3 would-be charter schools clear hurdle

The applications for three startup charter schools will be recommended to the state Public Charter School Commission for approval, while three others got a thumbs-down Thursday from the agency’s Applications Committee.

The committee couldn’t decide on whether to advance a seventh application.

The full commission, which has a statutory mission “to authorize high-quality public charter schools throughout the state,” is scheduled to make a final decision on the applications at its Aug. 11 meeting. If approved, the schools would be authorized to open for the 2017-18 school year.

Evaluation panels consisting of commission staff and volunteer experts had judged each of the applications on criteria in four areas — academic plan, financial plan, organizational plan and evidence of capacity — to come up with overall recommendations. The commission’s Application Committee took up those recommendations during a public meeting Thursday that spanned nearly six hours and included public testimony and comments from the evaluation teams.

The committee voted to accept the evaluators’ recommendations to advance the applications of Alaka‘i o Kaua‘i Charter School and Kamalani Academy. It also advanced the application for Kapolei Charter School despite a recommendation from the evaluation team to deny the proposal.

Meanwhile, the committee voted to recommend that the applications for DreamHouse Ewa Beach, IMAG Academy and Kilohana Academy be denied. The committee voted to defer to the full board on Accelerated Learning Laboratory-Hawaii’s application, which evaluators had recommended for approval.

Hawaii’s 34 charter schools are largely funded with taxpayer dollars through per-pupil funding but are independently run under contracts with the commission. The schools, which report to their own governing boards, generally enjoy more autonomy than regular public schools in exchange for more accountability.

The seven applicant teams were allowed to respond to criticisms and concerns at Thursday’s meeting, but commissioners and officials emphasized that the review process isn’t designed to allow for amendments along the way. Applications, they said, have to be judged as they are submitted to ensure a fair process for all applicants.

“The application is the application. When you submit it, all your homework has to be done,” said commissioner Roger Takabayashi. Otherwise, “you’re changing the tires on the bus as the bus is rolling.”

Here’s a look at the three schools being recommended for approval.

>> Alaka‘i o Kaua‘i Charter School

The school, which is applying for a charter for a third time, would serve East Kauai with “a progressive, innovative curriculum that prepares students for a successful future,” using project-based learning and interdisciplinary instruction. The school would start out serving 165 students in kindergarten through fifth grade and eventually expand to serve 275 students in kindergarten through grade 6 by its fifth year.

Yvonne Lau, acting executive director for the charter school commission, said in a memorandum to the applications committee that “the applicant presented an academic plan that articulates a vision for their school that incorporates academic rigor, relevance, and a focus on whole-child learning, something that many of our department public schools may not have had the flexibility to offer.”

The evaluation team wrote in its report that it “has a high level of confidence that the proposed academic plan will lead to a community of thoughtful, kind and successful learners.”

>> Kamalani Academy

The proposed school would serve Central Oahu with a planned location in Wahiawa for an initial 202 students in kindergarten through sixth grade before expanding to serve 306 students in kindergarten through grade 8 by its fifth year. It would provide a so-called arts integration approach to learning.

“The application has an innovative and rigorous academic plan that includes a balance of content area skill development and arts integrated projects with ongoing assessments and data analysis guiding instruction for mastery,” the evaluation team wrote in its report.

“Kamalani will bring a unique arts-integrated curriculum to Central Oahu as well as the entire DOE,” said Steve Davidson, co-chairman of the school’s founding board.

The school says it plans to use a national charter school management company, Academica, to assist with all levels of the school’s operations, including bookkeeping, record keeping, financial projections and statements, and governmental compliance.

>> Kapolei Charter School

The nonprofit Goodwill Industries of Hawaii is proposing a charter school in Kapolei to help at-risk students earn a high school diploma “while providing enriching wrap-around serv-ices to help them navigate challenges and overcome barriers, allowing them to reach academic success.”

The school projects initial enrollment of 100 students in high school grades and 300 students by its fifth year. The nonprofit already works with about 300 youths annually to obtain their GED, or General Educational Development, high school equivalency diploma.

The evaluation team raised concerns about the applicant’s academic plan, saying in part that “there is significant concern that the proposed academic plan is not tailored to provide effective engagement or deliver sufficient academic gains to the targeted student population. Overall, the academic plan feels like a missed opportunity.”

“I think they have an existing program in place that is saving a lot of children,” commissioner Takabayashi said. “I think they can do it.”