes both academic, social, and personal skills and experiences required to be a flexible and creative founding staff member
Ensures a grading system that clearly communicates student outcomes of the academic programming and ties to DPI information system
Investigates/implements content management, data management, and/or learning management systems and electronic portfolios (i.e. Google Classroom, Seesaw, Canvas)
Outlines how to facilitate Innovative Digital Citizenship for Students
Outlines your level of Blended/Online learning integration
Develops/implements a plan for the integration of technology to create equitable learning opportunities.
Develops/improves an accessible school website including application form, information on school mission, curricular methods, educational model, and vision for student learning outcomes
