Washington · statute · Wash. Rev. Code ch. 28A.710 · 44 active provisions
The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter unless the context clearly requires otherwise.(1) "Applicant" means a nonprofit corporation that has submitted an application to an authorizer. The nonprofit corporation must be either a public benefit nonprofit corporation as defined in RCW 24.03A.245, or a…
A charter school established under this chapter:(1) Is a public school that is:(a) Open to all children free of charge and by choice; and(b) Operated separately from the common school system as an alternative to traditional common schools;(2) May offer any program or course of study that any other public school may off…
(1) To fulfill its duty to manage and operate the charter school, and to execute the terms of its charter contract, a charter school board may:(a) Hire, manage, and discharge charter school employees in accordance with the terms of this chapter and the school's charter contract;(b) Receive and disburse funds for the pu…
(1) A charter school must operate according to the terms of its charter contract and the provisions of this chapter.(2) A charter school must:(a) Comply with local, state, and federal health, safety, parents' rights, civil rights, and nondiscrimination laws applicable to school districts and to the same extent as schoo…
(1) Except as provided in subsection (3) of this section, a charter school may not limit admission on any basis other than age group, grade level, or enrollment capacity. A charter school is open to any student regardless of his or her location of residence.(2) A charter school may not charge tuition, but may charge fe…
(1) School districts must provide information to parents and the general public about charter schools located within the district as an enrollment option for students.(2) If a student who was previously enrolled in a charter school enrolls in another public school in the state, the student's new school must accept cred…
(1) The Washington state charter school commission is established as an independent state agency whose mission is to:(a) Authorize high quality charter public schools throughout the state, especially schools that are designed to expand opportunities for at-risk students;(b) Ensure the highest standards of accountabilit…
The following entities may be authorizers of charter schools:(1) The commission may exercise the authority granted under this section for charter schools located anywhere in the state; and(2) A school district board of directors may exercise the authority granted under this section only after receiving approval from th…
(1) The state board of education shall establish an annual application and approval process and timelines for school districts seeking approval to become charter school authorizers. The initial process and timelines must be established by July 1, 2016.(2) At a minimum, each applicant district must submit to the state b…
(1) Authorizers are responsible for:(a) Holding the charter school board of each authorized charter school accountable for: Ensuring that students in the charter school have opportunities for academic success; and exercising effective educational, operational, and financial oversight of the charter school;(b) Solicitin…
(1) The state board of education shall establish a statewide formula for an authorizer oversight fee, which must be calculated as a percentage of the state operating funding distributed to charter schools under RCW 28A.710.220 to each charter school under the jurisdiction of an authorizer, but may not exceed four perce…
(1) The state board of education is responsible for overseeing the performance and effectiveness of all authorizers.(2) Persistently unsatisfactory performance of an authorizer's portfolio of charter schools, a pattern of well-founded complaints about the authorizer or its charter schools, a high percentage of charter…
(1)(a) Each authorizer must annually issue and broadly publicize a solicitation for proposals for charter school applicants by the date established by the state board of education under RCW 28A.710.140.(b) Each authorizer's solicitation for proposals must:(i) Present the authorizer's strategic vision for chartering, in…
(1) The state board of education must establish an annual statewide timeline for charter application submission and approval or denial that must be followed by all authorizers.(2) In reviewing and evaluating charter applications, authorizers shall employ procedures, practices, and criteria consistent with nationally re…
(1) A maximum of forty charter public schools may be established under this chapter over the five-year period commencing with April 3, 2016. No more than eight charter schools may be established in any year during the five-year period, except that if in any year fewer than eight charter schools are established, additio…
(1) The purposes of the charter application submitted under RCW 28A.710.130 are to present the proposed charter school's academic and operational vision and plans, and to demonstrate and provide the authorizer with a clear basis for evaluating the applicant's capacities to execute the proposed vision and plans. An appr…
(1) The performance provisions within a charter contract must be based on a performance framework that clearly sets forth the academic and operational performance indicators, measures, and metrics that will guide an authorizer's evaluations of a charter school within its jurisdiction.(2) At a minimum, the performance f…
(1) Except as provided otherwise by this section, RCW 28A.300.0711 through 28A.300.0714 govern school operation and management under RCW 28A.710.040 and apply to charter schools established under this chapter.(2) RCW 28A.300.0711(4) governs school operation and management under RCW 28A.710.040 and applies to charter sc…
(1) Each authorizer must continually monitor the performance and legal compliance of the charter schools under its jurisdiction, including collecting and analyzing data to support ongoing evaluation according to the performance framework in the charter contract.(2) An authorizer may conduct or require oversight activit…
(1) Beginning with the 2023-24 school year, the commission shall promote the effective administration and operation of charter schools through the provision of technical assistance to requesting charter schools, charter school boards, or both.(2) The principal objective of technical assistance provided in accordance wi…
(1)(a) By November 1, 2023, the commission shall establish and maintain on its website an online system for students who attend charter schools, and the parents of those students, to submit complaints about the operation and administration of one or more charter schools, including complaints about the provision of educ…
Each charter school shall prominently post and maintain on its website information about the school's process and instructions for submitting complaints about the operation and administration of the charter school by its enrolled students and their parents. This information must include a designated point of contact at…
(1) A charter contract may be renewed by the authorizer, at the request of the charter school, for successive five-year terms. The authorizer, however, may vary the term based on the performance, demonstrated capacities, and particular circumstances of a charter school, and may grant renewal with specific conditions fo…
(1) An authorizer may revoke a charter contract at any time, or may refuse to renew it, if the authorizer determines that the charter school did any of the following or otherwise failed to comply with the provisions of this chapter:(a) Committed a material and substantial violation of any of the terms, conditions, stan…
(1) Before making a decision to not renew or to revoke a charter contract, an authorizer must develop a charter school termination protocol to ensure timely notification to parents, orderly transition of students and student records to new schools, as necessary, and proper disposition of public school funds, property,…