1. (A) An approved charter application constitutes an agreement, and the terms must be the terms of a contract between the charter school and the sponsor.
2. (B) The contract between the charter school and the sponsor shall reflect all agreements regarding the release of the charter school from school district policies.
3. (C) A material revision of the terms of the contract between the charter school and the approving board may be made only with the approval of both parties.

4. (D) Except as provided in subsection (F), an applicant who wishes to form a charter school shall:

   1. (1) organize the charter school as a nonprofit corporation pursuant to the laws of this State;
   2. (2) form a charter committee for the charter school which includes one or more teachers;
   3. (3) submit a written charter school application to the charter school advisory committee and the school board of trustees from which the committee is seeking sponsorship.

5. (E) A charter committee is responsible for and has the power to:

   1. (1) submit an application to operate as a charter school, sign a charter school contract, and ensure compliance with all of the requirements for charter schools provided by law;
   2. (2) employ and contract with teachers and nonteaching employees, contract for services, and develop pay scales, performance criteria, and discharge policies for its employees. All teachers whether certified or noncertified must undergo the background checks and other investigations required for certified teachers, as provided by law, before they may teach in the charter school; and
   3. (3) decide all other matters related to the operation of the charter school, including budgeting, curriculum, and operating procedures.

6. (F) The charter school application shall be a proposed contract and must include:

   1. (1) the mission statement of the charter school, which must be consistent with the principles of the General Assembly's purposes pursuant to Section 59-40-20;
   2. (2) the goals, objectives, and pupil achievement standards to be achieved by the charter school, and a description of the charter school's admission policies and procedures;
   3. (3) evidence that an adequate number of parents, teachers, pupils, or any combination of them support the formation of a charter school;
   4. (4) a description of the charter school's educational program, pupil achievement standards, and curriculum which must meet or exceed any content standards adopted by the State Board of Education and the chartering district must be designed to enable each pupil to achieve these standards;
   5. (5) a description of the charter school's plan for evaluating pupil achievement and progress toward accomplishment of the school's achievement standards in addition to state assessments, the timeline for meeting these standards, and the procedures for taking corrective action if that pupil achievement falls below the standards;
   6. (6) evidence that the plan for the charter school is economically sound, a proposed budget for the term of the charter, a description of the manner in which an annual audit of the financial and administrative operations of the charter school, including any services provided by the school district, is to be conducted;
   7. (7) a description of the governance and operation of the charter school, including the nature and extent of parental, professional educator, and community involvement in the governance and operation of the charter school;
   8. (8) a description of how the charter school plans to ensure that the enrollment of the school is similar to the racial composition of the local school district in which the charter school is to be located or the targeted student population of the local school district that the charter school proposes to serve and provide assurance that the school does not conflict with any school district desegregation plan or order in effect for the school district in which the charter school is to be located;
   9. (9) a description of how the charter school plans to meet the transportation needs of its pupils;
   10. (10) a description of the building, facilities, and equipment and how they shall be obtained;
   11. (11) an explanation of the relationship that shall exist between the proposed charter school and its employees, including descriptions of evaluation procedures and evidence that the terms and conditions of employment have been addressed with affected employees;
   12. (12) a description of a reasonable grievance and termination procedure, as required by this chapter, including notice and a hearing before the governing body of the charter school. The application must state whether or not the provisions of Article 5, Chapter 25 of Title 59 apply to the employment and dismissal of teachers at the charter school;
   13. (13) a description of student rights and responsibilities, including behavior and discipline standards, and a reasonable hearing procedure, including notice and a hearing before the board of directors of the charter school before expulsion;
   14. (14) an assumption of liability by the charter school for the activities of the charter school and an agreement that the charter school must indemnify and hold harmless the school district, its servants, agents, and employees, from any and all liability, damage, expense, causes of action, suits, claims, or judgments arising from injury to persons or property or otherwise which arises out of the act, failure to act, or negligence of the charter school, its agents and employees, in connection with or arising out of the activity of the charter school; and
   15. (15) a description of the types and amounts of insurance coverage to be obtained by the charter school.
7. (G) Nothing in this section shall require a charter school applicant to provide a list of prospective or tentatively enrolled students or prospective employees with the application.

HISTORY: 1996 Act No. 447, Section 2; 2002 Act No. 341, Section 1; 2006 Act No. 274, Section 1, eff May 3, 2006.