Charter schools are public schools operated by independent, non-profit governing bodies that must include parents. In Tennessee, public charter school students are measured against the same academic standards as students in other public schools. Local boards of education ensure that only those charter schools open and remain open that are meeting the needs of their students, district and community. Local boards of education do this through rigorous authorization processes, ongoing monitoring of the academic and financial performance of charter schools, and, when necessary, through the revocation or non-renewal of charters. 

The State Board of Education requires the Tennessee Department of Education (TDOE or “the Department”) to provide “scoring criteria addressing the elements of the charter school application,” SBE Rule 0520-14-01- .01(1)(a). WCS will use the TDOE’s Charter School Application Evaluation Ratings and Sample Scoring Criteria (“charter school scoring rubric”) to evaluate all application materials submitted by a sponsor. The District’s decision to approve or deny an application will be based on the degree to which a sponsor’s application meets the State’s evaluation criteria. Consistent with the requirements of TDOE’s scoring rubric, applications that do not meet or exceed the standard in all sections (academic plan, operations plan, financial plan, and, if applicable, past performance), as evidenced by the summary review ratings, will be deemed not ready for approval. 

All evaluations are evaluated according to: 

• the quality of the academic plan; and 
• the quality of the financial management/business plan; and 
• the quality of the operational plan; and 
• the overall capacity of the sponsor as demonstrated by the application that offers clear evidence of its ability to deliver high quality educational opportunities, build a sustainable institution capable of serving student as outlined in its application, and is of clear and compelling benefit to the community. 

The Tennessee Charter Law provides that districts may authorize charters that are in the “best interest of the students, LEA or community.” (T.C.A. § 49-13-108). Schools that do not serve the best interest of the students, the district, or the community, or that lack strong academic, financial management/business, and operational plans will be recommended for denial. 

Data from Tennessee charter schools approved or overseen by a LEA is included with LEA level data (the charter schools, of course, must provide the data to the LEA). 

Data from Tennessee charter schools approved by the Tennessee Public Charter School Commission and not overseen by a LEA is not included with LEA level data. 

No. T.C.A. § 49-13-104(7) defines sponsors of charter schools (those who file the applications). That subsection includes this prohibition: "a sponsor cannot be . . . a religious or church school or promote the agenda of any religious denomination or religiously affiliated entity." 

Federal law also prohibits a charter school from being operated by a religious organization. 

ESEA Sec. 5210(1)(E) defines a charter school as "a public school that . . . is nonsectarian in its programs, admissions policies, employment practices, and all other operations, and is not affiliated with a sectarian school or religious institution."