INDEPENDENT STUDY AND NONCLASSROOM-BASED REGULATIONS

Draft Funding Formulas Proposed by CDE Staff on May 9, 2002

The CDE staff proposal would set three tiers of funding for charter schools operating nonclassroom-based and independent study programs, depending on the amount that the school spends on certificated employees and benefits, pupil/teacher ratios, and the amount spent on instruction and instruction-related activities. The CDE staff has defined several key terms in its proposal as follows:

Definitions of Key Terms

Benchmark funding level -- The funding level identified in the statute. This is 80% in 2002-03 and 70% in 2003-04 and each year thereafter.

Full funding level -- Staff has proposed setting this to be at whatever level the Legislature and Governor adopt for noncharter independent study programs so as to not encourage school districts to convert their independent study programs to charter schools. The Governor has proposed a 10% cut for school district independent study programs for next year, so staff recommends that "full funding" be established at 90%, rather than 100% for next fiscal year.

One-half the difference between "benchmark" and "full funding" level -- This could vary from year-to-year, depending on what the Governor and Legislature adopt as the "full funding" level for noncharter indpendent study programs. If staff's recommendation is approved and a 90% rate is set as full funding for next year, then this funding rate would be 85 percent in 2002-03 (half the difference between 80 percent and 90 percent) and 80 percent in 2003-04 and subsequent fiscal years (half the difference between 70 percent and 90 percent).

Total Public Revenues -- Includes all federal and state grants, including startup, implementation and dissemination grants.

Requirements for Each Funding Level

To receive the "benchmark" funding level, a charter school would have to demonstrate ALL of the following:

1. The charter school's total expenditures on certificated employee salaries and benefits must be at least 35 percent of the charter school's total public reveneus; AND
2. The charter school's total expenditures on instruction and instruction-related activities must be at least 55 percent of the charter school's total public revenues; AND
3. The charter school's pupil-teacher ratio as calculated pursuant to Education Code Section 51745.6 must be no greater than the pupil-teacher ratio of the largest unified district in the county or counties in which the charter school operates.

Mitigating factors that might allow a school to reach benchmark funding even if it falls short of the above percentages include:

If a school does not meet the minimum requirements to receive "benchmark" funding, then the funding level is zero, unless there are mitigating factors.

To receive one-half of the difference between the "benchmark" funding level and full funding, a charter school would have to demonstrate ALL of the following:

1. The charter school's total expenditures on certificated employee salaries and benefits must be at least 50 percent of the charter school's total public revenues; AND
2. The charter school's total expenditures on instruction and instruction-related activities must be at least 70 percent of the charter school's total public revenues; AND
3. The charter school's pupil-teacher ratio as calculated pursuant to Education Code Section 51745.6 must be LESS THAN the pupil-teacher ratio of the largest unified school district in the county or counties in which the charter school operates.

Mitigating factors that might allow a school to reach this funding level even if it falls short of the above percentages include:

To receive full funding, a charter school would have to demonstrate ALL of the following:

Mitigating factors that might allow a school to reach this funding level even if it falls short of the above percentages include: