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CCSA Affirms Commitment to Quality and Calls for Closure of Nine Underperforming Charter Schools

November 13, 2019

SACRAMENTO, CA – Reaffirming its commitment to advancing access to high-quality public schools, the California Charter Schools Association (CCSA) today publicly called for the non-renewal and closure of nine chronically underperforming nonprofit charter schools across the state.  

“All students – regardless of where they live, their race, income or educational needs – deserve access to a quality public education,” said CCSA President and CEO Myrna Castrejón. “CCSA is laser-focused on closing the achievement gap and achieving equity for students throughout the state, which is why we have led the way in calling for schools to face the ultimate accountability of closure.”

While there are many important aspects of measuring school performance, student academic outcomes should be the most important measure of a school's success at the time of renewal or replication. For nearly a decade, CCSA has issued a call for the non-renewal of charter schools that persistently miss the mark to meet the needs of the students they serve.

“California’s nonprofit charter schools are an integral part of our public education system. Part of their commitment as charter schools is to be accountable for meeting the learning needs of their students,” said Elizabeth Robitaille, SVP, School Performance, Development, and Support, CCSA. "We must challenge ourselves – both traditional and nonprofit charter public schools – to do better for students. By advocating for high-quality public schools and the closure of underperforming schools, we are sending a strong message that ignoring the needs of our most vulnerable students won’t be tolerated. We cannot close California’s historic achievement gap by looking away while chronically failing schools persist year after year.”  

CCSA's Accountability Framework is made up of two parts - an initial review of publicly available test scores and postsecondary readiness data and then, for the subset of schools underperforming on all initial criteria, a Multiple Measures Review based on public and non-public data that is tailored to a school's mission and outcomes. The recent passage of AB 1505 reaffirmed that academic performance should be weighted most heavily and codified the concept of a second look process into law. CCSA has utilized this type of a second look process for nearly a decade to look deeply at schools’ outcomes and ensure our support is directed towards schools that are helping students increase their learning. 

While recommending a school's closure is a difficult decision, CCSA is committed to working with closing schools to find new options to better meet their academic needs. Over the years, many underperforming charter schools have closed, and many new quality charter schools have grown to meet the academic needs of the students in their communities.

The following schools fall below CCSA's minimum renewal criteria for the 2019-20 school year and are chronically underperforming on several other academic performance measures.

Charter Public Schools Below CCSA's Minimum Criteria for Renewal

Charter Schools up for Renewal in 2019-20 (based on 5-year charter term)

  1. Bridges Academy
    Authorizer: Franklin-McKinley Elementary
    County: Santa Clara
  2. Castle Rock
    Authorizer: Del Norte County Office of Education
    County: Del Norte
  3. Chawanakee Academy Charter
    Authorizer: Chawanakee USD
    County: Madera
  4. Delta Bridges Charter
    Authorizer: New Jerusalem Elementary School District
    County: San Joaquin
  5. Delta Charter HS at Cabrillo College
    Authorizer: Santa Cruz City High
    County: Santa Cruz
  6. Denair Elementary Charter Academy
    Authorizer: Denair USD
    County: Staislaus
  7. Pittman Charter
    Authorizer: Stockton USD
    County: San Joaquin
  8. Public Policy
    Authorizer: LAUSD
    County: Los Angeles
  9. Roses in Concrete 
    Authorizer: OUSD
    County: Alameda

Learn More

·       CCSA's Academic Accountability Framework

·       CCSA's Public Call for Non-Renewal