Articulate specific site-based requirements, review match applications, and match restart operators to closing schools
Why Does This Matter?
- The experience and competency of an operator should align with the specific demographics and needs of the students to be served.
- This is a critical step in the community engagement process and presents an opportunity for the authorizer and school district to establish lasting support for the new school.
- Community members need access to potential restart operators to learn about their programs; in turn, the operators need to learn about the wants and needs of the school community.
Profiles of Restart Authorization Practices
Tennessee ASD: Match Application & Process
The Tennessee Achievement School District has always used a specific application for operators who seek to match with a school that has been identified, per our Step 2B: Identification. The match application does not ask an operator to restate its entire school model. Rather, operators identify specific changes or enhancements they intend to enact based on the specific needs of the students in the identified school. Learn more about the match application and process here.
DC Public Charter School Board: Role for Sitting Charter Board in Match Process
In charter-to-charter restarts that have taken place in Washington, D.C., the DC Public Charter School Board (DC PCSB) has empowered boards of low-performing charter schools to initiate the operator match process. In this approach, DC PCSB provides a list of high-quality restart operators to the board of the low-performing charter school. DC PCSB then encourages the board to take a leadership role in the process to recruit and match with an operator to restart the school. Learn more about charter-to charter restarts and charter boards here.
Baton Rouge RSD’s Engagement Work during Match Process
The Baton Rouge Recovery School District invites parents and community members to forums to meet potential charter operators. This is in addition to having an Achievement Zone Advisory Board. Learn more about Baton Rouge’s community engagement process and its forum feedback tool here.
Camden’s Approach to Engaging Community
The Camden City School District and the New Jersey Department of Education collaborated to open “Renaissance Schools Projects” in Camden, N.J. Renaissance schools are contract schools operated by high-performing charter management organizations. The school district handles the school identification and operator matching process, subject to state DOE approval. Camden focused on informing and engaging communities on restart decisions through community meetings, door-to-door outreach, and tight coordination with local community leaders. Camden incorporated community input on matching criteria into the operator request-for-proposal process, rather than soliciting input on final matching decisions. It focused its outreach efforts on communicating with and gaining support from community leaders. Learn more here.
Operator Perspective: UP Education’s Communication Tool
UP Education Network has developed a particularly thorough student enrollment and family and community relations guide. This tool includes sample press releases from the operator and supports leadership of the restart school throughout the match and transition steps. See the tool here.
Suggested Resources
Application to Match to Restart School
NAC Rubric on Restart Operator Application
Camden Press Release Announcing Restarts Schools in March 2015
UP Education School Takeover Announcement Guide
RSD Review Committee Orientation and Training Materials
Restart Case Study NSVF
SRC Presentation on Process and Matching Recommendations 2010