“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

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
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

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.

Committee Charges Suite
ToolkitsCharter Board Partners26 Feb, 2016
Committees are the backbone of strong governance, and every committee needs a clear charge to define its work. This suite includes charges for six common charter school board committees:… Read more

Turning Passion Into Action: Unlocking Your Board's Fundraising Potential
ToolkitsSafal Partners26 Feb, 2016
"Turning Passion into Action: Unlocking Your Board's Fundraising Potential" was a presentation given at the National Charter Schools Conference, 2015 by Safal Partners. Among the… Read more

Succession Planning in CMOs: Worksheet
ToolkitsBill and Melinda Gates Foundation26 Feb, 2016
This tool offers a sample information and contact inventory worksheet to accompany the interactive Succession Planning Tool for charter management organizations from the Bill & Melinda… Read more

Charter School Civil Rights Checklist
ToolkitsCivil Rights Solutions26 Feb, 2016
Use this checklist from Civil Rights Solutions to make sure your school is aware of and in compliance with federal civil rights laws.

Governance in the Charter School Sector: Time for a Reboot
ReportsFordham Institute26 Feb, 2016
Over the course of its twenty-year history, American education and its charter school sector have evolved in important ways. School governance is not a topic that gets a lot of attention… Read more