PART II. STATE CHARTERING AUTHORITY

§3981. State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education; powers and duties relative to charter schools

The State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education shall:

(1) Administer loans as provided in Part VI of this Chapter for assisting in meeting the costs required to establish a charter school as well as the costs of operation.

(2) Enter into any proposed charter that complies with this Chapter and the rules adopted pursuant to the authority in this Chapter that the board determines is a valid, complete, financially well-structured, and educationally sound proposal that offers potential for fulfilling the purposes of this Chapter.

(3) Adopt, pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act, such rules as the board determines is necessary to efficiently, effectively, and fairly undertake its duties.

(4) Review each proposed charter in a timely manner and determine whether each proposed charter complies with the law and rules and whether the proposal is valid, complete, financially well-structured, educationally sound, whether it provides for a master plan for improving behavior and discipline in accordance with R.S. 17:252, whether it provides a plan for collecting data in accordance with R.S. 17:3911, and whether it offers potential for fulfilling the purposes of this Chapter. The board shall engage in an application review process that complies with the latest Principles and Standards for Quality Charter School Authorizing, as promulgated by the National Association of Charter School Authorizers, and shall provide for an independent evaluation of the charter proposal by a third party with educational, organizational, legal, and financial expertise. The board shall send to the charter applicant, either by electronic means or hand delivery, the final evaluation and recommendations, if any, of the third-party evaluator. Such information shall be sent no later than five business days prior to the meeting at which the board will take action on the charter proposal.

(5) Determine the policy and provide direction to the state Department of Education for providing the oversight of the operation of charter schools chartered with the board.

(6) Upon the request of any school system with fewer than five thousand students, provide technical assistance to the system in determining the potential financial impact of any proposed charter school on the operation of the system.

(7) Approve common charter applications developed by the state Department of Education for use by all chartering authorities in the state. The application shall allow a potential chartering group to propose any number of charter schools through a single application.

(8) Actively recruit chartering groups that offer a program of study or propose to offer a program of study that effectively addresses regional workforce needs, such as career and technical education, industry-based certifications, and vocational course work.

Acts 1995, No. 192, §1, eff. June 14, 1995; Acts 1997, No. 477, §1, eff. June 30, 1997; Acts 2006, No. 630, §1; Acts 2009, No. 123, §1, eff. June 26, 2009; Acts 2010, No. 756, §1, eff. June 29, 2010; Acts 2012, No. 2, §1; Acts 2017, No. 207, §1.