This is Nothing New
Allowing these alternative bodies to become authorizers is not a new concept. States across the country have granted a variety of different entities the ability to authorize charter schools. Sixteen states currently allow higher education institutions (HEIs) to serve as authorizers, and three states have extended this privilege to non-profit organizations (NPOs). As of the 2018-19 school year, 10.4% of students attending charter schools in the country are enrolled in HEI-authorized institutions and 2.7% in schools authorized by NPO’s. With more than 90,000 students, the State University of New York’s (SUNY) Charter Schools Institute has proved highly successful, substantially outperforming neighboring traditional public schools according to data collected prior to the pandemic. In Minnesota, the nonprofit organization Friends of Education has authorized 12 high-performing charter schools which, combined, serve more than 10,000 students. Four schools operating under the direction of the Friends of Education have been named National Blue-Ribbon Schools by the U.S. Department of Education since 2015, and the majority of their schools are performing well-above the state average on a wide range of indicators, including reading proficiency, college readiness, and college enrollment. If done properly, the incorporation of HEI and NPO authorizers can play an important role in the curation and establishment of high-quality, high-performing, and highly-innovative charter schools.
Source: National Association of Charter School Authorizers[/caption]
(HEI: Higher Education Institution; ICB: Independent Chartering Board; LEA: Local Education Institution; NEG: Non-Educational Government Entity; NPO: Nonprofit Organization; SEA: State Education Agency)