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LAW |
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Year Passed |
1994; last amended in 2008.
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Rank |
4th strongest of the nation's 41 charter laws. |
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Grade |
B |
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GENERAL DATA |
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• High degree of freedom offered to charters
• Independent authorizer is leader in growing and supporting schools
• Persistent funding inequities have resulted in various lawsuits, the last one filed in 2009 and signed onto by charter and conventional public school leaders |
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MULTIPLE AUTHORIZERS - YES (4) |
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Approval |
School boards or the State Board for Charter Schools, an independent board. In 2010, public universities and community colleges with at least 15,000 students enrolled were given the power to authorize. State Department of Education may approve applications, but has chosen not to approve any since 2003. |
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Appeal |
None. The only course of action is to revise the application and submit it for reconsideration. |
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NUMBER OF SCHOOLS ALLOWED |
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Cap |
No cap. |
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OPERATIONAL AUTONOMY |
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State |
Yes. Blanket waiver from most rules and regulations. Virtual schools are allowed. Management contracts with ESPs are not restricted. |
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Local |
Limited. Charters are included in district's budget and fiscal autonomy depends on the control of district. |
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EQUITY |
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Teacher Freedom |
Yes. Teachers may remain covered by the district bargaining agreement, negotiate as a separate unit with the charter school governing body, or work independently. Charter schools must participate in state's retirement system. |
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Student Funding |
• Funding is not equitable for charters because some categories used to calculate funds for conventional schools are not used.
• For charters authorized by school boards, funds pass through the district. For all others, funds pass through the state.
"For district schools, the charter shall include a description of the methods of funding the charter school by the school district. The school district shall send a copy of the charter and application, including a description of how the school district plans to fund the school, to the state board of education before the start of the first fiscal year of operation of the charter school. For state schools, the charter school shall calculate a base support level as prescribed in section 15-943. The student count shall be determined initially
using an estimated student count based on actual registration of pupils before the beginning of the school year. After the first one hundred days or two hundred days in session, as applicable, the charter school shall revise the student count to be equal to the actual average daily membership." [AZ Stat. 15-185(A) to (B)] |
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Facilities Funding |
Yes. Charter schools receive equalization assistance to help with facilities and other overhead costs. Charters receive $1,474 per pupil for students in kindergarten through eighth grade and $1,718 per pupil for students in grades nine through twelve. [AZ Stat. 15-185(B)4] |
