NEW ORLEANS – The Orleans Parish School Board (OPSB) released a summary of the applications received for the Fall 2017 Charter Request For Applications (RFA). In total, eight organizations completed applications to either begin a new school (Type 1 – New Start), transform an existing charter school under a new operator (Type 1 – Transformation), or convert a district run school to a charter (Type 3 – Conversion).
They include:
Type 1 – New Start
• Center for Resilience
• Lyceum Schools
Type 1 – Transformation
• Crescent City Schools
• Firstline Schools
• InspireNOLA
• Young Audiences
Type 3 – Conversion
• Benjamin Franklin Elementary
• Mary McLeod Bethune Elementary
A summary and full applications are available here
In June, the OPSB announced it had received authorization from the Louisiana Department of Education to operate a second charter approval process this year, with the goal of giving approved operators ample time to transition in staff and administration for the 2018 – 2019 school year.
Part 1 of the Fall Charter RFA was released on Friday, July 21. Part 2 was released on Tuesday, Aug. 1.
Currently, more than 90 percent of public school students attend charter schools in New Orleans. Only nonprofit organizations may hold charters in Louisiana and application teams must include at least three Louisiana teachers certified by the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education.
For more information on the Fall Charter RFA and an application timeline
Key remaining dates coming up in the 2017 Fall Charter RFA process include:
• Tuesday, Sept. 12: RFA process update at September Accountability Committee meeting
• Late October, exact date TBD pending state SPS/Letter Grade release: OPSB Transformation RFA process information released (for currently-operating schools which may be subject to non-renewal)
• Tuesday, Nov. 14: Independent evaluation reports released; process update at November Accountability Committee
• Thursday, Nov. 16: Public hearing on Charter Applications
• Wednesday, Dec. 13: Superintendent’s recommendations released
• Thursday, Dec. 14: Superintendent’s recommendations presented at December Board business meeting
The OPSB currently oversees 41 schools, including 20 networked Charter schools, 17 non-networked Charter schools, four network schools and one educational program for students in secure care facilities.