Start a Charter

Are the students in your community not being served well by the current school(s)? Do you have a vision for a school that will specifically meet the needs of your community? Does your community want a new school option? Do you have a team of people who are committed to working for two or more years to make a new school for your community a reality? Do you or someone on your team have an academic background and a track record of serving students well? If your answer to all or most of these questions is yes, starting a charter school might be an option for you.

In Illinois, local school districts are the primary authorizers of charter schools. Charter founders develop and submit charter proposals to the local school board of the district (or districts) in which they seek to open a charter school. The district then reviews the proposal, holds a public hearing, and votes to authorize or deny the charter.

If approved, the proposal is reviewed, and ultimately certified, by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) for compliance in areas of finance, special education and services for English learners, among other areas.

If denied, the applicant may appeal to the Illinois State Charter School Commission, which may authorize charters on appeal that it finds to be legally compliant and in the best interest of the children the charter seeks to serve.

The district should think about how a new charter school might bring a new type of school to the community.  The Illinois State Charter School Commission is a great resource for districts considering opening a charter school.  They have created a model Request for Proposals and many other helpful resources on their web page. Charter schools can complement district offerings and have more flexibility than other district schools do to offer a nimble and responsive school model. For the same reasons, they can be used to pilot innovations that the district may wish to spread to its existing schools down the road.

Please download our free guidebook, Paving a New Path, for detailed information on the steps for starting a charter public school. It typically takes at least two years to move from an initial idea to charter authorization, followed by another 6-12 months of incubation before a new schools opens. As you get started, we believe it’s helpful to focus on the following key areas:

1. EXPERTISE AND LEADERSHIP. You must develop a strong team with the skills, experience and connections necessary to plan and execute your school model, educationally and operationally. This includes building a governing board that can provide appropriate oversight and leadership for the school, and a leadership team (or plans to hire them) who can execute the school model.
2. STRONG SCHOOL MODEL. You must develop and present a well-thought-out school model – educationally and operationally – that addresses identified assets and needs in the local community, with a clear mission and model that will lead to the achievement of that mission. The model must be financially sustainable. The school model must be articulated clearly in the charter proposal AND in in-person meetings, interactions and potential capacity interviews with the authorizer (as well as in interactions with the community).
3. DEEP COMMUNITY SUPPORT. You must be able to generate and demonstrate deep community support for your mission and school model. In practice, this often looks like more than 100 meetings with individuals and groups to share your vision and gain input from the community early on, in order to create a school that is uniquely designed to serve a specific community. Throughout the authorization process, you will need to continue on-the-ground community organizing; on-going communications with your supporters; enlistment of supporters to build additional awareness and support among their networks; development of partnerships with local organizations that will benefit your school and students; and mobilization of supporters via strong attendance and public comments at the public hearing and district vote (and, if you need to appeal, at a Commission public hearing and Commission vote). Ideally, you would generate both grassroots and grasstops support for your charter school. Having a “great idea” doesn’t matter if the community you seek to serve doesn’t strongly support the school.

While there is a cap on the number of charter schools allowed by law in Illinois, there is still plenty of room for new charters under the current cap. That is because the cap of 120 charters includes multi-campus charter schools (the first 15 charters authorized in Chicago in the 1990s and early 2000s were allowed to have multiple campuses). Including the multi-campus charters, there are fewer than 50 charters operating in Chicago today (out of 75 allowed under the cap) and 15 charters operating in communities outside Chicago (out of 25 allowed under the cap).

Charter schools receive per pupil funding of 97% to 103% of the district’s Per Capita Tuition Charge (PCTC), a figure that approximates the cost of educating a general education student in the district. In addition, charters are eligible to receive categorical funding, such as special education funding and Title I funds, based on the students enrolled in the school (for example, students with special needs or low-income students). Charters do not receive any funding specifically for facilities in Illinois, so they must pay for facilities out of their per pupil funding. It’s important to note that PCTC is different from and lower than Operating Expenses Per Pupil (OEPP).

Visit the Illinois Local Education Agency Retrieval Network (ILEARN) to find school district per student information, including the PCTC.

The federal government offers startup funding through the Charter Schools Program (CSP). Through 2019 or 2020, newly authorized Illinois charters can apply for CSP sub-grants of up to $950,000 over three years through the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE). Find more details here. Once ISBE’s grant ends, Illinois charter founders can apply directly to the U.S. Department of Education for CSP funds here.

In addition, some charter designers have received startup funding from the following sources:

• NewSchools Invent: Funding and support for teams of educators with ambitious plans to open innovative new public schools (goal of opening multiple schools)
• Next Generation Learning Challenge: Planning and launch grants for developers of new “blended learning” school models that utilize technology to dramatically improve student outcomes
• Charter School Growth Fund: Typically funds existing, high quality charter schools to expand.

Charter founders also often tap into their personal networks, such as by making direct asks or using online funding tools (e.g., GoFundMe) to solicit startup funds from friends, family and more distant connections. They can also research and cultivate relationships with local businesses or community-based organizations, individual donors and foundations (such as family foundations) that may lead to funding or partnership opportunities.