What is the governance structure of a charter school?
Charter school governance structures vary. Many schools involve the school’s stakeholders, including parents, teachers, administrators, classified staff, and community leaders. California Education Code (EC) Section 47605(b)(5)(D) (Outside Source) requires the charter include a reasonably comprehensive description of the school’s governance structure. If a charter school elects to operate as a nonprofit, public benefit corporation, as allowed by EC Section 47604 (Outside Source), the charter authorizing entity is entitled to a representative on the corporation’s board of directors. When a charter school is governed by a nonprofit public benefit corporation, the charter authorizing entity may not be liable for any of the debts or obligations of the charter school. Nonprofit corporations operating charter schools in California are subject to the laws governing nonprofit corporations in the California Corporations Code and all charter school laws.
