Charter School Review

One of the four primary roles of the Cleveland Transformation Alliance is to monitor the growth and quality of the charter sector.

We carry out this work by:

Communicating regularly with sponsors to strengthen relationships and facilitate two-way communication.
Reviewing eligible sponsors seeking to authorize new charter schools to be located within the boundaries of the Cleveland school district, as mandated by state law.
Conducting ongoing reviews of sponsors by seeking evidence of their use of established, state-mandated criteria when opening new charter schools in Cleveland.
Reviewing charter schools that seek direct sponsorship from the Office of School Sponsorship at the Ohio Department of Education, as mandated by state law.

The Transformation Alliance timeline and documents for the 2019-2020 sponsor review processes are now available.

 

State law requires sponsors that meet certain criteria to request recommendation from the Cleveland Transformation Alliance before opening new community schools within Cleveland Municipal School District boundaries. Furthermore, all sponsors, including those that have already gone through the Transformation Alliance review process, must use criteria established under state law to open community schools in Cleveland.

If your organization is planning to sponsor a new community school in Cleveland for the 2020-21 school year and is subject to review by the Transformation Alliance, an application must be submitted to the Transformation Alliance by September 15, 2019. For more information, contact Catherine Smith.

 

Reviews of sponsors that oversee charter schools in Cleveland

Cleveland Metropolitan School District, 2018

Thomas B. Fordham Foundation, 2017

St. Aloysius Orphanage, 2017

Buckeye Community Hope Foundation, 2015

 

Letters of recommendation regarding individual charter schools

S.M.A.R.T. Academy, 2018

Virtual Schoolhouse, Inc., 2016

 

Additional Resources 

Charter Review Protocol – Learn more about the work of the Transformation Alliance to monitor the growth and quality of the charter sector in Cleveland.
New community school criteria – To be used by all sponsors when authorizing new schools within CMSD boundaries.
Sponsor Success Criteria – Criteria for assessing the ability of a sponsor to successfully sponsor a community school in a municipal school district
The following resources are available for sponsors to understand which Cleveland neighborhoods are most in need of new, quality schools: