Florida Charter School Applications and Appeals

Every proposed charter school in Florida has to complete an application to obtain approval to open. Most applications still go to the school district, but a district is no longer the only possible sponsor; see our Charter School Law page. Applicants use a standard application form prepared by the Department of Education, sponsors review it with the Department’s evaluation instrument, and a sponsor may not charge a fee for processing or considering an application (section 1002.33(6), Florida Statutes). It used to be that charter applications were fairly simple documents, but now, with required attachments, it is not uncommon for charter applications to run to at least several hundred pages. We have worked with many charter schools to make sure that the application they file meets the legal requirements and puts them on the best footing to survive the sponsor’s review. We will normally not write an entire application, which would be costly for a charter school, but if needed we can refer you to people we have worked with who help write applications.

An appeal of a denied application must be filed within 30 calendar days. To talk with us before or after a sponsor’s decision, call us at 850-567-8445 or fill in the message form on this page.

There is no longer a fixed filing date each year. A sponsor must receive and consider applications for charter schools to be opened at a time the applicant chooses, and an approved school may defer its opening for up to three years (section 1002.33(6)(b)).

The Sponsor’s Review

Once your application has been filed, the sponsor has a limited time to review it and will often provide feedback, and sometimes an opportunity for an interview, to learn more about your charter school. Before it votes, the sponsor must give you at least 7 calendar days to make technical or nonsubstantive corrections and clarifications. It must approve or deny the application by majority vote no later than 90 calendar days after receiving it, unless you both agree in writing to more time. We can help you prepare your response to the sponsor’s feedback, separating the significant concerns from those that are not as serious and should not be a basis for denying an application.

If the sponsor denies the application, it must state its specific reasons, based on good cause, in writing within 10 calendar days and send them, with supporting documentation, to you and to the Department of Education. That letter frames the appeal.

Appealing a Denial

If you have put a good application together and the sponsor still denies it, we handle appeals to the State Board of Education and, if needed, the Florida appellate courts. Appealing a denial of an application is a fast-moving process: the appeal itself, not just a notice of appeal, needs to be filed no later than 30 calendar days after you receive the sponsor’s decision. The sponsor then has 30 calendar days to respond. The Charter School Appeal Commission, half of whose members represent operating charter schools and half sponsors, reviews the appeal and makes a written recommendation to the State Board. Before the Commission there is an opportunity to present argument and unsworn testimony as to the grounds the sponsor has cited as a basis to deny the charter; in effect, a short trial. Districts often will bring a dozen people to speak, so a charter school has to be prepared to respond to and successfully address the district’s comments on the application. The State Board must decide the appeal no later than 90 calendar days after it is filed, the sponsor must implement the Board’s decision, and that decision may be reviewed in a District Court of Appeal.

Because time is so short during the appeal, it helps if we are familiar with your application before the sponsor rules on it. In some districts even very good applications have been denied, and the only way to open the school has been to appeal the denial. So if you are applying where you are likely to have to appeal even with an excellent application, it is often helpful to get us involved early.

After an application is approved, the next step is negotiating the charter, which we cover in more detail on the Charter Contract Negotiation page.