Texas Charter Schools Newsletter – September 2022

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Charter School Authorizing and Administration

September 2022

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

EVENTS & DEADLINES

September 2022

October 2022

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FROM THE DIRECTOR'S DESK

Happy Fall everyone! We kicked off the season here in Austin yesterday with a high of 99. We know your schools and students are settling into new routines and tackling the school year ahead of them. Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you need anything as the year progresses. 

We’re issuing our newsletter early this month to make sure it’s in your inboxes before everyone heads to San Antonio for the Texas Public Charter Schools Association conference next week. We look forward to connecting with you at our sessions on Monday and Wednesday and during office hours. We’re excited about the great content we and other divisions at TEA have prepared for you. Be sure to come say hello and meet your portfolio coordinator along with other members of our team! 

As always, you can email, call, or text me with any questions or concerns. 

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UPDATES FROM THE CHARTER DIVISION

UPCOMING DEADLINES:

2022 Fee Survey Due October 28

The 2022 Fee Survey will cover all student fees charged to students and their families during the 2020-2021 school year. Each LEA is required to submit a survey.

This survey is based on Texas Education Code §11.158 and §12.108, which states the authority to charge fees and fee restriction.

Please use this link and complete the survey by Friday, October 28. If you have any questions, please email charterschools@tea.texas.gov

2022-2023 TSDS Charter School Waitlist Reporting Due October 28

The purpose of the Charter School Waitlist Collection is to meet the requirements of TEC Chapter 12, Subchapter D, Section 12.1174 by collecting information about enrollment and the use of a waiting list. All data must be reported as of the last Friday in September and the data is due to the agency by the close of the collection on the last Friday in October.

For more information about submission purpose, requirements, timelines and specifications please visit TWEDS (TSDS Web Enabled Data Standards).

If you need assistance with your waitlist submission, please contact your ESC TSDS Champion:

Annual Governance Reporting Forms Due December 1

The Texas Education Agency (TEA) is statutorily required to collect Governance Reporting Forms (GRF) annually for open-enrollment charter school officers and governing body members. All charter schools operating during the 2022-2023 school year must submit the information through the Charter School Tracking System (CSTS), starting on October 1, 2022, and no later than December 1, 2022.

Each charter school is required to establish the Texas Education Agency Login (TEAL) role of Charter Approver in CSTS for the superintendent. Charter schools may also establish a Charter Data Entry role allowing another individual to enter required information before the Charter Approver submits it. One online form must be completed for EACH board member and school officer for each charter. All forms must be in “submitted” status to complete the submission.

Guidelines and instructions are available on the Charter School Division’s governance webpage, and if you have any questions during the process please feel free to contact your Portfolio Coordinator or email CharterGovernance@tea.texas.gov.


UPCOMING EVENTS:

TEA at the TPCSA Conference 

For those of you that are planning to attend the TPCSA conference in San Antonio next week, staff members from the TEA charter division are excited to meet you in person and engage with you throughout the conference!   

Charter division staff and other TEA staff members will be presenting conference kick-off workshops bright and early at 9:00 a.m. on Monday. Additional TEA sessions are scheduled for 9:45 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. Wednesday.   

The Monday kick-off sessions include: 

  • Renewal Processes and Procedures 
  • TEA Charter School Incubator 
  • SB 1365 Update 
  • Best Practices for Serving Bilingual Students 
  • Charter School Finance Update 
  • Charter Student Code of Conduct – Making It Work 

  The Wednesday sessions include: 

 9:45 a.m. 

  • Understanding the Charter Amendment Process 
  • Charter School Program (CSP) Grants 
  • Best Practices for Charter Governance  
  • Making Tutoring Accessible: HB 4545 & HIT  
  • Updates from Financial Compliance 
  • Career and Technology Education Update  
  • Differentiated Monitoring and Support (DMS) 

11:00 a.m. 

  • Lessons Learned from the First Five TIA Cohorts 
  • Ready, Set, Jet: Easy as 1, 2, 3! 
  • Behavior Supports for Students with Disabilities  
  • 2023 Charter School Performance Framework 
  • High-Quality Prekindergarten 
  • Safe and Supportive Schools 
  • 2023 A–F Accountability System Update 

In addition, TEA Commissioner Mike Morath will join us on Wednesday and provide a keynote address from 9:00-9:30 a.m.   

 Also, division staff members will have office hours available for you on Monday from 1:45 -4:00 p.m. and on Tuesday so that we can visit with you and learn more about your school and give you an opportunity to let us know your questions, accomplishments, concerns, and challenges.  If you are one of the 55 charters going through renewal this year, this would be a great opportunity to visit if you have questions about the process.  We look forward to meeting with you! 


IMPORTANT INFORMATION:

Keeping an Eye on School Safety 

The Texas Education Agency (TEA) and the Texas School Safety Center (TxSSC) are committed to supporting local educational agencies (LEAs) in their efforts to improve the safety and security of school facilities for staff, students, and visitors.  

The Texas School Safety Center (TXSSC) emailed superintendents on September 12th with submission guidance for updated MEOPs. Plans must be uploaded by October 12. See the TxSSC Guidance for the review. 

Other safety resources for charters: 

Streamlined Forms and Processes 

Last year the charter division piloted an electronic version of the expansion amendment form and AskTED update form. Based on our survey feedback, we have created an electronic version of the non-expansion amendment form as well. 

In addition, we have created an “All In One” electronic form that combines the following: 

  • AskTED Updates 
  • Campus Number Request for newly approved campuses 
  • Campus/Site Information Form for newly approved sites   
  • Campus Activation (includes submission of the COO) to begin to serve students 
  • Campus/Site Information Verification for newly opening locations 
  • Off-cycle board member changes 

We previewed these forms during our September Operator Council, and thanks to the great feedback that many of your provided during this past week, we are incorporating your suggestions and will be launching these forms the week of October 3rd on the charter amendments page.  

In addition, we previewed the following process changes for new campus openings during our September Operator Council meeting as well. These include: 

  • April 15th Campus Number Request - On April 15th of the year a campus is to open, we will send the “All In One” form link to charters with campuses opening to complete the Campus Number Request for that campus if they haven’t already completed it. 
  • July 1 Certificate of Occupancy Request and Campus Verification - On July 1 of the year a campus is to open, we will send the “All In One” form link to charters with campuses opening to submit the Certificate of Occupancy for that campus if they haven’t already completed it. The link will also include verification of campus information (opening date, address, grade levels served). 
  • TREx Access – All newly opening charters and charter campuses will have access to TREx on or about February 1 of the year they are opening, starting in February 2023. To gain access, the charter will need to complete the Campus Number Request section in the All In One form to receive a campus number and have their campus “Under Construction” in AskTED. 

We are excited about these changes, with the sincere hope that by streamlining processes and making resources more easily available, you will have more time to spend with your students and staff! If you have any questions, please reach out to your portfolio coordinator.

Charter Student Admission Application 

Thanks to the help of our charter operators as well as our external partners including the Texas Public Charter Schools Association, our Charter Student Admission Application has been revised and is ready to launch for the 2023-2024 school year!   

The revised application now includes prompts for parents to identify race, ethnicity, as well as the school district of residence. In addition, parents have the option of providing the student’s Social Security Number, S-Number, or Texas Unique Student Identification Number.   

Parents also can indicate whether they have another child applying to the charter school.  For schools that have an A.M. or P.M. option, parents can note that preference. Schools only need to ask information in the optional section that is applicable to them. 

If you have questions about the common application for admission, please reach out to your portfolio coordinator. 

Charter Division Employment Opportunities 

Do you know someone who is looking for an exciting opportunity to make a difference in the lives of Texas public school students?

As the TEA charter division grows, we have several great career opportunities that you or someone you know may be interested in. We have openings for an Executive Assistant, a Charter School Policy Manager, a Charter School Policy Specialist, and a Charter School Portfolio Analyst.  Please feel free to share these postings with other colleagues who you think might be a great fit for one of these positions. 

Questions? Please reach out to Marian Schutte for more information. 

Closed Charter Properties  

Did you know that there are opportunities for existing charter schools to purchase land and buildings from the state to further their charter operations? When a charter LEA ceases to operate, real estate originally owned by the charter school will sometimes become property of the state, and the state is obligated to liquidate those properties and deposit the proceeds into the state’s charter liquidation fund as outlined in the Texas Education Code §12.141.   

The Division of Sanction Monitoring, in coordination with the TEA Commissioner appointed Board of Managers for Children First Academy and Honors Academy, are presenting eligible charter schools and school districts an opportunity to bid on one to three properties in Houston, Dallas, and Killeen. 

To get additional information about these properties or to obtain a bid form, please email assetmanagement@tea.texas.gov  The deadline to submit bids for these properties is 5:00 p.m. on October 7, 2022.  If you have any questions concerning the property, please contact the Commissioner appointed Superintendent for both charter schools, Dr. Bobby Parker at parker.bobby@att.net. 

 

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MEET THE TEAM

Mercedes

Welcome, Mercedes Coleman! 

Mercedes is joining the team as a Portfolio Coordinator where she will assist with amendments, renewals, and governance reporting for charter schools beginning with E-L as well as KIPP and BASIS. Mercedes is a graduate of UT Austin and has 20+ years of experience in education as a 4th grade teacher, Spanish teacher, and administrator. She has spent the past 6 years at the Legislative Budget Board working on school performance reviews. She has 3 children and 3 dogs, and in her spare time enjoys reading, gardening, cooking, and practicing yoga.

NEWS FROM AROUND THE AGENCY

AskTED Updates Due October 28

Please update your district, school, and personnel information in AskTED by PEIMS Fall Snapshot on October 28, as it will be used for 2022-23 Texas Student Data System (TSDS) collections and the 2022-23 Texas School Directory. To do so, access AskTED administration through your TEAL account, select Texas Education Directory from your list of applications, and check the following:

  • Superintendent, principal, board member, and administrative staff information; District and school contact information; and Email addresses, mailing and site addresses, phone and fax numbers.
  • Verify that both school mailing address and school physical site address are listed for all of your schools. If the school physical address is missing, please add this information, and include both a street number and name. A PO box is not allowed for the school physical address.
  • Verify and update the residential facility status for the schools in your district, if applicable.

Also, if you have a new school that has been assigned a high school code (CEEB code), please contact the TEA AskTED administrator at askTED@tea.texas.gov so this code can be added to the school listing in AskTED. Please check with your school’s head counselor.

Physical Site Addresses Aren’t Just for FedEx Deliveries. Site addresses for your district and campuses are also used in geographic information systems (GIS), which enable analysis and groupings by geographic or political areas, such as legislative districts. We receive regular requests from state government and independent researchers for site address data. Please double-check your site addresses in AskTED to ensure we are providing our users the best data possible.

ESC Region Assignments. Districts are allowed to contract for services from any regional education service center. General services and PEIMS services can be arranged separately. Please double-check the Region Served and Region Served for PEIMS fields shown on your District Administration page in the TED administrator environment and contact us at askTED@tea.texas.gov if anything is out of order.

Superintendent Email Addresses. Please be aware that, when entering or editing information for the personnel role of superintendent or an equivalent role, there is an option to include a Non-public Email Address. TEA respects the privacy of this address and uses it only to communicate high-priority work-related information. It is not a required field. Many TEA communications will use the general district email address if the non-public email address field is empty.

For additional questions or guidance, please contact the TEA AskTED administrator at askTED@tea.texas.gov.

2022-2023 Title V, Part B Rural and Low-Income School Program Grant Application Due November 15

The 2022-2023 Title V, Part B Rural and Low-Income School Program Grant Application is now available in eGrants. Allocations for eligible applicants of the 2022-2023 Title V, Part B Rural and Low-Income School Program Grant are available and can be viewed on the Entitlements page.

Visit the TEA Grant Opportunities page for detailed information about this grant program. Search for 2022-2023 Title V, Part B Rural and Low-Income School Program Grant Application. Additional information on how to apply for a grant is available on the Applying for a Grant page.

Applicant Designation and Certification (ADC) Form

The ADC form must be submitted before the grant application is available in eGrants. To access the ADC, log into TEAL and select eGrants as the application. Once in eGrants, click on Grants on the menu bar.

Eligible applicants must apply through the eGrants system by 5:00 p.m. Central Time, November 15, 2022.

For program information, contact the Federal Program Compliance Division at ESSASupport@tea.texas.gov.

For additional information on the ADC or grant application, contact your assigned negotiator listed on the Grants Administration Contacts page.

2022–2023 Significant Expansion of Enrollment Funding

Open-enrollment charter schools that have been awarded 2022–2023 Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) or Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Part B (IDEA-B) federal grants may qualify for additional funding under these grants if they meet specific criteria defining significant expansion of enrollment.

Significant Expansion of Enrollment Criteria for ESSA and IDEA-B

To claim significant expansion of enrollment for both ESSA and IDEA-B, your open-enrollment charter school must meet both of the following criteria based on the newly expanded enrollment:

  • A minimum total student enrollment (ages 3–21) of 50
  • At least a 50% increase in the total student enrollment (ages 3–21) from previously reported student counts

For example, you would meet the criteria for significant expansion of enrollment if your total student enrollment increased from 250 to 375.

How to Request Access to Enrollment Reporting Form

If your open-enrollment charter school meets the criteria for significant expansion of enrollment for federal funding, email the Federal Fiscal Compliance and Reporting (FFCR) Division of the Texas Education Agency (TEA) at compliance@tea.texas.gov with your charter school name, county-district number, and a request that your 2022– 2023 SC5050–LEA Enrollment Data Request (SC5050) be opened.

The SC5050 collects actual enrollment data. TEA will open the SC5050 for you to enter, certify, and submit current actual enrollment counts. The current actual enrollment counts will be verified against the significant expansion criteria. You must maintain auditable documentation of the data submitted and be ready to submit the documentation to TEA upon request.

Timeline for Form Submission and Additional Funding

You may submit the updated SC5050 as soon as the 2022–2023 school year begins. The final date for submitting the SC5050 is January 31, 2023.

Any additional grant funding becomes available for either the 2022–2023 or 2023–2024 school year, depending on when you submit the updated SC5050.

Date of Certified Submission

Funding Availability

By November 1, 2022

2022–2023 school year final amounts

November 2, 2022, to January 31, 2023

2023–2024 school year planning amounts

If you have questions, please contact the FFCR Division at (512) 463-8864 or by email at compliance@tea.texas.gov.

2021-2022 Near Final State Aid Summary of Finances

2021–2022 Summary of Finance reports now incorporates Near-Final (NF) average daily attendance and FTEs from PEIMS summer submission (RUN ID 37791), Operational Minutes Adjustment (OMA), if applicable (RUN ID 37851), and updates to allotments for Transportation (RUN ID 37971), Teacher Incentive, Mentor Program, and VSN course completion. SOF updates for Final CCMR Outcomes Bonus allotments are still pending (NSC/IHE data for 2020 graduates, required to update CCMR OB allotments, is not available yet). NF adjustments for Additional Days School Year (ADSY) ADA will be incorporated once PEIMS submission #4 data are finalized in October 2022.

Negative balances resulting from 2021–2022 NF settle up will be transferred to reduce FSP payments in 2022–2023. Positive balances resulting from 2021–2022 NF settle up will be paid at the end of September, along with the first FSP payments for 2022–2023.

Please feel free to reach out to charterschoolfinance@tea.texas.gov for more information.

2022-2023 Six-Week District Summary Attendance through FSP System Application

2022-2023 FSP Six Week District Summary Attendance reporting through the Foundation School Program (FSP) application system is delayed until October 13, 2022 to implement system enhancements. TEA’s State Funding Division is aware many charter districts will not meet the 10-day calendar submission deadline because the submission link is inaccessible.  Please note that all charter districts may catchup and submit their Six Week District Summary Attendance beyond the 10-day calendar deadline for 2022-2023 1st and 2nd Six-Week District Summary Attendance reports, as applicable once the system is available. Thank you for your patience.

Please feel free to reach out to charterschoolfinance@tea.texas.gov for more information.

McKinney-Vento 101 Webinar

Join the TEA Texas Education for Homeless Children and Youth (TEHCY) Program for a McKinney-Vento 101 Zoom webinar on Tuesday, September 27th from 10:00 - 11:30 am.

School, LEA, and ESC staff are highly encouraged to attend!

Are you new to working with students and families experiencing homelessness? During this webinar, TEA TEHCY Program staff will provide an overview of the key requirements of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act. Attendees will learn more about identification, enrollment, dispute resolution, and the roles and responsibilities of Local Education Agencies (LEAs) and McKinney-Vento Liaisons to support students experiencing homelessness. 

Register Here!

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CHARTER SCHOOL SPOTLIGHT

amigos por vida

Amigos Por Vida-Friends for Life Public Charter School

Amigos Por Vida is celebrating earning another A rating in academic performance. Watch here to learn more about Amigos Por Vida and their recent achievements!

Do you have exciting news to share?

Send your Charter School Spotlight, news, and events to allison.werner@tea.texas.gov