“A Synthesis of Research on Charter School Facilities” examines the…
Board Governance
As the school’s governing body, the board of trustees is legally responsible for the academic, financial, and operational quality of the charter school. Given the centrality of autonomy to charter schools, the board is integral to the proper oversight of schools. The National Charter School Resource Center leverages the existing body of knowledge to offer best practices and tools to enable charter schools to establish and maintain an effective board.
Featured Board Governance Resources

Identifying Indicators of Distress in Charter Schools Part 1: The Role and Perspective of Charter School Authorizers
Indicators of Distress and What They Mean in the Charter Sector: A Webinar for Charter Sector Stakeholders Introducing…

Webinar: Recruitment for Governing Boards
The Death Spiral: Identifying Early Indicators of Distress in Charter Schools (A Conversation with Authorizers)
All Board Governance Resources

Top 10 Tips for Being a Great Board Chair
ToolkitsCharter Board Partners26 Feb, 2016
Great boards need great board chairs. This tool offers top tips for new (and veteran) board chairs on leading effectively.

Succession Planning in CMOs: Report and Case Studies
ReportsBill and Melinda Gates Foundation26 Feb, 2016
This report by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation details the importance of succession planning for charter management organizations (CMOs), shares the key components of succession… Read more

Standards for Effective Charter School Governance
ToolkitsCharter Board Partners26 Feb, 2016
Charter Board Partners’ standards for effective governance are widely used and highly acclaimed by charter school boards. They clearly outline the core responsibilities of charter school… Read more

Does the Charter School Board Need to Vote on Everything?
ReportsJoe Keeny, Michael Higgins01 Nov, 2013
The actions of charter schools are often at the discretion of charter school boards, which have governing authority and operate under the state’s charter school laws and regulations. Most… Read more

Master Class: Board Development and Governance
Event09 Sep, 2015
Non-profit boards serve an important role in ensuring strong governance of schools. Independent governance is the key differentiator between public charter schools and other public schools—… Read more
Governance Best Practices for Highly Effective Charter School Boards
ToolkitsCharter Board Partners31 Dec, 2012
This toolkit from Charter Board Partners provides a nearly comprehensive compilation of best practices to create and sustain a highly effective charter school board. Topics covered include… Read more
CSO Master Class: New School Development
Event03 Dec, 2015
State-based charter support organizations (CSOs) provide services for charter schools, including best practices, tools, and resources to support the development of new schools in their… Read more

Officer Job Descriptions Suite
ToolkitsCharter Board Partners26 Feb, 2016
To ensure that everyone is on the same page about the responsibilities of board leadership, Charter Board Partners has written job descriptions for the four charter school board officer… Read more

Top 10 Mistakes Charter School Boards Make
ToolkitsBoard on Track26 Feb, 2016
Charter school board members have lots of questions about their roles and responsibilities. They can learn a bit of what NOT to do from this insightful piece about mistakes that charter… Read more

Essential Ingredients of Good Bylaws
ToolkitsCharter Board Partners26 Feb, 2016
This tool provides great advice about creating strong bylaws from a lawyer with extensive experience advising charter school boards.