Happy New Year from CACSA!

I am looking forward to working with many of you this year. At CACSA we are focused on creating opportunities for authorizing professionals to connect with their peers to work together on shared concerns. To that end, this CACSA Update is loaded with information on upcoming events and chances to get involved in work with your colleagues.

Hold the Date! Most people are familiar with the quarterly meetings we co-host with CDE. The next quarterly meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, March 11 in Westminster. This meeting is convened in conjunction with the Colorado League of Charter School’s annual conference. Please hold this date and plan to join us in Westminster.

In addition to our quarterly in-person events, CACSA supports a wide-variety of networking opportunities.

• CACSA has standing committees that work on topics like authorizer support and individualized education. The Authorizer Support Committee will oversee work on a model charter contract and annual report templates. Our Committee on Individualized Education guides our work on special education and other issues that affect access and services for all students in charter schools. Contact Alex if you would like to join these committees or receive communications and materials related to their work;
• This year we are launching a series of informal networking lunches where you can talk with your peers in a relaxed setting;
• We are also hosting regional meetings of authorizers. We recently had regional meetings in Colorado Springs and in Southwest Colorado in Durango. Both regions plans to meet regularly. If you would like to initiate regional meetings or participate in a regional meeting near you, please contact Alex;
• We also convene issue-specific conference calls. In the next two months we will be convening issue-specific webinars to discuss legislation affecting charter schools and authorizing and the recent challenge of a district’s exclusive chartering authority; and
• Finally, we are convening webinars to provide technology demonstrations to share tools that authorizers around the country use to efficiently manage their oversight responsibilities.

A running list of these meetings and other events is listed below and is also available in the events section of the CACSA website.  Feel free to reach me if you have any questions or suggestions. I hope to see you soon!

Alex

1. CACSA Authorizer Support Committee (Wednesday, January 15, 1:00 pm)

We will be discussing the CACSA model charter contract. Any interested authorizers are welcome to join the call.

Login:           https://zoom.us/j/273282421?pwd=bDVkZUx3QTVJZmlUTEpQOUpBQitJUT09

By Phone:    16699009128

Meeting ID: 273 282 421

Password:   082969

2. Monthly CACSA Networking Lunch (Friday, January 17, 12:00 noon)

CACSA is convening monthly lunch meetings for informal networking.  Our plan is to rotate the location from month-to-month. The first meeting is at Sassafras in downtown Denver, located at 320 E. Colfax.

3. CACSA Committee on Individualized Education (Tuesday, January 21, 9:00 am to 12:00 noon)

Workshop on charter contract provisions regarding special education. We will also be joined by national experts on legal issues related to special education. Anyone interested in the topic is welcome to join the discussion, including authorizers and those involved in special education.

In person: Adams 12 School District, 1500 E. 128^th Ave., Thornton, Snowmass Room

Video Conference:

Login:           https://zoom.us/j/759428288?pwd=dHVTZjhPNGNEcGRENHlWVjVKSkJJQT09

By phone:    669 900 9128

Meeting ID: 759 428 288

Password:   877995

4. State Policy Conference Call: (Wednesday, January 22, 12:00 noon to 1:00 pm)

Dan Schaller from the Colorado League of Charter Schools will provide an update on the League’s perspective on the legislative session and their recent challenge of exclusive chartering authority. We will be convening similar calls with other stakeholder groups throughout the year. This is a chance to learn about likely legislative proposals and other developments in state policy of interest to charter authorizers. CACSA does not take positions on policy issues but serves as a resource to understand potential changes to Colorado’s charter context and to articulate the importance of quality charter school authorizing.

Login:           https://zoom.us/j/632781287?pwd=VmdzK3NIb1BJYi81SmVkZWg1SUNJZz09

By phone:   669 900 9128

Meeting ID: 632 781 287

Password:   508867

Demo Webinars with Technology for Authorizers

The Tri-State Alliance to Improve District Led Charter Authorizing is hosting a series of webinars for authorizers to learn about technology tools that help authorizers and charter schools communicate efficiently and that allow authorizers to track charter school reporting, compliance, and performance. These webinars are part of the effort by the three state associations in the Tri-State Alliance (CACSA, FACSA and CCAP) to create annual report templates and related materials that will help authorizers provide feedback to charter schools. The webinars will present information on Epicenter, which is provided by the National Charter School Institute; and Charter Tools. Both these online resources are used by authorizers to automate a variety of functions related to charter school authorizing. The Tri-State Alliance and the state associations do not endorse these products. We are offering these webinars to help authorizers learn more about all available technology tools designed to support charter school authorizing and to gather feedback from members on these resources and their technology needs.

 

5. Charter Tools Demo Webinar (Thursday, January 16, 2020, 12:00 noon to 1:30 pm)

1:30 pm to 2:30 pm (add-on walkthrough of resource for charter applications reviews) 

Charter Tools was first developed in Florida, where many districts use it. Several Colorado districts have adopted it for use in the state in the last few years. An add-on part of this call will focus on a particular resource used to facilitate a district’s review of a new charter application.

Login:              https://zoom.us/j/676299400?pwd=SUNTUWQvWlBiVzdxWm42VXhFalhKUT09

By phone:       69 9128

Meeting ID:    676 299 400

Password:       161946

6. Epicenter Demo Webinar (Tuesday, February 18, 2020; 12:00 noon to 1:30 pm)

Login:                 https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/913143069
By phone:         224 501-3412
Access Code:    913-143-069