Massachusetts Charter Schools

Accountability

Each school is assigned a liaison who is able to respond to inquiries regarding any aspect of charter school accountability.

For general questions and concerns about charter schools please contact charterschools@mass.gov or call 781-338-3227 for assistance.

Annual Report Guidelines

A charter school's Annual Report must be submitted to the Office of Charter Schools and School Redesign at the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (Department) on or before August 1, as set forth in the charter school statute (MGL Chapter 71, Section 89 (jj)) and regulations.

The Annual Report informs the public of the recently completed academic year as it relates to the school's accountability plan objectives, the school's academic performance, and evidence regarding the three areas guiding charter school (faithfulness to charter, academic program success, and organizational viability). The Annual Report is also used by the Department to review the school's performance and progress for the past academic year, to corroborate and augment upcoming scheduled site visits, and to serve as one of the primary pieces of evidence that the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education will review when it considers a school's application for charter renewal. The Annual Report Guidelines (found below) provide the required elements that must be included in each report.

The Annual Report Guidelines enable charter schools to meet statutory and regulatory requirements pertaining to Recruitment and Retention (R&R) Plans. Please use the following documents to complete the R&R portion of the Annual Report:

  • The Guide for Adding Data into R&R Plans provides visual directions for how to find and insert school specific data from the Charter School Dashboard (link below) into the school's R&R plan.

  • The Most Prevalent Language document provides a list of charter school that are located in districts that enroll 10 percent or more English learners and the most prevalent languages of these districts.

  • The Charter School Dashboard is a new tool that provides unique data displays for charter schools. The Dashboard was developed in collaboration between the Department and the Executive Office of Education Information Technology. The Department periodically updates the Dashboard with enhanced features and functionality. The current version was released in May 2025.

Last Updated: May 11, 2026

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