1. An Overview of Community Schools Presented to the State Board July 2015

2. Introduction Joni Hoffman, Director, Authorizer & Accreditor Evaluation, Office of Quality School Choice Donald Leming, Assistant Counsel, Office of Chief Legal Counsel

3. Presentation Topics Overview & terminology Past to present Discuss the legal framework Review the Sponsor Evaluation

4. What is a community school? Known as a public charter school elsewhere, a community school is: –A public school of choice –Considered its own LEA –Funded with public state & federal funds –Prohibited from raising revenue through taxation and from charging tuition* –Subject to Ohio’s accountability system –Required to close for continued poor academic performance

5. How are they created? Through a contractual agreement between: an approved Sponsor, called Authorizer elsewhere and the school’s board of directors, called Governing Authority

6. Different types New start-ups, limited as to who may sponsor them and where they may be opened; Conversions - two origins: District conversions, sponsored only by an LEA within its own district; and, ESC conversions, located in buildings operated by the ESC

7. Additional requirements – sponsors & schools New start-ups: -Sponsor must be grandfathered or approved by ODE -Open in Challenged districts only: -Any district in Lucas County -The Big 8/Ohio 8 -A district with LRC-rated poor academic performance -A district ranked in the lowest 5% - PI

8. Additional requirements, cont. New start-ups The definition is applied at the time the Preliminary Agreement and Contract are executed Once open, the school may continue to operate if the district’s Challenged status changes

9. Additional requirements, cont. Conversions -District conversion of all or a portion of a public school in the district -Exempted Village, Local Districts -City, Municipal Districts -Joint Vocational School Districts or Career Centers

10. Additional requirements, cont. Conversions -ESC conversion of a building operated by the ESC that is within the ESC’s service area county or contiguous county -No longer a specific geographic area; based on service area contracts -Building must then be leased to the conversion community school

11. ODE/Sponsor Roles Oversees Sponsor’s Monitoring of Schools Preliminary Agreement review –New in 2014, in response to new schools that failed to sustain operations, ODE required verification that the sponsor’s newly proposed school was determined based upon expectations of quality practices Contract sufficiency review –New contracts, modifications, renewals

12. ODE/Sponsor Roles, cont. Oversees Sponsor’s Monitoring of Schools Opening Assurances –All schools, annually –New in 2014, evidence of Sponsor’s Board Chair’s review Initiating funding/monitoring enrollment Closing Assurances Evaluates all sponsors

13. ODE/Community School Roles General Oversight Accountability (Report Cards) School Finance (enrollment review) Office of Federal Programs Office for Exceptional Children Office of Grants Management Assessment (testing improprieties) EMIS (reporting compliance) Office of Professional Conduct (investigations)

14. ODE/Community School Intervention Direct intervention: Funding –Consequences of compliance findings (OEC) or other federal matters (maintenance of effort) –If the school does not have minimum enrollment –As a consequence of an enrollment review –If declared unauditable for more than 90 days Health & Safety of students –If the school’s sponsor fails to act and circumstances warrant, ODE can suspend a school’s operations

15. Sponsor/School Roles Sponsor/authorizer: authority to establish; oversees; may intervene makes renewal decisions Developer A person or group proposing the establishment of a community school

16. School Roles Governing authority/board Responsible to guide the successful implementation of the community school contract Establishes policies May contract with an operator/ management company to manage the school’s daily operations

17. School Roles When there is a management company/operator: Governing authority contracts with a management company/operator for the school’s daily operations –Soup to nuts –Back office work only –Everything in between Note – Sponsor has limited authority to impact the School’s contract with an Operator

18. Sponsor/School Roles Summary Hold schools accountable Ensure school autonomy Evaluate performance on multiple fronts, annually Submit a school compliance report to ODE annually

20. Past to Present History Today’s Sponsors Today’s Schools

21. When were community schools created? June 1997 – a pilot project established in Lucas County –Permitted new start-ups in any district in Lucas County –Permitted conversions in any district statewide August 1997 – expanded new start-ups to the 8 largest urban districts

22. 1 st Year Schools & Sponsors First schools opened in 1998, all new start-ups: 15 - Sponsored by: Lucas County Educational Service Center (now ESC of Lake Erie West) – 5 schools State Board of Education – 10 schools

23. Number of Community Schools: 1998- 1999 to 2014-2015

24. Community Schools enrollment: 1998- 1999 to 2014-2015

25. Today’s Schools For School Year 2015-2016 65 Sponsors 379 Schools –120,674 pre-opening FTE enrollment

26. Today’s schools, continued

27. Who are today’s Sponsors?

28. Schools and their Sponsors

29. Sponsors approved by ODE

30. Schools with & without ODE approved Sponsors

31. Caps & Restrictions for Opening new schools Conversion sponsors – no caps New start-up sponsors – 100 maximum In 2013, eSchools creation: limited to 5 new/year with ODE approval Sponsors opening new schools, start-ups and conversions, in Cleveland Municipal School District: may be subject to review & approval

32. Laws and Rules “Except as otherwise specified in this chapter and in the contract between a community school and a sponsor, such school is exempt from all state laws and rules pertaining to schools, school districts, and boards of education, except those laws and rules that grant certain rights to parents.” R.C. 3314.04

33. Laws and Rules Open Meetings Laws – R.C. 121.22 Public Records Laws – R.C 149.43 Duty to Report Child Abuse or Neglect – R.C. 2151.421 Ethics Laws – R.C. 102 and 2921.42

34. School Accountability Give all state mandated tests; Meet all requirements of NCLB –Subject to interventions for poor performance, the same as traditional public schools Same standards for complying with federal and discretionary grants

35. Laws and Rules That Do Not Apply Operating Standards* Certain Licensure Requirements for Teachers and Administrators Transportation obligations Ability to Offer Home Schooling Option

36. School Accountability All teachers: –Must hold licenses –May teach outside area of licensure –Must be Highly Qualified All treasurers must be licensed

37. Important Court Cases Congress of Parents and Teachers (2006) –Issue: Constitutional challenge to community schools –Held: Community schools are constitutional

38. Important Court Cases, cont. Cordray v. Int’l Preparatory Sch. (2010) –Issue: Are community school officers public officials? –Held: Yes. They are public officials and they may be held strictly liable for the loss of public funds.

39. Important Court Cases, cont. Hope Acad. Broadway Campus v. Whitehat Mgmt., LLC (2013) –Issue: Who owns personal and real property purchased with money from a community school when the operator is the one that actually purchased the property?

40. Creating a community school Conversions: a developer applies to an operating or potential sponsor (school district, including JVSD, or ESC). New start-ups: a developer applies to an authorized sponsor of new start-ups (ODE approved or grandfathered)

41. Categories of Community Schools General education (any grade band of K through 12) May target at-risk students Including gifted; and autistic and other special needs; Dropout Prevention and Recovery May offer single gender schools

42. Kinds of Delivery Systems Virtual or Site-based Blended Year-round or typical calendar

43. A school that: - Serves primarily students ages 16-21 who have dropped out or are at-risk of dropping out - Operates a drug recovery program in cooperation with a court Dropout Prevention & Recovery

44. Receive an alternative Report Card: Assessed on 4 measures: - Growth in reading and math - Graduation rates (4 yr – 8 yr) - Assessment passage - Annual measurable objectives Subject to closure requirements 2014- 2015 Dropout Prevention & Recovery

45. 91 Schools, enrolling over 15,000 students - 11 are eSchools, 80 are site-based - 23 conversions are outside urban areas - 50 are located in one of the Ohio 8 districts Subject to closure requirements 2014-2015* Dropout Prevention & Recovery

46. 33 schools, all site-based 1 is a conversion 20 are located in the Ohio 8 Receive the standard report card Not subject to the closure criteria Schools Serving Primarily Students with Disabilities

47. A community school in which the enrolled students work primarily from their homes on assignments provided via the internet; does not rely on regular classroom instruction. Beginning in 2013, limited to 5 new eSchools opening each year, subject to the Superintendent’s approval eSchools

48. Subject to caps on annual rate of enrollment increases - 25% for eschools with base populations of less than 3,000 in FY13; - 15% for eschools with base populations of more than 3,000 in FY13. Must comply with iNACOL operating standards eSchools

49. - 24 eSchools - Serving 39,114 students - 12 enroll students statewide - 11 serve a dropout prevention and recovery population eSchools

50. Receive the standard report card Subject to the closure criteria eSchools

51. ODE has been working to support development of specialty schools: - CTE, implementing HB 59 - eSchools best practices in operations, accountability and assessment - DOPR report card Specialty Schools

52. Remaining an operating community school Meet compliance requirements Operate in a financially stable and fiscally responsible manner Meet or exceed the performance requirements of the contract with the Sponsor

53. Sponsor/School Intervention The Sponsor may: Place a school on probation –Assume temporary control of the Board if a remedy is not implemented Suspend a school for serious non- compliance, heath & safety, or financial concerns Non-renew a contract Terminate a contract

54. Academic Accountability – Unique to Ohio General education and dropout prevention and recovery schools subject to closure based upon academic results assessed on the school’s state Report Card

55. Academic Performance

56. Community schools are subject to closure for sustained poor academic performance Closure criteria depend upon grade bands: Group 1 The school does not offer a grade level higher than grade 3 Group 2 The school offers any of grade levels 4 through 8 but none higher than grade 9 Group 3 The school offers any of grade levels 10 through 12, regardless of lower grades offered General Closure Criteria

57. 2014-2015 Group 1 The school does not offer a grade level higher than grade 3 In 2 out of the 3 most recent school years, a combination of: F on improving K-3 literacy; OR F overall General Closure Criteria

58. 2014-2015 Group 2 The school offers any of grade levels 4 through 8 but none higher than grade 9 In 2 out of the 3 most recent school years, a combination of: F on PI Score AND F on Value-Added ; OR F overall AND F on Value-Added General Closure Criteria

59. 2014-2015 Group 3 The school offers any of grade levels 10 through 12, regardless of lower grades offered In 2 out of the 3 most recent school years, a combination of: F on PI Score AND AMOs not met; OR F overall AND F on Value-Added General Closure Criteria

60. Value-Added and the Closure Criteria For the purpose of the closure criteria only, value-added will be calculated using assessment scores only for students enrolled in the school for the full academic year for at least the 2 most recent school years. This will not impact value-added calculations used in the traditional Local Report Card system.

61. Dropout Prevention and Recovery Closure Beginning with the 2014-2015 Report Card: An overall designation of "does not meet standards” for two of the three most recent school years.

62. Exemptions from General Ed Closure Criteria Special Education Schools: Schools in which a majority of students are children with disabilities receiving special education and related services are not evaluated for closure.

63. Schools Closing under the Criteria Closure Law Impact School Year Number of Closures Required by Law 2008-20092 2009-201010 2010-20115 2011-20123 2012-20133 2013-20141

64. Reasons for School Closure

65. ODE/Sponsor Roles High level: Oversee all sponsors Approve new sponsors of start-up schools Beginning 2015, evaluate all sponsors Monitoring compliance Aggregated academic performance of schools Adherence to quality practices Make renewal decisions for ODE approved sponsors

66. ODE’s Intervention with Sponsors Launched a Development & Evaluation workgroups Application/Contract Sponsor Evaluation System Probation Revocation

67. Authorizer/Sponsor Evaluation (ORC 3314.016) New, January 2015 Applicable to: All Sponsors Purposes: Assist ODE in its oversight of authorizers and to improve the quality of authorizer practices Improve community school operations and academic performance

68. Three Components Monitoring of school compliance Portfolio of student academic performance Adherence to quality sponsoring practices

69. Sponsor Monitoring of School Compliance How well the authorizer monitors its sponsored schools’ compliance in five critical areas.* Education Program Finance Governance Health and Safety Operations *Based on state, federal and contractual legal requirements

70. Sponsor’s Portfolio of Student Academic Performance The combined academic performance of students enrolled in schools sponsored by the same entity Previously sponsors were given a Composite Sponsor Performance Index Score of 0 to 120 Beginning in 2015, the rating is based upon a ratio of Effective to Ineffective seats

71. Sponsor Adherence to Quality Practices The adherence of a sponsor to follow nationally established quality sponsor practices in six critical areas.* Commitment & Capacity Application Process & Decision Making Performance Contracting Oversight & Evaluation Termination & Renewal Decision Making Technical Assistance & Requirements in Rule and Law *Based on NACSA’s standards and Ohio’s legal requirements

72. Evaluation Ratings Exemplary Effective Ineffective Emerging* *May only be assigned to a sponsor in its first two years of sponsorship

73. Sponsor Evaluation Ratings ODE annually publishes ratings of sponsors 3 components: academic performance; compliance monitoring; adherence to quality practice; plus Compliance with reporting requirements

74. Evaluation Consequences Eligibility to Open Additional Community Schools Must be rated Effective or Exemplary Must be in compliance with the reporting requirements of ORC Chapter 3314 “Freezing” authority to open new schools if: –Non-compliance with reporting requirements –Rated “Ineffective” on overall evaluation

75. Evaluation Consequences Eligibility to Open Additional Community Schools Must be rated Effective or Exemplary Must be in compliance with the reporting requirements of ORC Chapter 3314 Impacts ODE’s decisions about: Renewal of Authorizer Agreements; Authorizer application and approval; and Probation or Revocation of sponsorship.

76. Sponsor Interventions Development Plan (new), based upon evaluation findings Probation Non-renewal Revocation

77. Sponsor Intervention, cont. Revocation – –Not in compliance; –No longer willing to be a sponsor for those with ODE Sponsorship Agreements; or, –Non-renewal of expiring ODE Sponsorship agreements.

78. Questions?