State Board Releases 2022 Charter School Authorizer Evaluation Outcomes

Media Contact:  Nathan James
Nathan.James@tn.gov
615-532-3528

During its February quarterly meeting last week, the State Board of Education released the outcomes for the 2022 charter school authorizer evaluations, which ensure the effective operation of all authorizers and evaluate authorizer quality.

The State Board was charged with conducting periodic charter school authorizer evaluations by the Tennessee General Assembly during the 2019 legislative session. Under the statutory requirement, the State Board developed an evaluation system based on its Quality Charter Authorizing Standards Policy and was the fourth state to adopt an authorizer evaluation process.

“The Board believes that quality authorizing leads to quality charter schools and increased opportunities for our students and we are pleased to share the results of our second set of evaluations,” said Dr. Sara Morrison, Executive Director of the State Board of Education. “This evaluation process is new work for us and provides authorizers valuable feedback that can be used to increase the oversight and support to their charter schools.

”Each charter school authorizer evaluation begins with the formation of an evaluation team and an examination of the authorizer’s performance based on the Board’s Quality Charter Authorizing Standards rubric. At the conclusion of the evaluation, authorizers receive a final report detailing specific feedback, scores on the rubric’s standards, an overall rating, and follow-up actions. Authorizers can earn an overall rating on a scale from zero to four, with score ranges indicating unsatisfactory/incomplete, approaching satisfactory, satisfactory, commendable, and exemplary designations.

Tennessee’s charter authorizer evaluation cycle is conducted over a two-year period. The 2022 evaluations assessed the authorizing practices of the Achievement School District, Metro Nashville Public Schools, and the Tennessee Public Charter School Commission and marks the completion of the State Board’s first full cycle of evaluations.

2022 Evaluation Outcomes:

• Achievement School District – “Approaching Satisfactory” with a score of 1.5 out of 4
• Metro Nashville Public Schools – “Satisfactory” with a score of 2.2 out of 4
• Tennessee Public Charter School Commission – “Exemplary” with a score of 3.9 out of 4

Additional information, including the full charter authorizer evaluation reports, can be found on the State Board of Education’s website.

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The Tennessee State Board of Education is a ten-member, gubernatorially and legislatively appointed board charged under the law with rulemaking and policymaking for K-12 education. Through a closepartnership with the Tennessee Department of Education, the Board maintains oversight in K-12 implementation and academic standards.