Annual Report Guidelines for
Charter Schools
2016-2017
Revised April 2017
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
The Office of Charter Schools and School Redesign
75 Pleasant Street
Malden, MA 02148
Phone: (781) 338-3227
Fax: (781) 338-3220
IntroductionNo later than August 1 of each year, each charter school must submit an annual report to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (Department), its local school committee, and also make the annual report available to the public, as set forth in the charter school statute (M.G.L. Chapter 71, Section 89(jj)). This report provides a picture of the recently completed academic year as it relates to the school’s accountability plan objectives and evidence regarding the three areas guiding charter school accountability:
· faithfulness of the school to the terms of its charter,
· success of the academic program, and
· viability of the organization.
The annual report is a critical document in charter school accountability; it is intended to be a clear, concise report regarding school performance and its progress toward meeting accountability plan objectives and areas of the Charter School Performance Criteria. Required elements that must be included in each report are set forth in this document. Please note that reports that do not fully and clearly document the required information may be returned to the school for revision.
The annual report will be used by the Department to review the school’s performance and progress for the past academic year, and will serve as a piece of evidence that the Board and/or Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education will review when considering a school’s application for charter renewal.
General InstructionsThe annual report must be a clear and accessible document for parents, the Department, and the general public. The total length of the annual report should not exceed 25 pages (excluding attachments).
The annual report must be received, through the drop box function in the security portal on the Department’s website, on or before August 1, 2017. The school is no longer required to submit hard copies of the annual report. Electronic copies may be either Microsoft Word or PDF documents. Waivers or extended deadline requests cannot be granted as this is a statutory deadline.
The Department will make annual reports available on request, either in hard copy or electronically by email. By statute, a copy of the annual report must be submitted by each charter school to its local school committee chair(s) of the district(s) from which the school draws students and be made available to families of current students as well as families contemplating enrollment. While the full report does not need to be sent to each family, the school must inform families of enrolled and prospective students that an annual report is available upon request. The school may also make the annual report available to members of the wider community by displaying it in the local library or the school’s front office. Please note: New regulatory requirements (603 CMR 1.08) state that each charter school must make the annual report available on the school’s website.
Directions for annual report drop box submission:
· Go to the Department’s Security Portal: https://gateway.edu.state.ma.us/
· Login using your user name and password
· Go to Drop Box Central
· Choose Charter School File Exchange (security role required), click next
· Click on Browse and locate your school’s annual report on your school’s computer, hard drive, or server
· Select the file to upload
· Click the Upload File Button
· Upload the 2016-2017 Annual Report
If you have problems accessing any of these fields you may not have adequate security clearance and need to contact your school’s directory administrator. If you have questions about the submission of the annual report, please contact the Office of Charter Schools and School Redesign at 781-338-3227.
Content Requirementsq Cover Page
Provide a cover page that lists the following information:
q School name
q School address
q School contact information: name, title, telephone, fax, email address, and website
q Date of the report
q Table of Contents
Provide a clearly labeled Table of Contents naming all major sections, appendices, and page numbers.
q Introduction to the School
To provide the reader with basic introductory information about your school, complete the table below and provide the mission statement as stated in the school’s charter or as amended and approved by the Department.
Name of SchoolType of Charter
(Commonwealth or Horace Mann) / Location of School (Municipality)
Regional or Non-Regional / Chartered Districts in Region
(if applicable)
Year Opened / Year(s) the Charter was Renewed
(if applicable)
Maximum Enrollment / Enrollment as of (fill in the date)
Chartered Grade Span / Current Grade Span
Number of Instructional Days per School Year / Students on Waitlist as of (fill in the date)
School Hours / Age of School as of 2016-2017 School Year
Mission Statement
q Letter from the Chair of the Board of Trustees (Optional)
This letter is to inform the public, as well as future site visitors, of any significant changes that have taken place over the past year. This could include, but is not limited to, the departure or arrival of certain key staff/trustees, a change in the organizational model, changes in curriculum, or modification of programmatic elements.
q Network Requirements (If applicable)
A network, as defined by 603 CMR 1.00, may submit a combined annual report provided that information for each school is reported discretely within the annual report to ensure that it complies with M.G.L. c. 71, § 89; 603 CMR 1.00; and any guidelines issued by the Department. Please structure your network annual report according to the following:
· On the cover page, please make sure to note the names of each school contained in the consolidated report. For example, the cover page would state: Annual Reports for: Alpha Omega Charter School I, Alpha Omega Charter School II, and Alpha Omega Charter School III. Contact information should be distinct for each school.
· In the areas where it makes sense, please report clearly and distinctly on each school’s/campus’s performance. For example, one would report on the distinct progress each school/campus is making on an accountability plan measure. Similarly, one might report on the distinct progress each campus/school is making on delivering a program that is fully faithful to its charter.
· Many areas of the annual report, however, will contain consolidated reports of performance or progress: the letter from the board chair and dissemination efforts, for example. You may modify templates or sections as appropriate to best convey necessary information.
q School Performance and Program Implementation
Please respond to the prompts on the following pages to illustrate the charter school’s 2016-2017 performance and program implementation. If the school has made no programmatic or structural changes in regards to an area in the criteria, please state “There have been no changes in the 2016-2017 school year” and also provide a description of how the school met the area of the criteria. The school may copy this information from prior Annual Reports. However, if the school made programmatic or structural changes related to one of the Criteria during the 2016-2017 school year, please provide a description of the changes made. If an item does not apply to the school, such as network or multiple campus organizational structure, please clearly note why it is not applicable.
Do not duplicate information already provided in reporting on the school’s Accountability Plan.
Mission and Key Design Elements
Provide specific evidence of how your school was faithful to its mission and successfully implemented its key design elements during the 2016-2017 school year. Key design elements support the implementation of the school’s mission and make the school unique and distinct from any other school. Key design elements should all relate to the mission statement or the intentions set out in the school’s original (or amended) charter. If your school has developed an Accountability Plan since 2013, using the new guidelines, please provide evidence related to the key design elements as articulated in the Accountability Plan.
Amendments to the Charter
Use the table below to describe any Board approved (major) or Commissioner approved (minor) amendments requested by the school’s board of trustees during the 2016-2017 school year. Please explain any delay in implementing any recently granted amendment.
Date / Amendment Requested / Pending or Approved?*Add rows as needed
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Office of Charter Schools and School Redesign – Annual Report Guidelines 2016-2017
Dissemination Efforts
Using the table below, provide evidence of how the school has provided innovative models for replication and best practices to other public schools in the district where the charter school is located during the 2016-2017 school year. Dissemination efforts may also include sharing innovative models and best practices to other schools, districts, and organization beyond the district where the charter school is located. There are multiple forums and activities through which a charter school may disseminate, please see the Charter School Performance Criteria for more information: http://www.doe.mass.edu/charter/acct.html?section=criteria[1]
Best Practice Shared / Vehicle for Dissemination (describe the method, format, or venue used to share best practices) / Who at the school was involved with the dissemination efforts? (Title) / Criteria that best aligns to the shared best practice (choose from the drop down menu) / With whom did the school disseminate its best practices? (Partners and Locations) / Result of dissemination (List any resulting artifacts, materials, agendas, or results from partners. Also indicate if the school received grant funding to disseminate and if a grant report was written.)Choose an item.
Choose an item.
Choose an item.
Choose an item.
Choose an item.
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Office of Charter Schools and School Redesign – Annual Report Guidelines 2016-2017
Do not duplicate information already provided in reporting on the school’s Accountability Plan.
Student Performance
A. Provide the most recent, publicly available student performance data by providing a link to your school’s Department School Report Card website. Please do not provide any data that is embargoed as of August 1, 2017.
Example: Abby Kelley Foster Charter Public School’s school report card (overview) link would be: http://profiles.doe.mass.edu/reportcard/SchoolReportCardOverview.aspx?linkid=105&orgcode=04450105&fycode=2016&orgtypecode=6&
B. If applicable, provide clear and concise information, in the aggregate, about 2016-2017 student performance on internal or external assessments (other than MCAS or PARCC) that the school would like the Department to consider as evidence of academic progress. Do not include student-level data, but multiple campus schools are encouraged to provide campus level data.
Program Delivery
If applicable, describe any changes (implemented in the 2016-2017 school year) made to the school’s curriculum, instructional model, assessment methods, and/or supports for diverse learners.
In January of 2016, the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (Board) voted to adopt the 2016 Science and Technology/Engineering Standards, and directed the Commissioner to incorporate the standards into the 2016 Massachusetts Science and Technology/Engineering Curriculum Framework. In March of 2017, the Board voted to adopt revised learning standards for mathematics and English language arts and literacy. Please acknowledge that the school is aware of the revised standards, provide a brief plan for how the school is approaching revising its curricula, and provide the school’s timeline to make the revisions.
Social, Emotional, and Health Needs
Describe how the school provides for the social, emotional, and health needs of the student population. If applicable, please describe any recent changes in the school’s approach to student discipline.
Organizational Structure of the School
If applicable, describe any changes to the organizational structure made during the 2016-2017 school year and/or anticipated changes for the upcoming year. Please provide an up-to-date organizational chart.
Network Structure or Multiple Campus Organizational Structure (if applicable)
If you operate multiple schools or multiple campuses of schools with similar grade levels that are governed by one board of trustees, describe any changes to the organizational structure made during the 2016-2017 school year and/or anticipated changes for the upcoming year. If the network organizational chart has changed, please provide an updated copy. Please include a brief description of how the board is overseeing and ensuring the success of all network schools/campuses.
Teacher Evaluation
If applicable, please describe any recent changes to your school’s systems for teacher evaluation.
Budget and Finance
A. Unaudited FY17 statement of revenues, expenses, and changes in net assets (income statement)
This statement should set forth, by appropriate categories (using similar line items as audited statements), the revenue and expenditures for FY17 (July 1, 2016 to June 30, 2017). Since independent audits for most schools will not have been completed by the August 1 deadline, please note that the report is an unaudited statement, but should use similar line items as the audited statements. Note: An independent audit for the year ending June 30, 2017, must be filed with the Department and the State Auditor by November 1, 2017.
B. Statement of net assets for FY17(balance sheet)
The balance sheet should set forth the charter school’s assets, liabilities, and fund balances or equities in the same format and using the same line items that will be included in the audited statement.
C. Approved School Budget for FY18
Provide a detailed copy of the school’s budget for FY18 including similar detail that is included in the school’s audited financial statements. Provide the date the board of trustees approved the budget.
D. Capital Plan for FY18
If the school does not have a Capital Plan for FY18, please explicitly state this.
The capital plan should identify all planned capital projects in progress or expected to be initiated within the next ten years. Examples of capital projects include:
· the acquisition, construction, or expansion of a school building
· substantial renovation or rehabilitation of a school building currently in use by the charter school (e.g. roofs, HVAC systems, building envelopes, plumbing and electrical systems, telecommunications systems, etc)