Mississippi § 37-28-19 - Standards for authorizing charter school; review process.

§ 37-28-19. Standards for authorizing charter school; review process.

In reviewing and evaluating charter applications, the authorizer shall employ procedures, practices and criteria consistent with nationally recognized principles and standards for quality charter authorizing. The application review process must include thorough evaluation of each written charter application and in-person interview with the applicant group. In deciding whether to approve charter applications, the authorizer must: Grant charters only to applicants that have provided evidence of competence in each element of the authorizer’s published approval criteria, and in the case of an applicant that currently operates one or more schools in any state or nation, clear evidence that the management or leadership team of the charter school or schools currently operated by the applicant has produced statistically significant gains in student achievement or consistently produced proficiency levels as measured on state achievement test; Base decisions on documented evidence collected through the application review process; and Follow charter-granting policies and practices that are transparent, based on merit and avoid conflicts of interest or any appearance thereof. Before the expiration of one hundred eighty (180) days after the filing of a charter application, the authorizer must approve or deny the charter application; however, an application submitted by a public historically black college or university (HBCU), in partnership with a national nonprofit public HBCU support organization, for a charter school to be operated on or near the campus of the HBCU must be considered for expedited approval by the authorizer. The authorizer shall adopt by resolution all charter approval or denial decisions in an open meeting of the authorizer board. An approval decision may include, if appropriate, reasonable conditions that the charter applicant must meet before a charter contract may be executed pursuant to Section 37-28-21. For a charter denial, the authorizer shall state clearly, for public record, its reasons for denial. A denied applicant may reapply subsequently with the authorizer. Before the expiration of ten (10) days after taking action to approve or deny a charter application, the authorizer shall provide a report to the applicant. The report must include a copy of the authorizer’s resolution setting forth the action taken and reasons for the decision and assurances as to compliance with all of the procedural requirements and application elements set forth in this chapter.