Section II – New Charter School Petitions

Pursuant to Idaho Statute §33-5205 and IDAPA 08.02.04.201

1. New Charter School Petition Eligibility
   1. New charter school petitions shall be considered only at regularly scheduled IPCSC meetings.
   2. A petition for a new charter school shall be eligible for consideration by the IPCSC if all of the following are satisfied:
      1. The new charter school petition includes all required narrative sections and all required appendices, pursuant to IDAPA 80.02.04.202; and
      2. The new charter school petition is submitted by a governing board whose bylaws are compliant with the Idaho Nonprofit Corporation Act and fully executed, and whose articles of incorporation are filed in the state of Idaho; and
      3. The new charter school petition includes evidence that both the petition and the letter stating the petitioners’ intent to pursue authorization with the IPCSC were submitted to all impacted traditional school districts at least four (4) weeks prior to submission to the IPCSC .
      4. At least one member of the petitioning group has completed the Charter Start 101 workshop, hosted by the State Department of Education.
   3. A petition for a new charter school shall not be eligible for consideration by the IPCSC if any of the following are true:
   1. The petition has been denied by the IPCSC within the 90 days; or
   2. A Petition Evaluation Report for the proposed new public charter school has been issued by the IPCSC staff, and the petition was subsequently withdrawn from consideration prior to the scheduled hearing within the previous 90 days;
   3. No member of the petitioning group has completed the Charter Start 101 workshop, hosted by the State Department of Education.
   4. A petition for new charter school that seeks to replicate an existing school is not eligible to apply as a new charter school. Please see Section V of these policies for more information regarding a petition to replicate.
2. New Charter School Petition Submission Requirements
   1. A petition for a new charter school may be submitted to the IPCSC at any time.
   2. Petitions received between January 1st and September 1st, if approved, may open the following fall.
   3. Petitions received between September 2nd and December 31st will be subject to the next full review cycle based on the petition’s submission date. If approved, the public charter school may not begin operations until July 1 of the following year, at least eighteen (18) months after the date on which the petition was submitted.
   4. New Charter School Petitions must include the following:
      1. One Adobe PDF document comprising the petition narrative and all appendices, including the completed budget template; and
      2. One Excel document (including formulas) comprising the completed budget template.
      3. Materials provided by the petitioners, but not incorporated into the final PDF by the petitioners, shall not be forwarded to the IPCSC for consideration.
3. New Charter School Petition Content Requirements
   1. IPCSC staff will maintain a New Petition Guidance document and a full description of the Standards of Quality against which a new charter school petition shall be evaluated.
   2. Pursuant to IDAPA 08.02.04.202, the petition narrative shall include descriptions of the following:
      1. Educational program; and
      2. Financial and facilities plan; and
      3. Board capacity and governance structure; and
      4. Student demand and primary attendance area; and
      5. School leadership and management; and
      6. Virtual or blended learning model, if applicable.
   3. Pursuant to IDAPA 08.02.04.202.07, New Charter School Petitions shall include all of the following appendices:
      1. Appendix A – Budgets, including the IPCSC budget template and facility option template; and
      2. Appendix B – Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws; and
      3. Appendix C – Board of Directors; and
      4. Appendix D – School Administration; and
      5. Appendix E – Education Services Provider, if applicable.
   4. New charter school petitions may include any additional supporting documents incorporated into the PDF as Appendix F.
4. New Charter School Petition Evaluation Timeline
   1. Within thirty (30) days of receiving an eligible new charter school petition, IPCSC staff will issue a Petition Evaluation Report to the petitioners for use as a revision tool.
   2. IPCSC staff will conduct an interview with the public charter school’s governing board for the purpose of evaluating the board’s governance capacity. A summary of the interview shall be included in the final Petition Evaluation Report.
   3. Petition revisions will be accepted by IPCSC staff until, and no later thirty (30) calendar days prior to the hearing. Revisions submitted fewer than thirty (30) days prior to the hearing may be accepted at the discretion of the IPCSC Director.
   4. IPCSC staff will issue a recommendation for approval, denial, or conditional approval to the school within twelve (12) weeks of the original submission date.
   5. The IPCSC will hold a hearing at the next regularly scheduled meeting following the issuance of the IPCSC staff’s recommendation.
   6. Materials for the hearing will consist of:
      1. The final new charter school petition in PDF format, as submitted by the petitioners; and
      2. The final Petition Evaluation Report, as prepared by IPCSC staff; and
      3. A cover sheet noting the IPCSC staff’s recommendation.
   7. At the hearing, the IPCSC will issue a decision of approval, denial, or conditional approval.
   8. If approved, a Performance Certificate for an initial operational term of five (5) years will be drafted by the IPCSC staff, and must be executed by both parties within seventy-five (75) days from the date of approval.
   9. New public charter schools must attend a pre-opening orientation meeting with IPCSC staff within two (2) weeks of approval for the purpose of reviewing pre-opening requirements and timelines.
   10. Denials may be appealed to the state superintendent of public instruction, pursuant to I.C. ⸹ 33-5207.