News Article - Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Enrollment Policy Revision Project 2011

To:	Charter Leaders
From:	Marlon Davis, Director of Charter Schools, Innovation, and School Redesign
Date:	August 30, 2011

The amended Charter School Statute, M.G.L. c. 71, § 89, and the Charter School Regulations, 603 CMR 1.00 contain new requirements related to charter school enrollment. Therefore, each school's enrollment policy must be reviewed and updated to ensure that they are consistent with the revised requirements. In order to facilitate the process of enrollment policy revision, the Charter School Office (CSO) has developed an Enrollment Policy Checklist and targeted Implementation Guidance

. There are different policy checklists for Commonwealth charter schools and Horace Mann charter schools. Both checklists can be found on our website at: http://www.doe.mass.edu/charter/governance. The Implementation Guidance provides clarification on issues that schools have encountered in developing and implementing enrollment requirements. We hope this guidance will prove helpful in your development of an appropriate and accurate enrollment policy.

Please submit your updated draft enrollment policy, with a completed Enrollment Policy Checklist, to charterschools@doe.mass.edu. Schools that are unable to submit a revised policy by Tuesday, November 1, 2011, will be required to participate in a mandatory Enrollment Policy Workshop to be held in Malden on Tuesday, November 15, 2011. The Enrollment Policy Workshop will provide targeted guidance to assist individual schools in addressing the new requirements within their school's present policy.

New schools opening this fall are also required to review their new enrollment policies to confirm that the policies comply with the implementation guidance developed by the CSO. The CSO will thoroughly review each draft enrollment policy submitted and assist the school to ensure that the final policy meets all requirements. The review process requires the incorporation of CSO feedback prior to the school's Board of Trustees' approval of the new policy. Please be reminded that any change in a school's enrollment policy constitutes a material change to the school's charter, and must be approved by the Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education before it can go into effect. To request a policy amendment, please adhere to the amendment advisory found online at http://www.doe.mass.edu/charter/governance/. Please note that it is essential to complete the amendment request and approval process prior to starting this year's initial application and enrollment process. In addition to updating your enrollment policy, schools need to ensure that all enrollment materials (including webpage and printed materials) reflect the new enrollment requirements. Please do not hesitate to contact your Accountability Liaison if you have any further questions. We look forward to working with you as we move forward with this process.

Last Updated: September 15, 2011