On July 11, 2024, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro approved Senate Bill No. 700, now Act No. 55 of 2024 (the “Act”), which amends several sections of the Pennsylvania Public School Code of 1949.
In Part Five of our School Administrators’ Guide to Act 55, KingSpry’s Education Law Chair Emeritus John E. Freund, III and Education Law Attorney Sarah Modrick, LL.M. discuss the changes impacting charter and cyber charter schools in Pennsylvania.
For purposes of this School Law Bullet, reference to “charter school(s)” shall mean an independent public school established and operated under a charter from the local board of school directors and in which students are enrolled or attend. 24 P.S. § 17-1703-A.
Reference to “cyber charter school(s)” shall mean an independent public school established and operated under a charter from the Department of Education and in which the school uses technology in order to provide a significant portion of its curriculum and to deliver a significant portion of instruction to its students through the Internet or other electronic means. 24 P.S. § 17-1703-A.
Provisions That Apply Only to Charter Schools
Trustees and Administrators of Charter Schools. The Act amends Sections 1715-A and 1716-A of Article XVII-A to clarify that trustees and administrators of charter schools are public officials for the purposes of 65 Pa.C.S. Chapter 11 and are required to file a Statement of Financial Interests no later than May 1st of each year they hold their position.
Limitations on the Board of Trustees. Section 1716-A of Article XVII-A is amended to place limitations on the board of trustees of a charter school (the “Charter School Board”) as follows:
A member of a local board of school directors of a school entity (“Local School Board”) cannot serve on a Charter School Board located within the member’s district.
For all charter schools or regional charter schools chartered after July 11, 2024, ‘an individual may not serve as a voting member of the (Charter School Board) if the individual or a family member receives compensation from or is employed by or is a member of (the Local School Board) who participated in the initial review, approval, oversight, evaluation or renewal process of the charter or regional charter school.
A member of a Charter School Board may not participate in the selection, award or administration of a contract if the member has a conflict of interest, as defined in 65 Pa.C.S. § 1102.
When voting on said conflict of interest, the member must abstain from voting and follow the procedures required under 65 Pa.C.S. § 1103(j).
No member of a Charter School Board may be compensated for their duties.
A member of a Charter School Board will automatically be disqualified and immediately removed from the Board upon conviction for an offense graded as a felony, an infamous crime, an offense pertaining to fraud, theft or mismanagement of public funds, any offense pertaining to the member’s official capacity as a member of the Board, or any crime involving moral turpitude.
Makeup of a Charter School Board. A Charter School Board must consist of a minimum of five (5) nonrelated voting members. Charter School Boards that do not meet this requirement have until January 7, 2025 to appoint additional members. By July 11, 2025, at least one (1) member of the Charter School Board must be a parent of a child currently attending the charter school entity. This member is eligible to serve as long as their child attends the charter school.
Voting and Official Action. The Act provides that a majority of the voting members of the Charter School Board constitutes a quorum. If less than a majority is present at any meeting, no business may be transacted.
Additionally, the Act provides that the affirmative vote of a majority of all voting members of the Charter School School, duly recorded, is required to take official action on matters related to the operation of the charter school.
Audit of Charter School Board Members. The Act requires a charter school to form an independent audit committee of its Charter School Board members, which shall review a complete certified audit of the operations of the charter school at the close of each fiscal year.
The aforementioned audit must be conducted by a qualified, independent certified public accountant, using generally-accepted audit standards. Further, the audit is deemed a public document and must be made available on the charter school’s website.
Annual Budget. The Act also requires charter schools to provide the Department of Education with a copy of its annual budget for the operation of the charter school. The annual budget must identify the following:
1. The source of funding for all expenditures;
2. Where funding is provided by a charter school foundation, the amount of funds and a description of the use of the funds;
3. The salaries of all administrators of the charter school; and
4. All expenditures to an educational management service provider.
The annual budget is deemed a public document and must be made available on the charter school’s website.
When applicable, a charter school foundation must make copies of its annual budget available upon request and on the charter school foundation’s or the charter school’s website within thirty days of the close of the charter school foundation’s fiscal year. This annual budget should include the salaries of all employees of the charter school foundation.
Publication of Tax Filings. Charter schools and any affiliated foundation(s) must make copies of their annual Federal and State tax filings available upon request and on the entity’s website.
Provisions That Apply Only to Cyber Charters
Facilities Available to Cyber Charter Schools. A school district, intermediate unit, community college, and/or institution under Article XX-A of the School Code must provide a cyber charter school with “reasonable access” to its facilities for the administration of standardized testing under certain circumstances. School administrators are encouraged to reiew Section 1722-A of Article XX-A and note when it must provide a cyber charter school with access to its facilities.
Funding for Cyber Charter Schools. The Act amends Section 1725.1-A, governing the funding of cyber charter schools, and provides that there should be no charge of tuition for a resident or nonresident student attending a cyber charter school.
Effective January 1, 2025, and for the entirety of each school year thereafter, for special education students, a cyber charter school shall receive for each student enrolled the lesser of:
1. The amount calculated under section 1725-A(a)(3); or
2. The same funding as for each non-special education student as provided in section 1725-A(a)(2), plus an additional amount determined by dividing the district of residence’s total special education expenditure by the school district of residence’s total special education average daily membership for the prior school year.
For the months prior to the January 1, 2025 effective date the Act provides that, “the monthly payments for July through December for special education students shall be based upon the rate calculated under Section 1725-A(a)(3) and the monthly payments for January through June for special education students shall be based upon the rate calculated in subsection (c).”
Cyber Charter School Enrollment and Notification. The Act amends the notification deadlines under Section 1748-A of Article XVII-A. Now, within ten (10) days of the enrollment of a student to a cyber charter school, the parent or guardian and the cyber charter school must notify the student’s school district of residence of the enrollment through the use of the notification form provided under subsection (b).
Likewise, when a student has withdrawn from a cyber charter school, the cyber charter school and the parent or guardian of the student must provide written notification to the student’s school district of residence within ten (10) days of the withdrawal.
Cyber Charter School Enrollee Wellness Checks. The Act requires cyber charter schools, at least once during any week consisting of at least three (3) full or partial days of academic instruction, to ensure that each enrolled student is able to be visibly seen and communicated with in real time by a teacher, administrator or other representative. This requirement is enacted to ensure the well-being of students and verify their participation in the educational program.
Should any indication of abuse, neglect or harm to a child be observed, the cyber charter school administrator, employee or representative must report their concerns in accordance with 23 Pa.C.S. Ch. 63.
Provision That Technically Governs Both Charters and Cyber Charters, However, the Act Only Impacts Cyber Charter Reimbursements
Reimbursements for Charter Schools and Cyber Charter Schools. Lastly, the Act amends Section 2591.1 of Article XXV, which governs reimbursements for cyber charter schools.
The Act provides that “for the 2023-2024 school year and each school year thereafter, using the most recently available data as of the first day of June preceding the school year in which the allocation occurs, the Commonwealth shall pay to each school district with resident students enrolled in a cyber charter school, as defined under Article XVII-A, an amount equal to the following:
1. Multiply the tuition paid to cyber charter schools by the amount appropriated for cyber charter transition; and
2. Divide the product in paragraph (1) by the sum of the tuition paid by all school districts to cyber charter schools.”
