Missouri Revised Statutes
Chapter 160
Schools--General Provisions
←160.403
Section 160.405.1
160.410→
August 28, 2015
Proposed charter, how submitted, requirements, submission to state board, powers and duties--approval, revocation, termination--definitions--lease of public school facilities, when--unlawful reprisal, defined, prohibited.
160.405. 1. A person, group or organization seeking to establish a
charter school shall submit the proposed charter, as provided in this
section, to a sponsor. If the sponsor is not a school board, the applicant
shall give a copy of its application to the school board of the district in
which the charter school is to be located and to the state board of
education, within five business days of the date the application is filed
with the proposed sponsor. The school board may file objections with the
proposed sponsor, and, if a charter is granted, the school board may file
objections with the state board of education. The charter shall be a
legally binding performance contract that describes the obligations and
responsibilities of the school and the sponsor as outlined in sections
160.400 to 160.425 and section 167.349 and shall also include:
(1) A mission and vision statement for the charter school;
(2) A description of the charter school's organizational structure
and bylaws of the governing body, which will be responsible for the policy,
financial management, and operational decisions of the charter school,
including the nature and extent of parental, professional educator, and
community involvement in the governance and operation of the charter
school;
(3) A financial plan for the first three years of operation of the
charter school including provisions for annual audits;
(4) A description of the charter school's policy for securing
personnel services, its personnel policies, personnel qualifications, and
professional development plan;
(5) A description of the grades or ages of students being served;
(6) The school's calendar of operation, which shall include at least
the equivalent of a full school term as defined in section 160.011;
(7) A description of the charter school's pupil performance standards
and academic program performance standards, which shall meet the
requirements of subdivision (6) of subsection 4 of this section. The
charter school program shall be designed to enable each pupil to achieve
such standards and shall contain a complete set of indicators, measures,
metrics, and targets for academic program performance, including specific
goals on graduation rates and standardized test performance and academic
growth;
(8) A description of the charter school's educational program and
curriculum;
(9) The term of the charter, which shall be five years and shall be
renewable;
(10) Procedures, consistent with the Missouri financial accounting
manual, for monitoring the financial accountability of the charter, which
shall meet the requirements of subdivision (4) of subsection 4 of this
section;
(11) Preopening requirements for applications that require that
charter schools meet all health, safety, and other legal requirements prior
to opening;
(12) A description of the charter school's policies on student
discipline and student admission, which shall include a statement, where
applicable, of the validity of attendance of students who do not reside in
the district but who may be eligible to attend under the terms of judicial
settlements and procedures that ensure admission of students with
disabilities in a nondiscriminatory manner;
(13) A description of the charter school's grievance procedure for
parents or guardians;
(14) A description of the agreement between the charter school and
the sponsor as to when a sponsor shall intervene in a charter school, when
a sponsor shall revoke a charter for failure to comply with subsection 8 of
this section, and when a sponsor will not renew a charter under subsection
9 of this section;
(15) Procedures to be implemented if the charter school should close,
as provided in subdivision (6) of subsection 16 of section 160.400
including:
(a) Orderly transition of student records to new schools and archival
of student records;
(b) Archival of business operation and transfer or repository of
personnel records;
(c) Submission of final financial reports;
(d) Resolution of any remaining financial obligations; and
(e) Disposition of the charter school's assets upon closure;
(f) A notification plan to inform parents or guardians of students,
the local school district, the retirement system in which the charter
school's employees participate, and the state board of education within
thirty days of the decision to close;
(16) A description of the special education and related services that
shall be available to meet the needs of students with disabilities; and
(17) For all new or revised charters, procedures to be used upon
closure of the charter school requiring that unobligated assets of the
charter school be returned to the department of elementary and secondary
education for their disposition, which upon receipt of such assets shall
return them to the local school district in which the school was located,
the state, or any other entity to which they would belong.
Charter schools operating on August 27, 2012, shall have until August 28,
2015, to meet the requirements of this subsection.
2. Proposed charters shall be subject to the following requirements:
(1) A charter shall be submitted to the sponsor, and follow the
sponsor's policies and procedures for review and granting of a charter
approval, and be approved by the state board of education by December first
of the year prior to the proposed opening date of the charter school;
(2) A charter may be approved when the sponsor determines that the
requirements of this section are met, determines that the applicant is
sufficiently qualified to operate a charter school, and that the proposed
charter is consistent with the sponsor's charter sponsorship goals and
capacity. The sponsor's decision of approval or denial shall be made
within ninety days of the filing of the proposed charter;
(3) If the charter is denied, the proposed sponsor shall notify the
applicant in writing as to the reasons for its denial and forward a copy to
the state board of education within five business days following the
denial;
(4) If a proposed charter is denied by a sponsor, the proposed
charter may be submitted to the state board of education, along with the
sponsor's written reasons for its denial. If the state board determines
that the applicant meets the requirements of this section, that the
applicant is sufficiently qualified to operate the charter school, and that
granting a charter to the applicant would be likely to provide educational
benefit to the children of the district, the state board may grant a
charter and act as sponsor of the charter school. The state board shall
review the proposed charter and make a determination of whether to deny or
grant the proposed charter within sixty days of receipt of the proposed
charter, provided that any charter to be considered by the state board of
education under this subdivision shall be submitted no later than March
first prior to the school year in which the charter school intends to begin
operations. The state board of education shall notify the applicant in
writing as the reasons for its denial, if applicable; and
(5) The sponsor of a charter school shall give priority to charter
school applicants that propose a school oriented to high-risk students and
to the reentry of dropouts into the school system. If a sponsor grants
three or more charters, at least one-third of the charters granted by the
sponsor shall be to schools that actively recruit dropouts or high-risk
students as their student body and address the needs of dropouts or
high-risk students through their proposed mission, curriculum, teaching
methods, and services. For purposes of this subsection, a "high-risk"
student is one who is at least one year behind in satisfactory completion
of course work or obtaining high school credits for graduation, has dropped
out of school, is at risk of dropping out of school, needs drug and alcohol
treatment, has severe behavioral problems, has been suspended from school
three or more times, has a history of severe truancy, is a pregnant or
parenting teen, has been referred for enrollment by the judicial system, is
exiting incarceration, is a refugee, is homeless or has been homeless
sometime within the preceding six months, has been referred by an area
school district for enrollment in an alternative program, or qualifies as
high risk under department of elementary and secondary education
guidelines. "Dropout" shall be defined through the guidelines of the
school core data report. The provisions of this subsection do not apply to
charters sponsored by the state board of education.
3. If a charter is approved by a sponsor, the charter application
shall be submitted to the state board of education, along with a statement
of finding that the application meets the requirements of sections 160.400
to 160.425 and section 167.349 and a monitoring plan under which the
charter sponsor shall evaluate the academic performance of students
enrolled in the charter school. The state board of education may, within
sixty days, disapprove the granting of the charter. The state board of
education may disapprove a charter on grounds that the application fails to
meet the requirements of sections 160.400 to 160.425 and section 167.349 or
that a charter sponsor previously failed to meet the statutory
responsibilities of a charter sponsor.
4. A charter school shall, as provided in its charter:
(1) Be nonsectarian in its programs, admission policies, employment
practices, and all other operations;
(2) Comply with laws and regulations of the state, county, or city
relating to health, safety, and state minimum educational standards, as
specified by the state board of education, including the requirements
relating to student discipline under sections 160.261, 167.161, 167.164,
and 167.171, notification of criminal conduct to law enforcement
authorities under sections 167.115 to 167.117, academic assessment under
section 160.518, transmittal of school records under section 167.020, the
minimum number of school days and hours required under section 160.041, and
the employee criminal history background check and the family care safety
registry check under section 168.133;
(3) Except as provided in sections 160.400 to 160.425, be exempt from
all laws and rules relating to schools, governing boards and school
districts;
(4) Be financially accountable, use practices consistent with the
Missouri financial accounting manual, provide for an annual audit by a
certified public accountant, publish audit reports and annual financial
reports as provided in chapter 165, provided that the annual financial
report may be published on the department of elementary and secondary
education's internet website in addition to other publishing requirements,
and provide liability insurance to indemnify the school, its board, staff
and teachers against tort claims. A charter school that receives local
educational agency status under subsection 6* of this section shall meet
the requirements imposed by the Elementary and Secondary Education Act for
audits of such agencies and comply with all federal audit requirements for
charters with local education agency status. For purposes of an audit by
petition under section 29.230, a charter school shall be treated as a
political subdivision on the same terms and conditions as the school
district in which it is located. For the purposes of securing such
insurance, a charter school shall be eligible for the Missouri public
entity risk management fund pursuant to section 537.700. A charter school
that incurs debt shall include a repayment plan in its financial plan;
(5) Provide a comprehensive program of instruction for at least one
grade or age group from kindergarten through grade twelve, which may
include early childhood education if funding for such programs is
established by statute, as specified in its charter;
(6) (a) Design a method to measure pupil progress toward the pupil
academic standards adopted by the state board of education pursuant to
section 160.514, establish baseline student performance in accordance with
the performance contract during the first year of operation, collect
student performance data as defined by the annual performance report
throughout the duration of the charter to annually monitor student academic
performance, and to the extent applicable based upon grade levels offered
by the charter school, participate in the statewide system of assessments,
comprised of the essential skills tests and the nationally standardized
norm-referenced achievement tests, as designated by the state board
pursuant to section 160.518, complete and distribute an annual report card
as prescribed in section 160.522, which shall also include a statement that
background checks have been completed on the charter school's board
members, report to its sponsor, the local school district, and the state
board of education as to its teaching methods and any educational
innovations and the results thereof, and provide data required for the
study of charter schools pursuant to subsection 4 of section 160.410. No
charter school shall be considered in the Missouri school improvement
program review of the district in which it is located for the resource or
process standards of the program.
(b) For proposed high risk or alternative charter schools, sponsors
shall approve performance measures based on mission, curriculum, teaching
methods, and services. Sponsors shall also approve comprehensive academic
and behavioral measures to determine whether students are meeting
performance standards on a different time frame as specified in that
school's charter. Student performance shall be assessed comprehensively to
determine whether a high risk or alternative charter school has documented
adequate student progress. Student performance shall be based on
sponsor-approved comprehensive measures as well as standardized public
school measures. Annual presentation of charter school report card data to
the department of elementary and secondary education, the state board, and
the public shall include comprehensive measures of student progress.
(c) Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed as permitting a
charter school to be held to lower performance standards than other public
schools within a district; however, the charter of a charter school may
permit students to meet performance standards on a different time frame as
specified in its charter. The performance standards for alternative and
special purpose charter schools that target high-risk students as defined
in subdivision (5) of subsection 2 of this section shall be based on
measures defined in the school's performance contract with its sponsors;
(7) Comply with all applicable federal and state laws and regulations
regarding students with disabilities, including sections 162.670 to
162.710, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. Section
1400) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29** U.S.C.
Section 794) or successor legislation;
(8) Provide along with any request for review by the state board of
education the following:
(a) Documentation that the applicant has provided a copy of the
application to the school board of the district in which the charter school
is to be located, except in those circumstances where the school district
is the sponsor of the charter school; and
(b) A statement outlining the reasons for approval or disapproval by
the sponsor, specifically addressing the requirements of sections 160.400
to 160.425 and 167.349.
5. (1) Proposed or existing high-risk or alternative charter schools
may include alternative arrangements for students to obtain credit for
satisfying graduation requirements in the school's charter application and
charter. Alternative arrangements may include, but not be limited to,
credit for off-campus instruction, embedded credit, work experience through
an internship arranged through the school, and independent studies. When
the state board of education approves the charter, any such alternative
arrangements shall be approved at such time.
(2) The department of elementary and secondary education shall
conduct a study of any charter school granted alternative arrangements for
students to obtain credit under this subsection after three years of
operation to assess student performance, graduation rates, educational
outcomes, and entry into the workforce or higher education.
6. The charter of a charter school may be amended at the request of
the governing body of the charter school and on the approval of the
sponsor. The sponsor and the governing board and staff of the charter
school shall jointly review the school's performance, management and
operations during the first year of operation and then every other year
after the most recent review or at any point where the operation or
management of the charter school is changed or transferred to another
entity, either public or private. The governing board of a charter school
may amend the charter, if the sponsor approves such amendment, or the
sponsor and the governing board may reach an agreement in writing to
reflect the charter school's decision to become a local educational agency.
In such case the sponsor shall give the department of elementary and
secondary education written notice no later than March first of any year,
with the agreement to become effective July first. The department may
waive the March first notice date in its discretion. The department shall
identify and furnish a list of its regulations that pertain to local
educational agencies to such schools within thirty days of receiving such
notice.
7. Sponsors shall annually review the charter school's compliance
with statutory standards including:
(1) Participation in the statewide system of assessments, as
designated by the state board of education under section 160.518;
(2) Assurances for the completion and distribution of an annual
report card as prescribed in section 160.522;
(3) The collection of baseline data during the first three years of
operation to determine the longitudinal success of the charter school;
(4) A method to measure pupil progress toward the pupil academic
standards adopted by the state board of education under section 160.514;
and
(5) Publication of each charter school's annual performance report.
8. (1) (a) A sponsor's intervention policies shall give schools
clear, adequate, evidence-based, and timely notice of contract violations
or performance deficiencies and mandate intervention based upon findings of
the state board of education of the following:
a. The charter school provides a high school program which fails to
maintain a graduation rate of at least seventy percent in three of the last
four school years unless the school has dropout recovery as its mission;
b. The charter school's annual performance report results are below
the district's annual performance report results based on the performance
standards that are applicable to the grade level configuration of both the
charter school and the district in which the charter school is located in
three of the last four school years; and
c. The charter school is identified as a persistently lowest
achieving school by the department of elementary and secondary education.
(b) A sponsor shall have a policy to revoke a charter during the
charter term if there is:
a. Clear evidence of underperformance as demonstrated in the charter
school's annual performance report in three of the last four school years;
or
b. A violation of the law or the public trust that imperils students
or public funds.
(c) A sponsor shall revoke a charter or take other appropriate
remedial action, which may include placing the charter school on
probationary status for no more than twelve months, provided that no more
than one designation of probationary status shall be allowed for the
duration of the charter contract, at any time if the charter school commits
a serious breach of one or more provisions of its charter or on any of the
following grounds: failure to meet the performance contract as set forth
in its charter, failure to meet generally accepted standards of fiscal
management, failure to provide information necessary to confirm compliance
with all provisions of the charter and sections 160.400 to 160.425 and
167.349 within forty-five days following receipt of written notice
requesting such information, or violation of law.
(2) The sponsor may place the charter school on probationary status
to allow the implementation of a remedial plan, which may require a change
of methodology, a change in leadership, or both, after which, if such plan
is unsuccessful, the charter may be revoked.
(3) At least sixty days before acting to revoke a charter, the
sponsor shall notify the governing board of the charter school of the
proposed action in writing. The notice shall state the grounds for the
proposed action. The school's governing board may request in writing a
hearing before the sponsor within two weeks of receiving the notice.
(4) The sponsor of a charter school shall establish procedures to
conduct administrative hearings upon determination by the sponsor that
grounds exist to revoke a charter. Final decisions of a sponsor from
hearings conducted pursuant to this subsection are subject to an appeal to
the state board of education, which shall determine whether the charter
shall be revoked.
(5) A termination shall be effective only at the conclusion of the
school year, unless the sponsor determines that continued operation of the
school presents a clear and immediate threat to the health and safety of
the children.
(6) A charter sponsor shall make available the school accountability
report card information as provided under section 160.522 and the results
of the academic monitoring required under subsection 3 of this section.
9. (1) A sponsor shall take all reasonable steps necessary to
confirm that each charter school sponsored by such sponsor is in material
compliance and remains in material compliance with all material provisions
of the charter and sections 160.400 to 160.425 and 167.349. Every charter
school shall provide all information necessary to confirm ongoing
compliance with all provisions of its charter and sections 160.400 to
160.425 and 167.349 in a timely manner to its sponsor.
(2) The sponsor's renewal process of the charter school shall be
based on the thorough analysis of a comprehensive body of objective
evidence and consider if:
(a) The charter school has maintained results on its annual
performance report that meet or exceed the district in which the charter
school is located based on the performance standards that are applicable to
the grade-level configuration of both the charter school and the district
in which the charter school is located in three of the last four school
years;
(b) The charter school is organizationally and fiscally viable
determining at a minimum that the school does not have:
a. A negative balance in its operating funds;
b. A combined balance of less than three percent of the amount
expended for such funds during the previous fiscal year; or
c. Expenditures that exceed receipts for the most recently completed
fiscal year;
(c) The charter is in compliance with its legally binding performance
contract and sections 160.400 to 160.425 and section 167.349.
(3) (a) Beginning August first during the year in which a charter is
considered for renewal, a charter school sponsor shall demonstrate to the
state board of education that the charter school is in compliance with
federal and state law as provided in sections 160.400 to 160.425 and
section 167.349 and the school's performance contract including but not
limited to those requirements specific to academic performance.
(b) Along with data reflecting the academic performance standards
indicated in paragraph (a) of this subdivision, the sponsor shall submit a
revised charter application to the state board of education for review.
(c) Using the data requested and the revised charter application
under paragraphs (a) and (b) of this subdivision, the state board of
education shall determine if compliance with all standards enumerated in
this subdivision has been achieved. The state board of education at its
next regularly scheduled meeting shall vote on the revised charter
application.
(d) If a charter school sponsor demonstrates the objectives
identified in this subdivision, the state board of education shall renew
the school's charter.
10. A school district may enter into a lease with a charter school
for physical facilities.
11. A governing board or a school district employee who has control
over personnel actions shall not take unlawful reprisal against another
employee at the school district because the employee is directly or
indirectly involved in an application to establish a charter school. A
governing board or a school district employee shall not take unlawful
reprisal against an educational program of the school or the school
district because an application to establish a charter school proposes the
conversion of all or a portion of the educational program to a charter
school. As used in this subsection, "unlawful reprisal" means an action
that is taken by a governing board or a school district employee as a
direct result of a lawful application to establish a charter school and
that is adverse to another employee or an educational program.
12. Charter school board members shall be subject to the same
liability for acts while in office as if they were regularly and duly
elected members of school boards in any other public school district in
this state. The governing board of a charter school may participate, to
the same extent as a school board, in the Missouri public entity risk
management fund in the manner provided under sections 537.700 to 537.756.
13. Any entity, either public or private, operating, administering,
or otherwise managing a charter school shall be considered a quasi-public
governmental body and subject to the provisions of sections 610.010 to
610.035.
14. The chief financial officer of a charter school shall maintain:
(1) A surety bond in an amount determined by the sponsor to be
adequate based on the cash flow of the school; or
(2) An insurance policy issued by an insurance company licensed to do
business in Missouri on all employees in the amount of five hundred
thousand dollars or more that provides coverage in the event of employee
theft.
(L. 1998 S.B. 781 § 5, A.L. 2005 S.B. 287, A.L. 2009 S.B. 291, A.L.
2012 S.B. 576)
*"Subsection 7" appears in original rolls.
**Number "20" appears in original rolls.
2009
2006
1998
2009
160.405. 1. A person, group or organization seeking to establish a
charter school shall submit the proposed charter, as provided in this
section, to a sponsor. If the sponsor is not a school board, the applicant
shall give a copy of its application to the school board of the district in
which the charter school is to be located and to the state board of
education, within five business days of the date the application is filed
with the proposed sponsor. The school board may file objections with the
proposed sponsor, and, if a charter is granted, the school board may file
objections with the state board of education. The charter shall include a
mission statement for the charter school, a description of the charter
school's organizational structure and bylaws of the governing body, which
will be responsible for the policy and operational decisions of the charter
school, a financial plan for the first three years of operation of the charter
school including provisions for annual audits, a description of the charter
school's policy for securing personnel services, its personnel policies,
personnel qualifications, and professional development plan, a description of
the grades or ages of students being served, the school's calendar of
operation, which shall include at least the equivalent of a full school term
as defined in section 160.011, and an outline of criteria specified in this
section designed to measure the effectiveness of the school. The charter
shall also state:
(1) The educational goals and objectives to be achieved by the charter
school;
(2) A description of the charter school's educational program and
curriculum;
(3) The term of the charter, which shall be not less than five years,
nor greater than ten years and shall be renewable;
(4) A description of the charter school's pupil performance standards,
which must meet the requirements of subdivision (6) of subsection 5 of this
section. The charter school program must be designed to enable each pupil to
achieve such standards;
(5) A description of the governance and operation of the charter school,
including the nature and extent of parental, professional educator, and
community involvement in the governance and operation of the charter school;
and
(6) A description of the charter school's policies on student discipline
and student admission, which shall include a statement, where applicable, of
the validity of attendance of students who do not reside in the district but
who may be eligible to attend under the terms of judicial settlements.
2. Proposed charters shall be subject to the following requirements:
(1) A charter may be approved when the sponsor determines that the
requirements of this section are met and determines that the applicant is
sufficiently qualified to operate a charter school. The sponsor's decision
of approval or denial shall be made within ninety days of the filing of the
proposed charter;
(2) If the charter is denied, the proposed sponsor shall notify the
applicant in writing as to the reasons for its denial and forward a copy to
the state board of education within five business days following the denial;
(3) If a proposed charter is denied by a sponsor, the proposed charter
may be submitted to the state board of education, along with the sponsor's
written reasons for its denial. If the state board determines that the
applicant meets the requirements of this section, that the applicant is
sufficiently qualified to operate the charter school, and that granting a
charter to the applicant would be likely to provide educational benefit to
the children of the district, the state board may grant a charter and act as
sponsor of the charter school. The state board shall review the proposed
charter and make a determination of whether to deny or grant the proposed
charter within sixty days of receipt of the proposed charter, provided that
any charter to be considered by the state board of education under this
subdivision shall be submitted no later than March first prior to the school
year in which the charter school intends to begin operations. The state board
of education shall notify the applicant in writing as the reasons for its
denial, if applicable; and
(4) The sponsor of a charter school shall give priority to charter
school applicants that propose a school oriented to high-risk students and to
the reentry of dropouts into the school system. If a sponsor grants three or
more charters, at least one-third of the charters granted by the sponsor shall
be to schools that actively recruit dropouts or high- risk students as their
student body and address the needs of dropouts or high-risk students through
their proposed mission, curriculum, teaching methods, and services. For
purposes of this subsection, a "high-risk" student is one who is at least one
year behind in satisfactory completion of course work or obtaining credits
for graduation, pregnant or a parent, homeless or has been homeless sometime
within the preceding six months, has limited English proficiency, has been
suspended from school three or more times, is eligible for free or
reduced-price school lunch, or has been referred by the school district for
enrollment in an alternative program. "Dropout" shall be defined through the
guidelines of the school core data report. The provisions of this subsection
do not apply to charters sponsored by the state board of education.
3. If a charter is approved by a sponsor, the charter application shall
be submitted to the state board of education, along with a statement of
finding that the application meets the requirements of sections 160.400 to
160.420 and section 167.439 and a monitoring plan under which the charter
sponsor will evaluate the academic performance of students enrolled in the
charter school. The state board of education may, within sixty days,
disapprove the granting of the charter. The state board of education may
disapprove a charter on grounds that the application fails to meet the
requirements of sections 160.400 to 160.420 and section 167.349 or that a
charter sponsor previously failed to meet the statutory responsibilities of a
charter sponsor.
4. Any disapproval of a charter pursuant to subsection 3 of this section
shall be subject to judicial review pursuant to chapter 536.
5. A charter school shall, as provided in its charter:
(1) Be nonsectarian in its programs, admission policies, employment
practices, and all other operations;
(2) Comply with laws and regulations of the state, county, or city
relating to health, safety, and state minimum educational standards, as
specified by the state board of education, including the requirements
relating to student discipline under sections 160.261, 167.161, 167.164, and
167.171, notification of criminal conduct to law enforcement authorities
under sections 167.115 to 167.117, academic assessment under section 160.518,
transmittal of school records under section 167.020, and the minimum number of
school days and hours required under section 160.041;
(3) Except as provided in sections 160.400 to 160.420, be exempt from
all laws and rules relating to schools, governing boards and school districts;
(4) Be financially accountable, use practices consistent with the
Missouri financial accounting manual, provide for an annual audit by a
certified public accountant, publish audit reports and annual financial
reports as provided in chapter 165, provided that the annual financial report
may be published on the department of elementary and secondary education's
Internet website in addition to other publishing requirements, and provide
liability insurance to indemnify the school, its board, staff and teachers
against tort claims. A charter school that receives local educational agency
status under subsection 6 of this section shall meet the requirements imposed
by the Elementary and Secondary Education Act for audits of such agencies.
For purposes of an audit by petition under section 29.230, a charter school
shall be treated as a political subdivision on the same terms and conditions
as the school district in which it is located. For the purposes of securing
such insurance, a charter school shall be eligible for the Missouri public
entity risk management fund pursuant to section 537.700. A charter school
that incurs debt must include a repayment plan in its financial plan;
(5) Provide a comprehensive program of instruction for at least one
grade or age group from kindergarten through grade twelve, which may include
early childhood education if funding for such programs is established by
statute, as specified in its charter;
(6) (a) Design a method to measure pupil progress toward the pupil
academic standards adopted by the state board of education pursuant to
section 160.514, collect baseline data during at least the first three years
for determining how the charter school is performing and to the extent
applicable, participate in the statewide system of assessments, comprised of
the essential skills tests and the nationally standardized norm-referenced
achievement tests, as designated by the state board pursuant to section
160.518, complete and distribute an annual report card as prescribed in
section 160.522, which shall also include a statement that background checks
have been completed on the charter school's board members, report to its
sponsor, the local school district, and the state board of education as to
its teaching methods and any educational innovations and the results thereof,
and provide data required for the study of charter schools pursuant to
subsection 4 of section 160.410. No charter school will be considered in the
Missouri school improvement program review of the district in which it is
located for the resource or process standards of the program.
(b) For proposed high risk or alternative charter schools, sponsors
shall approve performance measures based on mission, curriculum, teaching
methods, and services. Sponsors shall also approve comprehensive academic
and behavioral measures to determine whether students are meeting performance
standards on a different time frame as specified in that school's charter.
Student performance shall be assessed comprehensively to determine whether a
high risk or alternative charter school has documented adequate student
progress. Student performance shall be based on sponsor-approved
comprehensive measures as well as standardized public school measures.
Annual presentation of charter school report card data to the department of
elementary and secondary education, the state board, and the public shall
include comprehensive measures of student progress.
(c) Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed as permitting a charter
school to be held to lower performance standards than other public schools
within a district; however, the charter of a charter school may permit
students to meet performance standards on a different time frame as specified
in its charter;
(7) Assure that the needs of special education children are met in
compliance with all applicable federal and state laws and regulations;
(8) Provide along with any request for review by the state board of
education the following:
(a) Documentation that the applicant has provided a copy of the
application to the school board of the district in which the charter school
is to be located, except in those circumstances where the school district is
the sponsor of the charter school; and
(b) A statement outlining the reasons for approval or disapproval by the
sponsor, specifically addressing the requirements of sections 160.400 to
160.420 and 167.349.
6. The charter of a charter school may be amended at the request of the
governing body of the charter school and on the approval of the sponsor. The
sponsor and the governing board and staff of the charter school shall jointly
review the school's performance, management and operations at least once
every two years or at any point where the operation or management of the
charter school is changed or transferred to another entity, either public or
private. The governing board of a charter school may amend the charter, if
the sponsor approves such amendment, or the sponsor and the governing board
may reach an agreement in writing to reflect the charter school's decision to
become a local educational agency for the sole purpose of seeking direct
access to federal grants. In such case the sponsor shall give the department
of elementary and secondary education written notice no later than March
first of any year, with the agreement to become effective July first. The
department may waive the March first notice date in its discretion. The
department shall identify and furnish a list of its regulations that pertain
to local educational agencies to such schools within thirty days of receiving
such notice.
7. (1) A sponsor shall revoke a charter or take other appropriate
remedial action, which may include placing the charter school on probationary
status, at any time if the charter school commits a serious breach of one or
more provisions of its charter or on any of the following grounds: failure to
meet academic performance standards as set forth in its charter, failure to
meet generally accepted standards of fiscal management, failure to provide
information necessary to confirm compliance with all provisions of the
charter and sections 160.400 to 160.420 and 167.349 within forty-five days
following receipt of written notice requesting such information, or violation
of law.
(2) The sponsor may place the charter school on probationary status to
allow the implementation of a remedial plan, which may require a change of
methodology, a change in leadership, or both, after which, if such plan is
unsuccessful, the charter may be revoked.
(3) At least sixty days before acting to revoke a charter, the sponsor
shall notify the governing board of the charter school of the proposed action
in writing. The notice shall state the grounds for the proposed action. The
school's governing board may request in writing a hearing before the sponsor
within two weeks of receiving the notice.
(4) The sponsor of a charter school shall establish procedures to
conduct administrative hearings upon determination by the sponsor that
grounds exist to revoke a charter. Final decisions of a sponsor from
hearings conducted pursuant to this subsection are subject to judicial review
pursuant to chapter 536.
(5) A termination shall be effective only at the conclusion of the
school year, unless the sponsor determines that continued operation of the
school presents a clear and immediate threat to the health and safety of the
children.
(6) A charter sponsor shall make available the school accountability
report card information as provided under section 160.522 and the results of
the academic monitoring required under subsection 3 of this section.
8. A sponsor shall take all reasonable steps necessary to confirm that
each charter school sponsored by such sponsor is in material compliance and
remains in material compliance with all material provisions of the charter
and sections 160.400 to 160.420 and 167.349. Every charter school shall
provide all information necessary to confirm ongoing compliance with all
provisions of its charter and sections 160.400 to 160.420 and 167.349 in a
timely manner to its sponsor.
9. A school district may enter into a lease with a charter school for
physical facilities.
10. A governing board or a school district employee who has control over
personnel actions shall not take unlawful reprisal against another employee
at the school district because the employee is directly or indirectly
involved in an application to establish a charter school. A governing board
or a school district employee shall not take unlawful reprisal against an
educational program of the school or the school district because an
application to establish a charter school proposes the conversion of all or a
portion of the educational program to a charter school. As used in this
subsection, "unlawful reprisal" means an action that is taken by a governing
board or a school district employee as a direct result of a lawful
application to establish a charter school and that is adverse to another
employee or an educational program.
11. Charter school board members shall be subject to the same liability
for acts while in office as if they were regularly and duly elected members
of school boards in any other public school district in this state. The
governing board of a charter school may participate, to the same extent as a
school board, in the Missouri public entity risk management fund in the
manner provided under sections 537.700 to 537.756.
12. Any entity, either public or private, operating, administering, or
otherwise managing a charter school shall be considered a quasi-public
governmental body and subject to the provisions of sections 610.010 to
610.035.
13. The chief financial officer of a charter school shall maintain:
(1) A surety bond in an amount determined by the sponsor to be adequate
based on the cash flow of the school; or
(2) An insurance policy issued by an insurance company licensed to do
business in Missouri on all employees in the amount of five hundred thousand
dollars or more that provides coverage in the event of employee theft.
2006
160.405. 1. A person, group or organization seeking to establish a
charter school shall submit the proposed charter, as provided in this section,
to a sponsor. If the sponsor is not a school board, the applicant shall give
a copy of its application to the school board of the district in which the
charter school is to be located and to the state board of education, within
five business days of the date the application is filed with the proposed
sponsor. The school board may file objections with the proposed sponsor, and,
if a charter is granted, the school board may file objections with the state
board of education. The charter shall include a mission statement for the
charter school, a description of the charter school's organizational structure
and bylaws of the governing body, which will be responsible for the policy and
operational decisions of the charter school, a financial plan for the first
three years of operation of the charter school including provisions for annual
audits, a description of the charter school's policy for securing personnel
services, its personnel policies, personnel qualifications, and professional
development plan, a description of the grades or ages of students being
served, the school's calendar of operation, which shall include at least the
equivalent of a full school term as defined in section 160.011, and an outline
of criteria specified in this section designed to measure the effectiveness of
the school. The charter shall also state:
(1) The educational goals and objectives to be achieved by the charter
school;
(2) A description of the charter school's educational program and
curriculum;
(3) The term of the charter, which shall be not less than five years,
nor greater than ten years and shall be renewable;
(4) A description of the charter school's pupil performance standards,
which must meet the requirements of subdivision (6) of subsection 5 of this
section. The charter school program must be designed to enable each pupil to
achieve such standards;
(5) A description of the governance and operation of the charter school,
including the nature and extent of parental, professional educator, and
community involvement in the governance and operation of the charter school;
and
(6) A description of the charter school's policies on student discipline
and student admission, which shall include a statement, where applicable, of
the validity of attendance of students who do not reside in the district but
who may be eligible to attend under the terms of judicial settlements.
2. Proposed charters shall be subject to the following requirements:
(1) A charter may be approved when the sponsor determines that the
requirements of this section are met and determines that the applicant is
sufficiently qualified to operate a charter school. The sponsor's decision of
approval or denial shall be made within ninety days of the filing of the
proposed charter;
(2) If the charter is denied, the proposed sponsor shall notify the
applicant in writing as to the reasons for its denial and forward a copy to
the state board of education within five business days following the denial;
(3) If a proposed charter is denied by a sponsor, the proposed charter
may be submitted to the state board of education, along with the sponsor's
written reasons for its denial. If the state board determines that the
applicant meets the requirements of this section, that the applicant is
sufficiently qualified to operate the charter school, and that granting a
charter to the applicant would be likely to provide educational benefit to the
children of the district, the state board may grant a charter and act as
sponsor of the charter school. The state board shall review the proposed
charter and make a determination of whether to deny or grant the proposed
charter within sixty days of receipt of the proposed charter, provided that
any charter to be considered by the state board of education under this
subdivision shall be submitted no later than March first prior to the school
year in which the charter school intends to begin operations. The state board
of education shall notify the applicant in writing as the reasons for its
denial, if applicable; and
(4) The sponsor of a charter school shall give priority to charter
school applicants that propose a school oriented to high-risk students and to
the reentry of dropouts into the school system. If a sponsor grants three or
more charters, at least one-third of the charters granted by the sponsor shall
be to schools that actively recruit dropouts or high-risk students as their
student body and address the needs of dropouts or high-risk students through
their proposed mission, curriculum, teaching methods, and services. For
purposes of this subsection, a "high-risk" student is one who is at least one
year behind in satisfactory completion of course work or obtaining credits for
graduation, pregnant or a parent, homeless or has been homeless sometime
within the preceding six months, has limited English proficiency, has been
suspended from school three or more times, is eligible for free or
reduced-price school lunch, or has been referred by the school district for
enrollment in an alternative program. "Dropout" shall be defined through the
guidelines of the school core data report. The provisions of this subsection
do not apply to charters sponsored by the state board of education.
3. If a charter is approved by a sponsor, the charter application shall
be submitted to the state board of education, along with a statement of
finding that the application meets the requirements of sections 160.400 to
160.420 and section 167.439, RSMo, and a monitoring plan under which the
charter sponsor will evaluate the academic performance of students enrolled in
the charter school. The state board of education may, within sixty days,
disapprove the granting of the charter. The state board of education may
disapprove a charter on grounds that the application fails to meet the
requirements of sections 160.400 to 160.420 and section 167.349, RSMo, or that
a charter sponsor previously failed to meet the statutory responsibilities of
a charter sponsor.
4. Any disapproval of a charter pursuant to subsection 3 of this section
shall be subject to judicial review pursuant to chapter 536, RSMo.
5. A charter school shall, as provided in its charter:
(1) Be nonsectarian in its programs, admission policies, employment
practices, and all other operations;
(2) Comply with laws and regulations of the state, county, or city
relating to health, safety, and state minimum educational standards, as
specified by the state board of education, including the requirements relating
to student discipline under sections 160.261, 167.161, 167.164, and 167.171,
RSMo, notification of criminal conduct to law enforcement authorities under
sections 167.115 to 167.117, RSMo, academic assessment under section 160.518,
transmittal of school records under section 167.020, RSMo, and the minimum
number of school days and hours required under section 160.041;
(3) Except as provided in sections 160.400 to 160.420, be exempt from
all laws and rules relating to schools, governing boards and school districts;
(4) Be financially accountable, use practices consistent with the
Missouri financial accounting manual, provide for an annual audit by a
certified public accountant, publish audit reports and annual financial
reports as provided in chapter 165, RSMo, provided that the annual financial
report may be published on the department of elementary and secondary
education's Internet web site in addition to other publishing requirements,
and provide liability insurance to indemnify the school, its board, staff and
teachers against tort claims. A charter school that receives local
educational agency status under subsection 6 of this section shall meet the
requirements imposed by the Elementary and Secondary Education Act for audits
of such agencies. For purposes of an audit by petition under section 29.230,
RSMo, a charter school shall be treated as a political subdivision on the same
terms and conditions as the school district in which it is located. For the
purposes of securing such insurance, a charter school shall be eligible for
the Missouri public entity risk management fund pursuant to section 537.700,
RSMo. A charter school that incurs debt must include a repayment plan in its
financial plan;
(5) Provide a comprehensive program of instruction for at least one
grade or age group from kindergarten through grade twelve, which may include
early childhood education if funding for such programs is established by
statute, as specified in its charter;
(6) (a) Design a method to measure pupil progress toward the pupil
academic standards adopted by the state board of education pursuant to section
160.514, collect baseline data during at least the first three years for
determining how the charter school is performing and to the extent applicable,
participate in the statewide system of assessments, comprised of the essential
skills tests and the nationally standardized norm-referenced achievement
tests, as designated by the state board pursuant to section 160.518, complete
and distribute an annual report card as prescribed in section 160.522, which
shall also include a statement that background checks have been completed on
the charter school's board members, report to its sponsor, the local school
district, and the state board of education as to its teaching methods and any
educational innovations and the results thereof, and provide data required for
the study of charter schools pursuant to subsection 4 of section 160.410. No
charter school will be considered in the Missouri school improvement program
review of the district in which it is located for the resource or process
standards of the program.
(b) For proposed high risk or alternative charter schools, sponsors
shall approve performance measures based on mission, curriculum, teaching
methods, and services. Sponsors shall also approve comprehensive academic and
behavioral measures to determine whether students are meeting performance
standards on a different time frame as specified in that school's charter.
Student performance shall be assessed comprehensively to determine whether a
high risk or alternative charter school has documented adequate student
progress. Student performance shall be based on sponsor-approved
comprehensive measures as well as standardized public school measures. Annual
presentation of charter school report card data to the department of
elementary and secondary education, the state board, and the public shall
include comprehensive measures of student progress.
(c) Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed as permitting a charter
school to be held to lower performance standards than other public schools
within a district; however, the charter of a charter school may permit
students to meet performance standards on a different time frame as specified
in its charter;
(7) Assure that the needs of special education children are met in
compliance with all applicable federal and state laws and regulations;
(8) Provide along with any request for review by the state board of
education the following:
(a) Documentation that the applicant has provided a copy of the
application to the school board of the district in which the charter school is
to be located, except in those circumstances where the school district is the
sponsor of the charter school; and
(b) A statement outlining the reasons for approval or disapproval by the
sponsor, specifically addressing the requirements of sections 160.400 to
160.420 and 167.349, RSMo.
6. The charter of a charter school may be amended at the request of the
governing body of the charter school and on the approval of the sponsor. The
sponsor and the governing board and staff of the charter school shall jointly
review the school's performance, management and operations at least once every
two years or at any point where the operation or management of the charter
school is changed or transferred to another entity, either public or private.
The governing board of a charter school may amend the charter, if the sponsor
approves such amendment, or the sponsor and the governing board may reach an
agreement in writing to reflect the charter school's decision to become a
local educational agency for the sole purpose of seeking direct access to
federal grants. In such case the sponsor shall give the department of
elementary and secondary education written notice no later than March first of
any year, with the agreement to become effective July first. The department
may waive the March first notice date in its discretion. The department shall
identify and furnish a list of its regulations that pertain to local
educational agencies to such schools within thirty days of receiving such
notice.
7. (1) A sponsor may revoke a charter at any time if the charter school
commits a serious breach of one or more provisions of its charter or on any of
the following grounds: failure to meet academic performance standards as set
forth in its charter, failure to meet generally accepted standards of fiscal
management, failure to provide information necessary to confirm compliance
with all provisions of the charter and sections 160.400 to 160.420 and
167.349, RSMo, within forty-five days following receipt of written notice
requesting such information, or violation of law.
(2) The sponsor may place the charter school on probationary status to
allow the implementation of a remedial plan, which may require a change of
methodology, a change in leadership, or both, after which, if such plan is
unsuccessful, the charter may be revoked.
(3) At least sixty days before acting to revoke a charter, the sponsor
shall notify the governing board of the charter school of the proposed action
in writing. The notice shall state the grounds for the proposed action. The
school's governing board may request in writing a hearing before the sponsor
within two weeks of receiving the notice.
(4) The sponsor of a charter school shall establish procedures to
conduct administrative hearings upon determination by the sponsor that grounds
exist to revoke a charter. Final decisions of a sponsor from hearings
conducted pursuant to this subsection are subject to judicial review pursuant
to chapter 536, RSMo.
(5) A termination shall be effective only at the conclusion of the
school year, unless the sponsor determines that continued operation of the
school presents a clear and immediate threat to the health and safety of the
children.
(6) A charter sponsor shall make available the school accountability
report card information as provided under section 160.522 and the results of
the academic monitoring required under subsection 3 of this section.
8. A sponsor shall take all reasonable steps necessary to confirm that
each charter school sponsored by such sponsor is in material compliance and
remains in material compliance with all material provisions of the charter and
sections 160.400 to 160.420 and 167.349, RSMo. Every charter school shall
provide all information necessary to confirm ongoing compliance with all
provisions of its charter and sections 160.400 to 160.420 and 167.349, RSMo,
in a timely manner to its sponsor.
9. A school district may enter into a lease with a charter school for
physical facilities.
10. A governing board or a school district employee who has control over
personnel actions shall not take unlawful reprisal against another employee at
the school district because the employee is directly or indirectly involved in
an application to establish a charter school. A governing board or a school
district employee shall not take unlawful reprisal against an educational
program of the school or the school district because an application to
establish a charter school proposes the conversion of all or a portion of the
educational program to a charter school. As used in this subsection,
"unlawful reprisal" means an action that is taken by a governing board or a
school district employee as a direct result of a lawful application to
establish a charter school and that is adverse to another employee or an
educational program.
11. Charter school board members shall be subject to the same liability
for acts while in office as if they were regularly and duly elected members of
school boards in any other public school district in this state. The
governing board of a charter school may participate, to the same extent as a
school board, in the Missouri public entity risk management fund in the manner
provided under sections 537.700 to 537.756, RSMo.
12. Any entity, either public or private, operating, administering, or
otherwise managing a charter school shall be considered a quasi-public
governmental body and subject to the provisions of sections 610.010 to
610.035, RSMo.
13. The chief financial officer of a charter school shall maintain a
surety bond in an amount determined by the sponsor to be adequate based on the
cash flow of the school.
1998
160.405. 1. A person, group or organization seeking to establish a
charter school shall submit the proposed charter, as provided in this section,
to a sponsor. If the sponsor is not a school board, the applicant shall give
a copy of its application to the school board of the district in which the
charter school is to be located and to the state board of education, within
five business days of the date the application is filed with the proposed
sponsor. The school board may file objections with the proposed sponsor, and,
if a charter is granted, the school board may file objections with the state
board of education. The charter shall include a mission statement for the
charter school, a description of the charter school's organizational structure
and bylaws of the governing body, which will be responsible for the policy and
operational decisions of the charter school, a financial plan for the first
three years of operation of the charter school including provisions for annual
audits, a description of the charter school's policy for securing personnel
services, its personnel policies, personnel qualifications, and professional
development plan, a description of the grades or ages of students being
served, the school's calendar of operation, which shall include at least the
equivalent of a full school term as defined in section 160.011, and an outline
of criteria specified in this section designed to measure the effectiveness of
the school. The charter shall also state:
(1) The educational goals and objectives to be achieved by the charter
school;
(2) A description of the charter school's educational program and
curriculum;
(3) The term of the charter, which shall be not less than five years,
nor greater than ten years and shall be renewable;
(4) A description of the charter school's pupil performance standards,
which must meet the requirements of subdivision (6) of subsection 5 of this
section. The charter school program must be designed to enable each pupil to
achieve such standards;
(5) A description of the governance and operation of the charter school,
including the nature and extent of parental, professional educator, and
community involvement in the governance and operation of the charter school;
and
(6) A description of the charter school's policies on student discipline
and student admission, which shall include a statement, where applicable, of
the validity of attendance of students who do not reside in the district but
who may be eligible to attend under the terms of judicial settlements.
2. Proposed charters shall be subject to the following requirements:
(1) A charter may be approved when the sponsor determines that the
requirements of this section are met and determines that the applicant is
sufficiently qualified to operate a charter school. The sponsor's decision of
approval or denial shall be made within ninety days of the filing of the
proposed charter;
(2) If the charter is denied, the proposed sponsor shall notify the
applicant in writing as to the reasons for its denial and forward a copy to
the state board of education within five business days following the denial;
(3) If a proposed charter is denied by a sponsor, the proposed charter
may be submitted to the state board of education, along with the sponsor's
written reasons for its denial. If the state board determines that the
applicant meets the requirements of this section, that the applicant is
sufficiently qualified to operate the charter school, and that granting a
charter to the applicant would be likely to provide educational benefit to the
children of the district, the state board may grant a charter and act as
sponsor of the charter school. The state board shall review the proposed
charter and make a determination of whether to deny or grant the proposed
charter within sixty days of receipt of the proposed charter, provided that
any charter to be considered by the state board of education under this
subdivision shall be submitted no later than March first prior to the school
year in which the charter school intends to begin operations. The state board
of education shall notify the applicant in writing as the reasons for its
denial, if applicable; and
(4) The sponsor of a charter school shall give priority to charter
school applicants that propose a school oriented to high-risk students and to
the reentry of dropouts into the school system. If a sponsor grants three or
more charters, at least one-third of the charters granted by the sponsor shall
be to schools that actively recruit dropouts or high-risk students as their
student body and address the needs of dropouts or high-risk students through
their proposed mission, curriculum, teaching methods, and services. For
purposes of this subsection, a "high-risk" student is one who is at least one
year behind in satisfactory completion of course work or obtaining credits for
graduation, pregnant or a parent, homeless or has been homeless sometime
within the preceding six months, has limited English proficiency, has been
suspended from school three or more times, is eligible for free or
reduced-price school lunch, or has been referred by the school district for
enrollment in an alternative program. "Dropout" shall be defined through the
guidelines of the school core data report. The provisions of this subsection
do not apply to charters sponsored by the state board of education.
3. If a charter is approved by a sponsor, the charter application shall
be submitted to the state board of education, along with a statement of
finding that the application meets the requirements of sections 160.400 to
160.420 and section 167.439, RSMo, and a monitoring plan under which the
charter sponsor will evaluate the academic performance of students enrolled in
the charter school. The state board of education may, within sixty days,
disapprove the granting of the charter. The state board of education may
disapprove a charter on grounds that the application fails to meet the
requirements of sections 160.400 to 160.420 and section 167.349, RSMo, or that
a charter sponsor previously failed to meet the statutory responsibilities of
a charter sponsor.
4. Any disapproval of a charter pursuant to subsection 3 of this section
shall be subject to judicial review pursuant to chapter 536, RSMo.
5. A charter school shall, as provided in its charter:
(1) Be nonsectarian in its programs, admission policies, employment
practices, and all other operations;
(2) Comply with laws and regulations of the state, county, or city
relating to health, safety, and state minimum educational standards, as
specified by the state board of education, including the requirements relating
to student discipline under sections 160.261, 167.161, 167.164, and 167.171,
RSMo, notification of criminal conduct to law enforcement authorities under
sections 167.115 to 167.117, RSMo, academic assessment under section 160.518,
transmittal of school records under section 167.020, RSMo, and the minimum
number of school days and hours required under section 160.041;
(3) Except as provided in sections 160.400 to 160.420, be exempt from
all laws and rules relating to schools, governing boards and school districts;
(4) Be financially accountable, use practices consistent with the
Missouri financial accounting manual, provide for an annual audit by a
certified public accountant, publish audit reports and annual financial
reports as provided in chapter 165, RSMo, provided that the annual financial
report may be published on the department of elementary and secondary
education's Internet web site in addition to other publishing requirements,
and provide liability insurance to indemnify the school, its board, staff and
teachers against tort claims. A charter school that receives local
educational agency status under subsection 6 of this section shall meet the
requirements imposed by the Elementary and Secondary Education Act for audits
of such agencies. For purposes of an audit by petition under section 29.230,
RSMo, a charter school shall be treated as a political subdivision on the same
terms and conditions as the school district in which it is located. For the
purposes of securing such insurance, a charter school shall be eligible for
the Missouri public entity risk management fund pursuant to section 537.700,
RSMo. A charter school that incurs debt must include a repayment plan in its
financial plan;
(5) Provide a comprehensive program of instruction for at least one
grade or age group from kindergarten through grade twelve, which may include
early childhood education if funding for such programs is established by
statute, as specified in its charter;
(6) (a) Design a method to measure pupil progress toward the pupil
academic standards adopted by the state board of education pursuant to section
160.514, collect baseline data during at least the first three years for
determining how the charter school is performing and to the extent applicable,
participate in the statewide system of assessments, comprised of the essential
skills tests and the nationally standardized norm-referenced achievement
tests, as designated by the state board pursuant to section 160.518, complete
and distribute an annual report card as prescribed in section 160.522, which
shall also include a statement that background checks have been completed on
the charter school's board members, report to its sponsor, the local school
district, and the state board of education as to its teaching methods and any
educational innovations and the results thereof, and provide data required for
the study of charter schools pursuant to subsection 4 of section 160.410. No
charter school will be considered in the Missouri school improvement program
review of the district in which it is located for the resource or process
standards of the program.
(b) For proposed high risk or alternative charter schools, sponsors
shall approve performance measures based on mission, curriculum, teaching
methods, and services. Sponsors shall also approve comprehensive academic and
behavioral measures to determine whether students are meeting performance
standards on a different time frame as specified in that school's charter.
Student performance shall be assessed comprehensively to determine whether a
high risk or alternative charter school has documented adequate student
progress. Student performance shall be based on sponsor-approved
comprehensive measures as well as standardized public school measures. Annual
presentation of charter school report card data to the department of
elementary and secondary education, the state board, and the public shall
include comprehensive measures of student progress.
(c) Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed as permitting a charter
school to be held to lower performance standards than other public schools
within a district; however, the charter of a charter school may permit
students to meet performance standards on a different time frame as specified
in its charter;
(7) Assure that the needs of special education children are met in
compliance with all applicable federal and state laws and regulations;
(8) Provide along with any request for review by the state board of
education the following:
(a) Documentation that the applicant has provided a copy of the
application to the school board of the district in which the charter school is
to be located, except in those circumstances where the school district is the
sponsor of the charter school; and
(b) A statement outlining the reasons for approval or disapproval by the
sponsor, specifically addressing the requirements of sections 160.400 to
160.420 and 167.349, RSMo.
6. The charter of a charter school may be amended at the request of the
governing body of the charter school and on the approval of the sponsor. The
sponsor and the governing board and staff of the charter school shall jointly
review the school's performance, management and operations at least once every
two years or at any point where the operation or management of the charter
school is changed or transferred to another entity, either public or private.
The governing board of a charter school may amend the charter, if the sponsor
approves such amendment, or the sponsor and the governing board may reach an
agreement in writing to reflect the charter school's decision to become a
local educational agency for the sole purpose of seeking direct access to
federal grants. In such case the sponsor shall give the department of
elementary and secondary education written notice no later than March first of
any year, with the agreement to become effective July first. The department
may waive the March first notice date in its discretion. The department shall
identify and furnish a list of its regulations that pertain to local
educational agencies to such schools within thirty days of receiving such
notice.
7. (1) A sponsor may revoke a charter at any time if the charter school
commits a serious breach of one or more provisions of its charter or on any of
the following grounds: failure to meet academic performance standards as set
forth in its charter, failure to meet generally accepted standards of fiscal
management, failure to provide information necessary to confirm compliance
with all provisions of the charter and sections 160.400 to 160.420 and
167.349, RSMo, within forty-five days following receipt of written notice
requesting such information, or violation of law.
(2) The sponsor may place the charter school on probationary status to
allow the implementation of a remedial plan, which may require a change of
methodology, a change in leadership, or both, after which, if such plan is
unsuccessful, the charter may be revoked.
(3) At least sixty days before acting to revoke a charter, the sponsor
shall notify the governing board of the charter school of the proposed action
in writing. The notice shall state the grounds for the proposed action. The
school's governing board may request in writing a hearing before the sponsor
within two weeks of receiving the notice.
(4) The sponsor of a charter school shall establish procedures to
conduct administrative hearings upon determination by the sponsor that grounds
exist to revoke a charter. Final decisions of a sponsor from hearings
conducted pursuant to this subsection are subject to judicial review pursuant
to chapter 536, RSMo.
(5) A termination shall be effective only at the conclusion of the
school year, unless the sponsor determines that continued operation of the
school presents a clear and immediate threat to the health and safety of the
children.
(6) A charter sponsor shall make available the school accountability
report card information as provided under section 160.522 and the results of
the academic monitoring required under subsection 3 of this section.
8. A sponsor shall take all reasonable steps necessary to confirm that
each charter school sponsored by such sponsor is in material compliance and
remains in material compliance with all material provisions of the charter and
sections 160.400 to 160.420 and 167.349, RSMo. Every charter school shall
provide all information necessary to confirm ongoing compliance with all
provisions of its charter and sections 160.400 to 160.420 and 167.349, RSMo,
in a timely manner to its sponsor.
9. A school district may enter into a lease with a charter school for
physical facilities.
10. A governing board or a school district employee who has control over
personnel actions shall not take unlawful reprisal against another employee at
the school district because the employee is directly or indirectly involved in
an application to establish a charter school. A governing board or a school
district employee shall not take unlawful reprisal against an educational
program of the school or the school district because an application to
establish a charter school proposes the conversion of all or a portion of the
educational program to a charter school. As used in this subsection,
"unlawful reprisal" means an action that is taken by a governing board or a
school district employee as a direct result of a lawful application to
establish a charter school and that is adverse to another employee or an
educational program.
11. Charter school board members shall be subject to the same liability
for acts while in office as if they were regularly and duly elected members of
school boards in any other public school district in this state. The
governing board of a charter school may participate, to the same extent as a
school board, in the Missouri public entity risk management fund in the manner
provided under sections 537.700 to 537.756, RSMo.
12. Any entity, either public or private, operating, administering, or
otherwise managing a charter school shall be considered a quasi-public
governmental body and subject to the provisions of sections 610.010 to
610.035, RSMo.
13. The chief financial officer of a charter school shall maintain a
surety bond in an amount determined by the sponsor to be adequate based on the
cash flow of the school.
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