Charter School Certification of Information

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• Background
• Accessing the Certification of Information
• Certification of Information
• Submission Deadline
• Frequently Asked Questions

Background

Beginning May 2024, charter schools will certify their information that is on file with the California Department of Education (CDE) for the subsequent fiscal year through the newly-developed Charter School Certification of Information, a web-based application, which is available to all charter school administrators.

The information reported and certified by charter schools will be used to inform state policy, create reports for the U.S. Department of Education, support charter school authorization and oversight, and promote transparency of the state’s public school system.

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Accessing the Certification of Information

Charter school administrators are authorized to report and certify charter school information to the CDE. Charter school administrators may designate a full-time paid employee of the charter school who has direct knowledge and information of the charter school, to report and certify information. The CDE requires approval from the charter school administrator prior to granting another employee access to the system, which may be provided via email at charters@cde.ca.gov.

Charter school administrators may logon at Certification of Information . Administrators are required to indicate the county in which their charter school is located, the chartering authority (i.e., local educational agency [LEA]), and the name of the charter school.

In addition to the aforementioned information, a Personal Identification Number (PIN) is required. PIN assistance is available via the Certification of Information . If additional assistance is required, an email may be sent to charters@cde.ca.gov.

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Certification of Information

The following information is reported and certified by charter school administrators as it pertains to their charter schools for fiscal year (FY) 2024–25:

• Section 1. Directory Information
• Section 2. Operations and Facilities
  • Organization Type
  • Governing Board Details
  • Facilities
  • Additional Sites
• Section 3. Program Information
  • Funding Type
  • Instructional Type
  • Special Education
  • Exclusive Partnership
  • Early and Middle College High School
• Section 4. Other Information
  • Unique Entity Identifier
  • Retirement System
• Section 5. Acknowledgment and Certification

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Section 1. Directory Information

1. Input the full legal name of the charter school for FY 2024–25. Indicate if this is different from the charter school’s name in FY 2023–24. If yes, enter the charter school’s previous name and the date (MM/DD/YYYY) the new name became effective.
   
2. Indicate the grade levels to be served. Input one to two characters (PK, K, 1, 2, etc.) for the lowest grade level served and one to two characters (9, 10, 11, etc.) for the highest grade level served.
   
3. Input the total projected enrollment (up to 5 digits).
   
4. Input the following information for the charter school’s primary contact at its chartering authority. All fields are required:
   
   • Name
   • Title
   • Email Address
   • Phone Number (10 digits, without spaces or other characters)

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Section 2. Operations and Facilities

Organization Type

1. Indicate if the charter school is operated by a for-profit corporation as outlined in California Education Code (EC) Section 47604(b)(2)(A) . If yes, input the following information as it is reported on the California Secretary of State Business Search feature. The four-digit zip code extension may be found by using the Find by Address feature at USPS.com Quick Tools . All fields are required:
   • Name of the for-profit corporation
   • Principal (Physical) street address
   • City
   • State
   • Zip code + four digits
   • Mailing street address
   • City
   • State
   • Zip code + four digits
     
     
   Indicate if the for-profit organization operates or manages more than one charter school.

2. Indicate if the charter school is operated by a nonprofit public benefit corporation as outlined in EC Section 47604(a) . If yes, input the following information as it is reported on the California Secretary of State Business Search feature. The four-digit zip code extension may be found by using the Find by Address feature at USPS.com Quick Tools . All fields are required:
   • Name of the nonprofit public benefit corporation
   • Principal (Physical) street address
   • City
   • State
   • Zip code + four digits
   • Mailing street address
   • City
   • State
   • Zip code + four digits
   • Nine-digit Employer Identification Number (EIN) of the organization as reported on the Internal Revenue Service Exempt Organizations Business Master File Extract (XX-XXXXXXX).
     
     
   Indicate if the nonprofit organization operates or manages more than one charter school.

3. Describe the process by which the organization's governing board members are determined, such as by appointment, by vote, etc. Include the number of school interest holders on the board, the number of outside interest holders, the specific roles of the interest holders, etc.

Governing Board Details

1. Indicate the total number of charter school governing board members.
   
2. Provide the following information of the charter school’s governing board president/chair. All fields are required:
   
   • Name
   • Email Address
   • Beginning Term Date (MM/DD/YYYY)
   • Ending Term Date (MM/DD/YYYY)

Facilities

1. Indicate if the charter school will occupy district facilities, as outlined in EC Section 47614 .
   
2. If yes, indicate the facility cost agreement between the district and the charter school, as required by California Code of Regulations, Title 5 Section 11969.7(e) . Select all that apply:
   
   • Three percent (3%) supervisorial oversight fee
   • Two percent (2%) supervisorial oversight fee
   • Cost per square foot and total cost; indicate a dollar amount for both and the periodicity (e.g., per month, per year, etc.), if applicable
   • Rent or other fee; indicate the amount and periodicity (e.g., per month, per year, etc.)
   • Other fee or arrangement; describe the calculation and total amount
   • No charge

Additional Sites

1. Indicate the number of sites, facilities, locations, offices, administrative offices, campuses, buildings, suites, satellites, and/or resource centers (collectively referred to as “sites”) affiliated with the charter school.
   
2. Input the following information for up to three additional sites. The four-digit zip code extension may be found by using the Find by Address feature at USPS.com Quick Tools . All fields are required:
   
   • Name of Site
   • Physical Address (including city and zip code + four digits)
   • District of Location
   • County of Location
   • Type of Site
     • Student Serving
     • Administrative Office
     • Other: Describe
   • Primary Contact of the Site
   • Primary Contact Email
   • Primary Contact Phone (10 digits, without spaces or other characters)

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Section 3. Program Information

Funding Type

Important: Due to the impact that funding type selection has on many programs including, but not limited to, methods for allocating, receiving, and applying for funds (e.g., other state funds, federal funds, grants, consolidated applications, etc.), funding type may not be changed during the fiscal year. A charter school wanting to change its funding type should first discuss the change with its chartering authority. Detailed information regarding this subject is available at Charter School Funding Types.

Indicate the charter school’s funding type:

• Direct Funded: Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) apportionment funds for a directly funded charter school flow directly to the county treasurer and then to the charter school. A direct funded charter school is fully responsible for all California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP) administration. The charter school’s CAASPP scores are reported as its own LEA (i.e., independently).
  
• Locally Funded: LCFF apportionment funds are calculated separately for a locally funded charter school; funds flow through its chartering authority. A locally funded charter school administers and reports all CAASPP assessments with its chartering authority.

Instructional Type

The percentages indicated for classroom-based attendance and nonclassroom-based attendance must total 100 percent.

1. Indicate the anticipated percentage of classroom-based attendance to be offered by the charter school (up to 3 digits).
   
2. Indicate the anticipated percentage of nonclassroom-based attendance to be offered by the charter school (up to 3 digits).

Special Education

1. Indicate the charter school’s Special Education Local Plan Area (SELPA) membership.
2. Provide the following of the charter school’s primary contact for special education. All fields are required:
   
   • Name
   • Title
   • Email Address
   • Phone Number (10 digits, without spaces or other characters)

Exclusive Partnership

Indicate if the charter school will provide instruction exclusively in partnership, pursuant to EC Section 47612.1 . If yes, indicate the federal program:

1. Federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, pursuant to United States Code, Title 29 Section 3101 et seq.
2. Federally Affiliated Youth Build Programs
3. Federal Job Corps Training or Instruction, provided pursuant to a memorandum of understanding with the federal provider
4. California Conversation Corps or Local Conservation Corps, certified by the California Conservation Corps pursuant to Public Resources Code sections 14406 or 14507.5

Early and Middle College High School

Indicate if the charter school is an Early College High School (ECHS) or a Middle College High School (MCHS), as outlined in EC sections 11302 and 11300 .

• ECHS: An innovative partnership between charter or non-charter public secondary schools and a local community college, the California State University, or the University of California that allows pupils to earn a high school diploma and up to two years of college credit in four years or less. ECHS are small, autonomous schools that blend high school and college into a coherent educational program.
• MCHS: A secondary school located on a community college campus offering challenging academic programs and designed to serve high-potential, high-risk students. A MCHS offers effective support services, small class sizes, and the opportunity for students to concurrently take some college classes at typically minor cost to the student.

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Section 4. Other Information

Unique Entity Identifier

Indicate if the charter school has a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI). If yes, enter the 12-character UEI without any spaces. To check the UEI status of a charter school, visit System for Award Management .

Retirement System

Indicate all retirement offerings for any charter school employee:

• CalSTRS
• CalPERS
• 401(k) or 403(b)
• Federal Social Security
• Other: Describe
• None

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Acknowledgment and Certification

Enter your initials to confirm that you have read and understand the following statements:

Acknowledgment

I understand and acknowledge that the CDE may provide a copy of the information reported to the chartering authority for information and/or certification; make the information publicly available on its website; and/or provide the information to other agencies, organizations, and individuals.

Certification

I hereby certify that I am a full-time paid employee of the charter school who has direct knowledge of the information contained herein and am authorized to submit this information to the CDE. I certify that I have provided only true and correct information about the charter school.

Indicate the following of the authorized representative of the charter school. All fields are required:

• Full Legal Name
• Job Title
• Email Address
• Phone Number (10 digits, without spaces or other characters)

Once the Certification of Information is submitted, a summary of the submitted data may be printed.

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Submission Deadline

The Certification of Information opened on Monday, May 13, 2024.

The deadline for charter school administrators to report, certify, and submit information for their charter schools is Friday, May 24, 2024, at 5 p.m. After this date and time, charter schools may not make changes to their information that is on file with the CDE for FY 2024–25.

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Frequently Asked Questions

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