December 2021 ACCS Meeting - Item 1 Public Comment
Public comment received for agenda item 1 of the December 14, 2021, Advisory Commission on Charter Schools meeting.To receive an electronic copy of the below communication, contact the Charter Schools Division by email at charters@cde.ca.gov.
[The following information was provided on California Teacher's Association letterhead.]
December 10, 2021
RE: CTA COMMENTS REGARDING Item #1
Consideration of Requests for Determination of Funding as Required for Nonclassroom-Based Charter Schools Pursuant to California Education Code sections 47612.5 and 47634.2, and Associated California Code of Regulations, Title 5.
Dear ACCS Commissioners:
The California Teachers Association (CTA) would like to express our continued concerns with the funding determination process for Nonclassroom-based charters (NCBs). This process is broken and does not provide the level of transparency needed for the commissioners of the Advisory Commission on Charter Schools (ACCS) nor the members of the State Board of Education (SBE) to provide appropriate public oversight on these funding determinations.
The moratorium on new NCBs has been extended until 2025 and this is the time for the California Department of Education (CDE) and the SBE to begin to review and update the regulations that govern this process.
We have outlined specific questions regarding the charters that are seeking funding determinations in the item:
Five Keys Charter
On page four of their Funding Determination Form (FDF), the Unassigned/Unappropriated Fund Balance is $2,483,475 which is 188% of their Expenditures.
- Is there a plan to provide instructional services to students with these funds?
On page seven of their FDF, the P-2 average daily attendance (ADA) from 2019-20 to 2020-21 dropped dramatically from 245.13 to 85.32. With the ADA decrease, the number of Full Time Equivalent employees dropped as well.
- It is unclear from the form what the cause of this drop is.
Architecture, Construction & Engineering Charter High (ACE)
On page eight of the FDF, the charter outlines that they are facing transportation issues that should be resolved by October 2021.
- Were the transportation issues resolved?
- Are there any ramifications for approving a funding determination request if they end up not having more than 20% of their ADA come from independent study?
Sincerely,
E.Toby Boyd, President
California Teachers Association
C: CTA Executive Officers
Teri Holoman, Associate Executive Director, CTA
Lori Easterling, Manager, CTA Legislative Relations
Commissioners, Advisory Commission on Charter Schools
Stephanie Farland, California Department of Education
CTA Liaison to the Advisory Commission on Charter Schools
Return to December 2021 ACCS Meeting Agenda