The following was taken directly from the Arkansas Department of Education’s website regarding charter schools.
Public charter schools are public schools of choice that operate with freedom from many of the regulations that apply to traditional public schools. The charter establishing each such school is a performance contract detailing the school’s mission, program, goals, students served, and methods of assessment.
Charters are granted for a period of up to 5 years. At the end of the term, the State Board of Education may renew the school’s contract. Public charter schools are accountable to the State Board of Education to produce positive academic results and adhere to the charter contract. The basic concept of public charter schools is that they exercise increased autonomy in return for this accountability. This autonomy is gained by requesting exemption from Title 6 of the Arkansas Education Code and State Board of Education rules. The charter schools are accountable for both academic results and fiscal practices to several groups: the sponsor that grants them, the parents who choose them and the public that funds them.
Applications and Deadlines
Provided below are the forms for public charter school applications for the 2012-2013 application cycle. These applications are subject to change.
Letters of Intent:
- District Conversion Public Charter School Requirements for Letter of Intent
- Limited District Conversion Public Charter School Requirements for Letter of Intent
- Open-Enrollment Public Charter School Requirements for Letter of Intent (June 30, 2013, 4:00 pm)
Applications:
- District Conversion and Limited District Conversion Public Charter School Application
- Open-Enrollment Public Charter School Application (Deadline: August 31, 2013, 4:00 pm)
- Public Charter School Dissemination Grant Application
Deadlines:
- District Conversion Public Charter Schools
- Limited District Conversion Public Charter Schools
- Open-Enrollment Public Charter Schools
* Deadline Note – All information must be received in the Public Charter School Office of the Arkansas Department of Education no later than 4 p.m. on the date of the deadline. Information received in the Public Charter School Office after 4 p.m. on the established date will not be processed. It is the responsibility of the applicant to strongly adhere to the charter application timeline. Please take into consideration the length of the time that may be required for your application to reach the Public Charter School Office, particularly when mailing your application. Should the deadline date fall on a weekend, all materials must be submitted no later than 4 p.m. the following Monday.