CHARTER SCHOOLS | Policy Manual | Brevard Co. Public Schools

9800 - CHARTER SCHOOLS

F.S. 1002.33 empowers the Board with oversight responsibility for all charter schools situated within Brevard County, Florida. The Board designates the Superintendent to receive and review all charter applications. The Superintendent shall recommend to the Board the approval or denial of each charter application and charter contract as required by State law. The Board shall have final authority, by majority vote, to approve or deny any application and charter contract submitted to the Board within the time frame set forth in State law.

Charter Schools
1. Approved charter schools are public schools and shall receive all goods and services from the Board as required by law and/or specified through a contract with the Board.
2. If approved, the initial charter shall be for a term of five (5) years, excluding two (2) planning years. The Board may renew charters under the conditions and for terms set forth in State law.
3. In addition, a charter school that satisfies the requirements set forth in State law for designation as high-performing charter school may receive a modification of its term to fifteen (15) years or a fifteen (15) year charter renewal. The charter may be modified or renewed for a shorter term at the option of the high-performing charter school.
4. The Board shall enter into a charter with a charter school utilizing the State-approved Florida Standard Charter Contract. The Board, as sponsor, shall perform the duties provided in F.S. 1002.33 and as otherwise required by law.
5. Charter contracts may be non-renewed or terminated as set forth in the charter contract or as otherwise permitted under State law. Such conditions may include, but are not necessarily limited to, when a charter school:
  1. Fails to participate in the State's education accountability system created in F.S. 1008.31; or
  2. Fails to meet the requirement for student performance as specified in the charter; fails to meet generally accepted standards of fiscal management due to deteriorating financial conditions or financial emergencies determined due to deteriorating financial conditions or financial emergencies determined pursuant to F.S. 1002.345; and/or
  3. Materially violates the law.
6. Potential applicants should send letters notifying the Board of their intent to submit an application to open a public charter school not later than July 1st. Such correspondence should be directed to the office of the Superintendent. Failing to send the letter of intent will in no way negatively impact the application.
7. Applicants must submit the State-approved Standard Charter School Application along with all documents required by State law.
School Management/Governance
1. Charter schools shall organize or be operated by not-for-profit organized pursuant to F.S. Chapter 617, a municipality, or another public entity, as provided by law.
Charter School’s Governing Board Requirements
1. The charter school’s governing board shall be solely responsible for the operation of the charter school which includes, but is not limited to, school operational policies, academic accountability, and financial accountability.
2. As required by State law, each charter school’s governing board must appoint a representative to facilitate parental involvement, provide access to information, assist parents and others with questions and concerns, and resolve disputes. Furthermore, this representative must reside in the District in which the charter school is located. The individual serving as the parent involvement representative must reside in the District and may be a governing board member, charter school employee, or an individual with whom the charter school contracts to represent the board in this capacity. If the governing board oversees more than one charter school in the District, a representative to facilitate parental involvement shall be appointed for each school. The name and contact information for the representative must be provided in writing to parents of children enrolled in the charter school at least annually and must be prominently posted on the charter school’s website. Governing board members are not required to reside in the District if the charter school otherwise complies with the terms of this paragraph.
3. The charter school’s governing board shall hold at least two (2) public meetings per school year in the District. The meetings must be noticed, open, and accessible to the public and attendees must be provided an opportunity to receive information and provide input regarding the charter school’s operations. The appointed representative to facilitate parental involvement and the principal/director or equivalent must be physically present at each meeting. Members of the governing board or any member of a committee formed or designated by the governing board may attend in person or by means of communications media technology used in accordance with rules adopted by the Administration Commission under F.S. Chapter 120.
4. Governing board members must:
  1. Notify the Board of any changes in membership within forty-eight (48) hours of change;
  2. Successfully fulfill a background check by the Board, as specified by law upon appointment to the governing board.
  3. Costs of background screening shall not be borne by the charter school.
5. Governing board members must develop and approve bylaws that govern the operations of the board and the charter school prior to the execution of the charter contract and annually consult with charter school staff to refine overall policy decision-making of the charter school as it relates to curriculum, financial management, and internal controls.
6. Governing board members and their spouses are prohibited by state law from serving as an employee of the charter school and may not receive compensation, directly or indirectly, from the charter school’s operations, including but not limited to; grant funds, lease/mortgage payments, or contracted service fees.
7. A landlord of a charter school or their spouse or an officer, a director, or an employee of an entity that is a landlord of a charter school or spouse may not be a member of a governing board of a charter school unless the charter school was established pursuant to F.S. 1002.33.
8. Governing board members must participate in FLDOE-sponsored charter school governance training to ensure that each board member is aware of his/her duties and responsibilities, pursuant to State Board Rule F.A.C. 6A 6.0784:
9. Each governing board member must complete a minimum of four (4) hours of instruction focusing on government in the sunshine, conflicts of interest, ethics, and financial responsibility as specified in F.S. 1002.33(9)(k). After the initial four (4) hour training, each member is required, within subsequent three (3) years and for each three (3) year period after that to complete a two (2) hour refresher training on the four (4) topics in order to retain his/her position on the charter school board. Any member who fails to obtain the two (2) hour refresher training within any three (3) year period must take the four (4) hours of instruction again in order to remain eligible as a charter school board member.
10. New members joining a charter school board must complete the four (4) hour training within ninety (90) days of appointment to the board.
Dispute Procedures
1. Application, nonrenewal, and termination decisions are not subject to this dispute resolution process and must follow the procedures in F.S. 1002.33, Board policy, and the charter contract. Nothing contained herein shall operate to limit a charter school’s rights to utilize the dispute resolution procedures set forth in F.S. 1002.33.
2. The Board and the charter school agree that the existence and the details of a dispute notwithstanding, both parties shall continue without delay their performance under the charter contract, except for any performance, which may be directed affected by such dispute.
3. Either party shall notify the other party that a dispute exists between them. The notification shall be in writing and shall identify the article and section of the contract that is in dispute and the grounds for the position that such article and section is in dispute. The matter should be immediately submitted to the Board and the charter school’s director for further consideration and discussion to attempt to resolve the dispute.
4. Should the representatives named in paragraph b above be unable to resolve the dispute within ten (10) days of receipt of written notification by one to the other of the existence of such dispute, then the matter may be submitted by either party to the Superintendent and to the school’s governing board chair for further consideration and discussion to attempt to resolve the dispute.
5. Should the parties still be unable to resolve their dispute within thirty (30) days of the date of receipt of written notification by one to the other of the existence of such dispute, then either party may proceed with utilizing the dispute resolution procedures set forth in F.S. 1002.33.
Conflict Resolution (Charter School versus Parents/Legal Guardians, Employees, and Vendors)
1. All conflicts between the charter school and the parents/legal guardians of the students enrolled at the charter school shall be handled by the charter school or its governing board. The procedures for handling such conflicts must be set forth in the charter contract.
2. Evidence of each parent’s acknowledgement of the charter school’s Parent Conflict Resolution Process shall be available for review upon request by the Board.
3. All conflicts between the charter school and the employees of the charter school shall be handled by the charter school or its governing board.
4. All conflicts between the charter school and vendors of the charter school shall be handled by the charter school or its governing board.
5. The Board shall be provided with the name and contact information of the parties involved in the charter school’s conflict resolution process. The Board shall be notified immediately of any change in contact information.
Management Companies
1. If a management company or combination of contracted professionals will be managing the charter school, the contract(s) between the charter school and company(ies) shall be submitted to the Board for review prior to the approval of the charter school’s contract.
2. If a decision to hire any of these entities occurs subsequent to the execution of the charter contract or amendment, the contract(s) between the charter school and company(ies) shall be submitted to the Board at least ten (10) days before any payment is made to any of the entities.
3. Any proposed amendments to the contract with the management company shall be submitted to the Board for approval prior to execution of that amended contract with the management company by the charter school. A copy of all executed contracts must be provided to the Board within the timeframe provided by the charter contract.
4. All management company contracts with the charter school must make it clear that the charter governing body shall retain, and exercise continuing oversight over all charter school operations and must contain provisions specifying the ability for the charter school to terminate the contract and must comply with terms as stated in the charter contract between the charter school and the Board. Any default or breach of the terms of the charter contract by the management company(ies) shall constitute a default or breach of the charter contract by the charter school.
5. Neither employees of the management company nor relatives of the management company’s employees as defined in F.S. 1002.33, shall serve on the charter school’s governing board or serve as officers of the charter school.
Voluntary Closure of Charter School
1. A charter may be terminated by a charter school’s governing board through voluntary closure.
2. The decision to cease operations must be determined at a public meeting.
3. The governing board shall notify the parents and Board of the public meeting in writing before the public meeting.
4. The governing board must notify the Board, parents of enrolled students, and FLDOE in writing within twenty-four (24) hours after the public meeting of its determination.
5. The notice shall state the charter school’s intent to continue operations or the reason for the closure and acknowledge that the governing board agrees to follow the procedures for dissolution and reversion of public funds pursuant to Florida law.
Employees of Charter Schools
1. A charter school shall employ or contract with employees who have undergone background screening as provided in F.S. 1012.32. All charter school employees must undergo such background screening at the cost of the employee or the charter school through the District security office.
2. A charter school shall disqualify instructional personnel and school administrators, as defined in F.S. 1012.01, from employment in any position that requires direct contact with students if the personnel or administrators are ineligible for such employment under F.S. 1012.315.
3. Charter school personnel may not appoint, employ, promote, or advance any relative, or advocate for appointment, employment, promotion, or advancement of any relative to a position in the charter school in which the personnel are serving or over which the personnel exercises jurisdiction or control. An individual may not be appointed, employed, promoted, or advanced into a position in a charter school if such appointment, employment, promotion, or advancement has been advocated by charter school personnel who serve in or exercise jurisdiction or control over the charter school and who is a relative of the individual or if such appointment, employment, promotion, or advancement is made by the governing board of which a relative of the individual is a member. For the purposes of this policy, the definition of relative shall be as it is defined in F.S. 1002.33(24)(a)(2).
4. Full disclosure of the identity of all relatives employed by the charter school shall be in accordance with F.S. 1002.33.
5. The governing board of a charter school shall adopt policies establishing standards of ethical conduct for instructional personnel and school administrators.
Resolution of Student Health, Safety, or Welfare Complaints
1. In the event a parent of a student in a District charter school is unable to resolve a student health, safety, or welfare complaint under F.S. 1001.42(8)(c) with the charter school's principal or designee, the following procedures shall be utilized to resolve the dispute.
2. The District's Charter School Director will obtain a copy of the parent's complaint from the charter school and all supporting documentation.
3. The District's Charter School Director will communicate with the parent and charter school principal or designee within twenty-one (21) days of obtaining the information in paragraph 1 in an attempt to resolve the complaint. The District's Charter School Director may also choose to meet collectively with the parent or charter school principal or designee.
4. If the parent's complaint is not resolved after the communications identified in paragraph 2, and no later than thirty (30) days from receipt of the parent's complaint, the District will provide the parent with a notice containing a written statement(s) of the reason(s) for not resolving the complaint.
5. The District's Charter School Director shall be responsible for responding to inquiries from the FLDOE regarding a request for an appointment of a Special Magistrate for charter school student complaints.
  
  Within five (5) days of receipt of notice that a parent has requested the appointment of a Special Magistrate pursuant to F.A.C. 6A-6.0791, the District will provide to the FLDOE a statement addressing whether any of the grounds for dismissal as described in F.A.C. 6A-6.0791(7)(b) apply to the parental request for appointment of a Special Magistrate.
  
  Additionally, the District will expeditiously contract for payment of a Special Magistrate appointed by the Commissioner of Education and notify the FLDOE within no more than twenty (20) days after receiving notice of the appointment of a Special Magistrate that an agreement has been reached for payment with the appointed Special Magistrate.
  
  All costs incurred by the District for revising and responding to a parent complaint under this section is a service provided by the District to the charter school. The charter school shall be responsible for the District's actual costs unless a different amount is mutually agreed to by the District and charter school in a contract negotiated separately from the charter.
Board Annual Report Submission
1. The Board shall submit an annual report to the FLDOE in a web-based format to be determined by the FLDOE. The report shall include the following:
  1. Number of applications received during the school year and up to August 1st and each applicant’s contact information;
  2. Date each application was approved, denied, or withdrawn; and
  3. Date each final contract was executed.
2. Each year, by November 1, the Board shall submit to the FLDOE the information set forth for the previous year.
Facilities
1. No later than January 1st the FLDOE shall annually provide to the District a list of all underused, vacant, or surplus facilities owned or operated by the District as reports in the Florida Inventory of School Houses.
2. The District may provide evidence to the FLDOE that the list contains errors or omissions within thirty (30) days after receipt of the list. By each April 1st, FLDOE shall publish a final list of all underused, vacant, or surplus facilities owned or operated by the District, based upon updated information provided by the District.
3. A hope operator establishing a school of hope may use an educational facility identified in this section as prescribed in F.S. 1002.33(7)(d).
Services

The Board will provide certain administrative and educational services to charter schools. These services shall include contract management services; full-time equivalent and data reporting services, exceptional student education administration services; services related to eligibility and reporting duties required to ensure that school lunch services under the National School Lunch Program, consistent with the needs of the charter school, are provided by the Board at the request of the charter school, that any funds due to the charter school under the National School Lunch Program be paid to the charter school as soon as the charter school begins serving food under the National School Lunch Program and that the charter school is paid at the same time and in the same manner under the National School Lunch Program as other public schools serviced by the Board; test administration services, including payment of the costs of State-required or Board-required student assessments; processing of teacher certificate data services; and information services, including equal access to the sponsor's student information systems that are used by public schools in the District. Access to the District's student information system by the charter school and/or its contractor will be provided unless prohibited by State or Federal laws. Student performance data for each student in a charter school, including, but not limited to, State-mandated testing scores, standardized test scores, coordinated screening and progress monitoring student results, previous public school student report cards, and student performance measures, shall be provided by the Board to a charter school in the same manner provided to other public schools in the District.

The District will provide training to charter schools on systems the District requires charter schools to use.
1. The Board may withhold an administrative fee for the provision of such services which shall be a percentage of the available funds defined in F.S. 1002.33(17)(b) calculated based on weighted full-time equivalent students.
2. If the charter school services seventy-five percent (75%) or more exceptional education students as defined in F.S. 1003.01(3), the percentage shall be calculated based on unweighted full-time equivalent students.
3. The administrative fee shall be calculated as follows:
  1. Up to five percent (5%) for the following:
    1. enrollment of up to and including 250 students in a charter school as defined in F.S. 1002.33(20);
    2. enrollment of up to and including 500 students within a charter school system which meets all of the following:
      1. includes conversion charter schools and nonconversion charter schools;
      2. has all of its schools located in the same county;
      3. has a total enrollment exceeding the total enrollment of at least one school district in Florida;
      4. has the same governing board for all of its schools; or
      5. does not contract with a for-profit service provider for management of school operations;
      6. enrollment of up to and including 250 students in a virtual charter school; and
  2. Up to two percent (2%) for enrollment of up to and including 250 students in an exceptional student education center that meets the requirements of the rules adopted by the State Board of Education pursuant to F.S. 1008.3415(3).
  3. Up to two percent (2%) for enrollment of up to and including 250 students in a high-performing charter school as defined in F.S. 1002.331.
4. The Board will not charge charter schools any additional fees or surcharges for administrative and educational services in addition to the maximum percentage of administrative fees withheld pursuant to this policy. The Board will not charge or withhold any administrative fee against a charter school any funds specifically allocated by the Legislature for teacher compensation.
5. The Board shall provide the FLDOE by no later than September 15th of each year the total amount of funding withheld from charter schools pursuant to this policy and Florida law for the prior fiscal year.
6. By September 15th of each year, the Board shall provide a report to charter schools it sponsors and the FLDOE on what services are being rendered from the District's portion of the administrative fee, including a list of the services.
7. If goods and services are made available to the charter school through the contract with the Board, they shall be provided to the charter school at a rate no greater than the Board's actual cost unless mutually agreed upon by the charter school and the Board in a contract negotiated separately from the charter.
8. When mediation has failed to resolve disputes over contracted services or contractual matters not included in the charter, an appeal may be made to an administrative law judge appointed by the Division of Administrative Hearings. The administrative law judge has final order authority to rule on the dispute. The administrative law judge shall award the prevailing party reasonable attorney fees and costs incurred during the mediation process, administrative proceeding, and any appeals to be paid by the party whom the administrative law judge rules against. To maximize the use of State funds, the Board shall allow charter schools to participate in the sponsor's bulk purchasing program if applicable.
9. The governing body of the charter school may provide transportation through an agreement or contract with the Board. The charter school and the Board shall cooperate in making arrangements that ensure that transportation is not a barrier to equal access for all students residing within a reasonable distance of the charter school as determined in its charter.
School Safety Requirements
1. Each charter school in the District must comply with the requirements of F.A.C. 6A-1.0018 and Florida law pertaining to school safety, including the requirement that charter schools coordinate with the District's School Safety Specialist. See also, Board Policy 8405 (School Safety and Security) and Policy 8407 (Safe-School Officers).
Funding
By July 1 of each year, the Board will provide charter schools the following information pertaining to shared revenues generated by a discretionary half-cent sales surtax, voted District school operating millage, and nonvoted District school capital improvement millage:
1. The estimated total revenue to be received from each tax;
2. The estimated per-student allocation to charter schools from each tax and the methodology used to determine the estimate;
3. The estimated timeframe within which the charter school will receive funds from each tax; and
4. A detailed explanation for each revenue transmission at the time funds are transferred.

By March 31 of each year, the District shall provide the FLDOE a summary report, by charter school, of distributed revenues, by revenue source, and shall post the report on the District's website.

In the event that an existing charter school contract provision is found to be inconsistent with this policy, the charter contract provision prevails.

Revised 2/22/05
Revised 11/06
Revised 4/28/09
Revised 4/27/10
Revised 10/28/14
Revised 7/14/20
Revised 3/7/23
Revised 3/12/24
Revised 10/15/24
Revised 10/7/25