• CSA: Community School Sponsorship, Oversight, and Intervention

    Policy

    The Board is committed to the goal of ensuring that all students in Cleveland have the opportunity to attend a high-quality public school. Integral to the District’s portfolio district strategy for realizing this goal is the role of public charter schools, also referred to as community schools. One of the principal ways the District supports high-quality community schools in Cleveland is through the authorization, or sponsorship, of such schools.

    Sponsorship Contracts

    The Board shall sponsor a community school by approving the community school’s application for sponsorship, submitted in response to a District request for proposals, and entering into a charter contract, or sponsorship contract, with the community school’s governing board. Among other things, the sponsorship contract shall set forth the District’s performance expectations for the community school.

    The District shall review annually changes in federal law, state law, other changes to Ohio’s community school accountability system, and performance data from sponsored schools to determine whether there is a need to amend existing sponsorship contracts and/or the performance measures the contracts incorporate.

    Oversight

    A District sponsorship contract and other documented guidance shall set forth performance expectations for the community school’s academic, financial, and organizational performance and its legal compliance. The sponsorship contract and other documented guidance also will set forth the District’s means of monitoring and evaluating the community school’s performance with reference to these expectations. The means of monitoring and evaluation shall include, but not be limited to:

    • The community school’s results on its Ohio School Report Card;
    • Information that the community school submits to the District;
    • School visits;
    • A monthly review process to measure and review the community school’s enrollment and enrollment records; and
    • A monthly review process to measure and review the community school’s financial performance and records.

    Intervention

    District sponsorship contracts also shall include an Intervention Protocol that sets forth at least the following provisions:

    • The conditions at the community school that may trigger intervention and corrective action by the District, which conditions shall include, but need not be limited to:
      • Possible legal or contractual violations;
      • Performance deficiencies;
      • Failure to meet reporting requirements on a timely basis;
      • Concerns, fluctuations, or discrepancies regarding enrollment or school finances; and
      • Failure to make sufficient progress on a corrective action plan, meet probationary terms, or remedy a reason for suspension of school operations.
    • The measures the District may take to investigate the situation, which shall include, but need not be limited to, additional reporting requirements, school site visits, meetings with the community school’s governing authority and/or personnel, formal or informal hearings, and reporting the situation to other investigative authorities;
    • The interventions the District may take or require of the community school and the consequences of the community school’s failure to resolve the situation on a timely basis, which shall include, but need not be limited to, imposing a corrective action plan, probation, the withholding or conditional release of funds, suspension of operations, and ultimately termination, and which, in the case of enrollment or financial concerns, shall include recommendations to the school’s governing authority regarding financial and enrollment decision-making;
    • The means the District may use to monitor the community school’s progress in resolving the situation, which shall include, but need not be limited to, additional school reporting, District investigation, and the appointment of a special monitoring agent; and
    • The establishment of timeframes for such monitoring and deadlines for resolving the situation, which necessarily shall be based on the particular circumstances giving rise to the District’s intervention.

    History

    • Adopted: May 1, 2018
    • Reviewed: October 22, 2019

    Legal References