The next school year may seem far off in the distance, but it's not. Planning for it now is essential and planning will be easier by attending Horizon Connect. This one day-conference will feature State Superintendent Lindel Fields and provide dynamic sessions on topics focused on optimizing dollars, opportunity and results for kids. Horizon saved school districts nearly $5 million this school year and aims to save even more next year. Get in on the action and secure your seat at the conference today. All of those in charter schools who are responsible for PK-12 supplementary curriculum, professional development and Advanced Placement will find value by attending - and I know Superintendent Fields' presentation will be especially impactful!

Many of you had a lot of interest in an application by a Jewish foundation to start a charter school in Oklahoma. The Board voted unanimously at its meeting on Feb. 9 to reject the application due to legal precedent established by the Oklahoma Supreme Court, and a press statement is posted HERE.

The legislative session is under way and there are several bills we are watching impacting charter schools. We will be keeping a close eye on the following and keep you updated:

• HB3372 authored by Rep. Rob Hall would establish a revolving loan fund for charter school capital expenditures, requiring the SCSB to establish appropriate rules, procedures, and protocols for the loan fund’s effective management.
• SB366 authored by Sen. Kelly Hines and HB 3069 by Rep. Rob Hall would eliminate the mandate that charter school applicants first apply to a local school district.
• HB2154 also authored by Rep. Rob Hall would eliminate charters filing county-level Estimate of Needs since they do not receive local funds and instead require them to have annually board-approved budgets. In anticipation this will be approved, our April Lunch & Learn will be on budget-making. Stay tuned for details!
• SB 1971 by Sen. Sacchieri and SB 2070 by Sen. Adam Pugh would require charter schools to annually publish their annual performance reviews from their authorizers on their websites and both bills prescript what performance reviews must include. Among the requirements for the published reviews is an annual climate and satisfaction survey of parents and legal guardians.

Until next time!

Dr. Rebecca Wilkinson

Executive Director

Feb.26 | Noon

Bricks, Mortar & Balance Sheets

National charter facility experts from Level Field Partners will discuss what school board members and leaders need to consider when contemplating how to plan and secure financing for facilities. Already working with some Oklahoma charter schools, the presenters also will discuss the typical timelines and activities of securing facilities and how boards and their hired leaders can and should define a facilities strategy for their schools. They will explain the key metrics in boards determining affordability given their schools' bottom lines, and the types of charter school facility financing available to Oklahoma charters.

March 26 | Noon

The Charter School Playbook

Strong charter school boards create opportunities, anticipate risk, invest in innovation, keep excellent school leaders on the job, and most importantly keep students at the center of important decisions. This session will feature national experts from Bellwether drawing on their 15 years of experience nationally working with charter school boards and leaders and sparking inspiring and detailed conversation on how great charter school boards can improve student outcomes and school success, all while getting familiar with Bellwether's Charter School Board Playbook, a free resource full of proven strategies and tools.

It was recently brought to our attention that the Oklahoma Department of Education may have inaccurate training totals for charter school district board members. So, we encourage superintendents to check with OSDE on their board members' credits. If OSDE's records do not seem accurate based on your members' attending the annual Charter Schools Conference last spring and SCSB Lunch & Learns, please email either Jaycie.Smith@scsb.ok.gov or Shelly.Hickman@scsb.ok.gov. Both have up-to-date records of board members who have earned credit through our agency and can intervene with OSDE to ensure charter school board members' training credits are accurate ahead of your spring accreditation visits.

Mar. 09: Statewide Charter School Board Regular Meeting

Mar. 12: Charter School Applicant Training. Contact jaycie.smith@scsb.ok.gov to register.

Mar. 25: Horizon Connect Conference. Register

Apr. 13: Statewide Charter School Board Regular Meeting