Charter Renewal

In order to continue operating, every charter must be re-authorized (renewed) at the end of its charter term, usually 5 years. GCSA offers:

• Renewal Petition Writing and Project Management

  GCSA offers a full suite of project management and petition writing services. From the first day after your charter school is approved, you are working towards charter renewal. Whether you are in your first charter term or you have a decade or more of charter school experience, we can help you get the best possible charter renewal. GCSA has successfully guided many charter schools through the rigorous charter renewal process and have an 100% approval rating.

  Whether your charter school is about to enter the charter renewal process or you are planning for renewal in the future, we can help. GCSA recommends that schools begin the renewal process 12 to 18 months in advance of the application deadline. 

  We’ll work with you to:

  • Write the charter renewal application and prepare the final application, including exhibits
  • Facilitate discussions about the renewal requirements of your charter authorizer and design a plan to address them successfully
  • Coordinate charter renewal task force or workgroup
  • Conduct a thorough analysis of your charter (and any modifications that may have occurred during the charter term) to determine how your implementation of programming was consistent with the approved charter school program—and to address any inconsistencies that could jeopardize charter renewal
  • Review and analyze your charter school’s student data, board minutes and other evidence of program effectiveness to support your charter renewal
  • Work with your board and school leader to coordinate all renewal-related activity
  • Advise you regarding any changes for the next charter term
  • Work with your financial team to provide guidance on budget completion and financial performance narrative
  • Communicate on your behalf with the authorizer of your charter school

  The full service renewal package includes project management, petition writing, capacity interview training and budget review and advisement. Other services, such as strategic planning, school turnaround, and operational assessments can be added onto the renewal package, but are not included.

• Renewal Petition Review

  GCSA provides an in-depth review of your charter application with extensive analysis and commentary. This service also includes a meeting with the school team to review GCSA’s commentary and recommendations. This service must be scheduled in advance. To schedule a petition review, please use the registration link.

• Capacity Interview Training

  Charter renewals in Georgia typically include a capacity interview to determine the board and leadership’s ability to continue operating the charter. GCSA’s expert team can prepare you for the capacity interview. GCSA will need a copy of your renewal application to prepare for this training. To schedule capacity interview training, please click on the registration link. 

• School Turnaround / Redesign

  Charter renewal provides the opportunity to make organizational changes based on student and other data that demonstrates consistent underperformance. GCSA has worked with several schools to analyze, redesign and develop turnaround strategies to ensure performance goals are met in the subsequent charter term. This is part of the full service renewal package; however, it can be completed as a stand alone consulting service. For more info, please complete the registration link. 

• Operational Assessment / Academic Analysis

  GCSA has a range of operational review, assessment, and analysis consulting services and highly recommends an operational assessment prior to starting the renewal process. Operational assessments are customized for each school, but typically include a review and analysis of the academic program, operational compliance, and overall organizational effectiveness. This process can take four to six weeks to complete so advance planning is required. This service is not included in the full service renewal package.

• Strategic planning

  GCSA provide strategic planning facilitation and writing services and has completed strategic plans for numerous charter schools in Georgia. The State Board approved Standards For Effective Charter School Governance require that charter schools develop strategic plans to guide organizational growth and effectiveness over time. The strategic planning process takes 6 to 12 months to complete and GCSA typically works with 2-3 schools per year on this process. Use the registration link and a team member will contact you to discuss your strategic planning needs.

• Budget Review

  Budget review is included in the full service renewal package. It can also be provided as a stand alone service. GCSA provides in-depth analysis and commentary on your budget template, which includes a 5-year budget projection as well as a two-year cash flow projection.