2
Acknowledgements
The Board of Regents (BOR) and the New York State Education Department (NYSED) wish to
specifically acknowledge and thank the State University of New York’s Charter Schools Institute
(SUNY CSI), the New York City Department of Education (NYCDOE), and the Board of Education of
Buffalo Public Schools for their contributions and collaborative efforts in creating this Annual
Report.
SUNY Charter Schools Institute
H. Carl McCall SUNY Building
353 Broadway
Albany, NY 12246
http://www.newyorkcharters.org/
New York City Department of Education
52 Chambers Street
New York, NY 10007
http://schools.nyc.gov/charters/
Board of Education of the Buffalo Public Schools
712 City Hall
Buffalo, NY 14202
http://www.buffaloschools.org/
3
Table of Contents
Introduction and Overview .......................................................................................................... 4
Submission Instructions ............................................................................................................... 4
Content Requirements ................................................................................................................. 6
Entry 1 – School Information and Cover Page 6
Entry 2 – Links to Critical Documents on School Website 8
Entry 3 – Board of Trustees Disclosure of Financial Interest Form 8
Entry 4 – Board of Trustees Membership Table 9
Entry 5 – Board Meeting Minutes 12
Entry 6 – Enrollment and Retention 12
Entry 7 – Employee Fingerprint Requirements Attestation 12
Entry 8 – Organization Chart 13
Entry 9 – School Calendar 13
Entry 10 – Faculty/Staff Roster Template 14
Entry 11 – Progress Toward Goals 15
Entry 12 – Audited Financial Statements 16
Entry 12a – Audited Financial Report Template 17
Entry 12b – Audited Financial Report Template 17
Entry 12c – Additional Financial Documents 17
Entry 12d – Financial Contact Information 17
Entry 13 – Fiscal Year 2024-2025 Budget 18
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Introduction and Overview
By August 1 of each year, each charter school in New York State is required by law to complete and
submit an Annual Report to the New York State Education Department’s Charter School Office
(NYSED CSO) and to the school’s charter entity (authorizer). Each charter school is required to
make the Annual Report publicly available by August 1 and post it on the charter school’s
website
1
. Each school should post an updated and complete version to include accountability
data and financial statements that are not or may not be available until after the August
deadline (i.e., Repost when financials have been submitted in November).
The 2023-2024 Annual Report Guidelines include general instructions for submission, report
content requirements, and key inquiries that highlight academic, organization, and fiscal
performance, as well as the extent to which a school is meeting the requirements of its charter.
These Guidelines are intended to walk schools through and supplement the prompts in the online
Annual Report Portal. All New York State charter schools, regardless of authorizer, must submit
their school’s 2023-2024 Annual Report through the online portal no later than 11:59 PM on
August 1, 2024, or no later than the dates specified in the applicable sections of the guidance.
Schools should make note of individual authorizer requirements in the Guidelines and within the
portal.
A charter school’s Annual Report provides information about its performance over the prior
academic year, as well as a record of progress toward performance goals agreed upon in the charter
contract.
2
The components to be included in each section of the Annual Report are outlined in the
Guidelines below. Please note that all required information must be clearly documented to complete
this statutory requirement.
Charter schools are not asked and are not required to submit personally identifiable student
information. Please DO NOT include or attach this information.
Additionally, all charter schools in New York must comply with reporting requirements set forth in
the Regulations of the Commissioner
3
and are held accountable for ensuring accurate data sharing
through the NYSED’s information management systems.
Submission Instructions
All Annual Reports must be submitted through the NYSED’s Charter School Office (NYSED CSO)
Annual Report Portal. All four authorizers in New York State access their respective annual reports
through this portal. Therefore, charter schools are not required to e-mail or submit hard copies of
the Annual Report to their respective authorizers. Waivers or extended deadline requests will not
be granted.
Schools that changed to another authorizer (through an education corporation merger)
during the 2023-2024 school year should follow the submission requirements of the
1
New York State Education Law Section 2857(2).
2
New York State Education Law Section 2857(2)(b).
3
See, 8 NYCRR 119.3.
5
authorizer overseeing the school as of June 30, 2024. There are multiple components to the
Annual Report, some of which are required of all schools—regardless of the authorizer—and others
which are specific to one or more authorizers. Format specifications and due dates of some
information may also vary by authorizer. Therefore, it is important for schools to read these
Guidelines and instructions carefully. Schools must ensure that all required components are
included as specified in these Guidelines. The information requested of schools is presented as
“tasks” within the online system.
A charter school’s Annual Report must be a clear and accessible document for parents, the charter
school’s authorizer, NYSED’s Charter School Office, and the general public. Any uploads submitted
through the online portal should be clearly labeled. Uploads that consist of narrative must use
standard one-inch margins, be clearly paginated, and use a clearly readable font no smaller in type
size than 11-point. The text must be grammatically correct and free of jargon, undefined terms, and
unexplained references. Please remove password protections from your Excel, Word, or PDF
documents before uploading them to this portal.
All schools must submit the first component of the Annual Report no later than 11:59 PM on
August 1, 2024, unless otherwise indicated for specific tasks. This submission includes basic
school information, board of trustees’ meeting minutes, and membership information (including
completed Trustee Financial Disclosure Forms). The specific requirements are described in the
section heading labeled “Content Requirements” of the Guidelines.
SUNY-authorized charter schools must download an Accountability Plan Progress Report
template and, after completion, schools must upload the document into the Annual Report
Portal and into the SUNY Epicenter document management system no later than 11:59 PM
on September 16, 2024.
If, after reading the instructions carefully, there are questions about the required information,
format, or deadlines for the Annual Report, please contact the school’s authorizer:
• New York State Board of Regents (NYSED): charterschools@nysed.gov
• State University of New York Trustees (SUNY): charters@suny.edu
• New York City Department of Education (NYCDOE):
charteroversight@schools.nyc.gov
• Buffalo Board of Education: Ebony Bullock EBullock@buffaloschools.org
Questions about the submission process may be directed to the Charter School Office.
6
Content Requirements
Entry 1 – School Information and Cover Page
Required of ALL Charter Schools
Each Annual Report begins with a completed School Information and Cover Page. The
information is collected in a survey format within the Annual Report Portal. When entering
information in the portal, some of the following items may not appear, depending on your
authorizer and/or your responses to related items.
a. Legal School Name (as chartered)
b. Unofficial or Popular School Name
c. Charter Authorizer as of June 30, 2024. School Unionized; Name of Union and Date
Unionized
d. District/CSD of Location
e. Date of Approved Initial Charter
f. Date School First Opened for Instruction
g. Approved School Mission (Regents, NYCDOE and Buffalo BOE authorized schools only)
and Key Design Elements (Regents, NYCDOE and Buffalo BOE authorized schools only)
h. School Website Address
i. Total Approved Charter Enrollment for 2023-2024 SY
j. Total Enrollment on June 30, 2024 – excluding Pre-K program enrollment
k. Grades Served during the 2023-2024 SY
l. Charter Management Organization/Educational Management Organization (if
applicable), including contact information (name, email address, telephone number
m. Facilities Information: Facilities owned, rented, leased to educate students: Popular
Names, physical addresses, phone numbers, district/CSD, and grades served in 2023-
2024 and to be served in 2024-2025; Emergency Contact Name, Title, and Phone
Number; Public, Private, and Co-Located, Not Co-Located Facility; COO and Fire Safety
Inspection Documentation for each private site.
4
• Fire inspection certificates must be updated annually. For the upcoming school
year 2024-2025, please submit a current fire inspection certificate.
• If the fire inspection certificate will expire between the August 1, 2024,
submission of the Annual Report and the November 1 Annual Report submission
please submit the new certificate with the Annual Report entries due no later
than 11:59 PM on November 1, 2024.
n. List of owned, rented, leased facilities not used to educate students and the purpose of
each.
o. Total Number of School Calendar Days, and Total Number of Instructional hours by
Month.
p. Summary of Material and Non-Material Charter Revisions approved or pending in
2023-2024, including updates to the school’s board of trustees’ bylaws, enrollment
policy, discipline policy, or complaint policy.
q. Name/ Position of Person Completing/Submitting the 2023-2024 Annual Report
4
See http://www.nysed.gov/common/nysed/files/programs/charter-schools/fire19.pdf and http://www.nysed.gov/charter-
schools/policies-procedures-resources-all-charter-schools.
7
r. Names and E-Signatures (not digital signatures) of the Charter School Leader(s) and
Board Chair.
E-Sign using your stylus pen, mouse, or finger to sign online.
8
Entry 2 – Links to Critical Documents on School Website
Required of ALL Charter Schools (Note that SUNY-authorized charter schools are not
required to submit item 4: Authorizer-approved Dignity for All Students Act (DASA)
policy and NYSED-Approved School Discipline Policy)
By law, each charter school is required to maintain certain notices and policies listed on its
website. Please insert the link from the school’s website for each of the items. All links must
be readily found on the school’s website.
1. Current Annual Report
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(i.e., 2023-2024 Annual Report);
2. Board meeting notices, agendas, and documents;
3. New York State School Report Card. This report captures school-level enrollment and
demographic information, staff qualifications, electronic student records, and attendance
rates, as prescribed by New York State law;
6
(Even if there is no school data yet reported,
provide a direct web link to the most recent New York State School Report Card for the
charter school.
4. Authorizer-approved DASA Policy and Authorizer-Approved School Discipline Policy
(For Regents, NYCDOE, and Buffalo BOE-Authorized Charter Schools ONLY);
5. District-wide safety plan, not a building level safety plan (as per the July 2023
Emergency Response Plan Memo – Charter Schools Only);
6. Authorizer-approved FOIL Policy; and
7. Subject matter list of FOIL records. (Example: See NYSED Subject Matter List).
Entry 3 – Board of Trustees Disclosure of Financial Interest Form
Required of ALL Charter Schools
Each member of the charter school’s Board of Trustees who served on a charter school
education corporation governing one or more charter schools for any period during the
2023-2024 school year must complete and sign a Trustee Disclosure of Financial Interest
Form due no later than 11:59 PM on August 1, 2024. Acceptable signature formats
include:
Digitally certified PDF signature (e.g., DocuSign)
Manual signature (1. download to print, 2. manually sign, 3. scan signed document
to PDF, and 4. upload into portal)
5
Each charter school is required to make the Annual Report publicly available by August 1 and to post on their respective charter
school website. Each school should post an updated and complete version to include accountability data and financial statements
that are not or may not be available until after the August deadline (i.e., Repost when financials have been submitted in November.)
6
SRC data is included in the reporting requirements for New York charter schools in 8 NYCRR 119.3.
9
All completed forms must be collected and uploaded in .PDF format for each individual
member. The education corporation is responsible for ensuring that each member who
served on the board during the 2023-2024 school year completes the form.
Charter schools must submit the latest version of the form. Forms completed from past years
will not be accepted.
Trustees serving on an education corporation that governs more than one school are not
required to complete a separate disclosure for each school governed by the education
corporation. In the Trustee Disclosure of Financial Interest Form, trustees must disclose
information relevant to any of the schools served by the governing education corporation.
Entry 4 – Board of Trustees Membership Table
7
ALL charter schools or education corporations governing multiple schools must complete
the Board of Trustees Membership Table within the online portal. Please be sure to include
and identify parents who are members of the Board of Trustees and indicate whether
parents are voting or non-voting members.
7
The information requested in the “Trustee Membership” table reflects the information collected through the online portal; however,
the format of the table may differ in appearance.
10
INFORMATION ON 2023-2024
VOTING AND NON-VOTING MEMBERS OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES
FOR ALL CHARTER SCHOOLS
Voting
Trustee
Name
Trustee
Email
Address
Position on the
Board (e.g.,
officers, parent,
or other
constituent
representatives)
Committee
Affiliation(s)
Voting
Member
Per By-
Laws
(Y/N)
Number of
Completed
Terms
Served
Start Date of
Current Term
(MM/DD/YYYY)
End Date of
Current Term
(MM/DD/YYYY)
Number of
Board
Meetings
Attended
During
2023-2024
All Schools –
Board Meetings
Number of board meetings conducted in 2023-2024:
Number of board meetings scheduled for the 2024-2025 school year:
All
Schools -
Members
Total number of Voting
Members on June 30, 2024:
Total number of Voting
Members added during the
2023-2024 school year:
Total number of Voting
Members who left the board
during the 2023-2024 school
year:
Total Maximum Number of
Voting members in 2023-2024,
as set by the board in bylaws,
resolution, or minutes:
11
Regents,
NYCDOE, &
Buffalo BOE
Schools
Total number of Non-Voting
Members on June 30, 2024:
Total number of Non-Voting
Members added during the
2023-2024 school year:
Total number of Non-Voting
Members who left the board
during the 2023-2024 school
year:
Total Maximum Number of
Non-Voting members in 2023-
2024, as set by the board in
bylaws, resolution, or minutes:
Board members attending 8 or
fewer meetings during 2023-
2024
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Entry 5 – Board Meeting Minutes
Required of Regents, NYCDOE, and Buffalo BOE Authorized Schools ONLY
Schools must upload a complete set of final monthly board meeting minutes (July 2023-June
2024), which should match the number of meetings held during the 2023-2024 school year,
as indicated in the above table. The minutes provided must be the final version approved by
the school’s Board of Trustees and may be uploaded individually or as one single combined
file. Board meeting minutes must be submitted no later than 11:59 PM on August 1, 2024.
Entry 6 – Enrollment and Retention
Required of ALL Charter Schools
Describe the good faith efforts the charter school has made in 2023-2024 toward meeting
targets to attract and retain the enrollment of Students with Disabilities (SWD), English
Language Learner(s) (ELL), and students who are economically disadvantaged. In addition,
describe the school’s plans for meeting or making progress toward meeting its enrollment
and retention targets in 2024-2025.
*SUNY-authorized charter schools
The education corporation must include a plan for the charter to meet or exceed enrollment
and retention targets established by the SUNY Trustees for students with disabilities, ELLs,
and students who are eligible to participate in the FRPL program. See the enrollment and
retention target calculator to find specific targets.
Entry 7 – Employee Fingerprint Requirements Attestation
Required of ALL Charter Schools
A. TEACH System – Employee Clearance
Charter schools must ensure that all prospective employees
8
receive clearance through the
NYSED Office of School Personnel Review and Accountability (OSPRA) prior to employment.
This includes paraprofessionals and other school personnel who are provided or
assigned by the district of location, or related/contracted service providers. After a
prospective employee has been cleared, schools are required to maintain proof of such
clearance in the file of each employee. For the safety of all students, charter schools must
8
Employees who must be cleared include, but are not limited to, teachers, administrative staff, janitors, security personnel and
cafeteria workers, and other staff who are present when children are in the school building. This includes paraprofessionals and
other school personnel that are provided or assigned by the district of location, as well as related/contracted service
providers. See NYSED memorandum dated October 1, 2019 at NYSED CSO Employee Clearance and Fingerprint Memo 10-2019
or
visit the NYSED website at Who Must Be Fingerprinted Charts. Also see, 8 NYCRR §87.2.
13
take immediate steps to terminate the employment of individuals who have been denied
clearance. Once the employees have been terminated, the school must terminate the request
for clearance in the TEACH system.
In the Annual Report, charter schools are asked to confirm that all employees have been
cleared through the NYSED TEACH system; and, if denied clearance, confirm that the
individual or employee has been removed from the TEACH system, and is not employed by
the school.
B. Emergency Conditional Clearances
Charter schools are strongly discouraged from using the emergency conditional clearance
provisions for prospective employees. This is because the school must request clearance
through NYSED TEACH, and the school’s emergency conditional clearance of the employee
terminates automatically once the school receives notification from NYSED regarding the
clearance request. Status notification is provided for all prospective employees through the
NYSED TEACH portal within 48 hours after the clearance request is submitted. Therefore, at
most, a school’s emergency conditional clearance will be valid for only 48 hours after
approval by the board.
Schools are not permitted to renew or in any way re-establish a prospective employee’s
emergency conditional clearance after status notification is sent by NYSED through the
TEACH portal.
Schools are asked to attest that they have reviewed and understand these requirements.
More information can be found in the memo at NYSED CSO Employee Clearance and
Fingerprint Memo 10-2019.
I hereby attest that <SCHOOL NAME> has reviewed, understands, and will comply
with these requirements.
Entry 8 – Organization Chart
Required of Regents, NYCDOE, and Buffalo BOE Authorized Charter Schools ONLY
Upload the 2023-2024 Organization Chart. The organization chart should be a graphic
representation (A list will not be accepted.) and should include position titles and reporting
(hierarchical) relationships. Employee names should not appear on the chart.
Entry 9 – School Calendar
Required of ALL Charter Schools
If the charter school has a tentative calendar based on available information and guidance at
the time, please submit it no later than 11:59 PM on August 1, 2024. Charter schools must
14
upload a final school calendar into the portal and may do so at any time but no later than
11:59 PM on September 16, 2024.
School calendars must meet the minimum instructional requirements as required of other
public schools “… unless the school’s charter requires more instructional time than is required
under the regulations.”
Board of Regents-authorized charter schools also are required to submit school calendars
that clearly indicate the start and end date of the instructional year AND the number of
instructional hours and/or instructional days for each month (also used to align to schools
with extended days/years referenced in their mission statements/key design elements), See
an example of a calendar showing the requested information. Schools must use a calendar
format and ensure there is a monthly tally of instructional days.
Entry 10 – Faculty/Staff Roster Template
Required of Regents, NYCDOE, and Buffalo BOE-authorized Charter Schools ONLY
Please click on the MS Excel Faculty/Staff Roster Template and provide the following
information for ANY and ALL instructional and non-instructional employees (all faculty and
staff employed by the school during the 2023-2024 school year).
Use of the 2023-2024 Annual Report Faculty/Staff Roster Template is required. Each
of the data elements, with the exception of the Notes, are required, and use of the drop-
down options, when provided, is also required. Reminders: Please use the Notes section
provided to add any additional information as deemed necessary. Failure to adhere to the
guidelines and validations in the Faculty/Staff Roster Template will result in a resubmission
of a fully corrected roster.
15
Here is the complete list of data elements in the roster template and an explanation of what
information is required to correctly complete this task.
Roster Data Elements
Explanations
Authorizer
NOTE: MUST BE DONE FIRST
Select your school’s authorizer from the drop-down list
first, before completing the roster.
School Name and Institution ID
Select your school’s name from the drop-down list.
Faculty/Staff First Name
Enter the first name of the Faculty/Staff person.
Faculty/Staff Last Name
Enter the last name of the Faculty/Staff person.
TEACH ID
Enter the 7-digit TEACH ID for the Faculty/Staff person.
Role in School
Select the best choice of role of the Faculty/Staff person from
the drop-down list.
CPR/AED Certification Status
Select the appropriate choice from the drop-down list.
Hire Date
Enter the date that the Faculty/Staff person was hired.
Start Date
Enter the date that the Faculty/Staff person actually began
employment in this school.
Total Years’ Experience in this
Role
Enter Total Years of Experience that the Faculty/Staff person
has in their current role.
Total Years at this School
Enter the Total Years that the Faculty/Staff person has been
employed in this school.
Out-of-Certification Justification
Select the appropriate choice from the drop-down list.
Subject Taught
Select the appropriate choice from the drop-down list.
Notes
Optional
Entry 11 – Progress Toward Goals
9
SUNY-Authorized Charter Schools ONLY- Complete Template and Upload to Epicenter
SUNY-authorized charter schools must download an Accountability Plan Progress Report
template at Accountability Plan Progress Report. After completing, SUNY-authorized charter
schools must upload the document into the Annual Report Portal, and into the SUNY
Epicenter document management system no later than 11:59 PM on September 16, 2024.
Regents, NYCDOE, and Buffalo BOE-Authorized Charter Schools ONLY
The following tables reflect formatting in the online portal required for Board of Regents,
NYCDOE, and Buffalo BOE authorized charter schools only. These charter schools should
report all Progress Toward Charter Goals as per their currently approved charters no later
than 11:59 PM on November 1, 2024.
Academic Student Performance Goals
9
The information requested in the “Goals” tables reflects the information collected through the online portal; however, the format of
the table may differ in appearance.
16
2023-2024 Progress Toward Attainment of Academic Charter Goals
Academic student
performance goals
Measure
used to evaluate progress
toward attainment of goal
2023-2024 progress
toward attainment of goal
Met/Not Met
If not met, describe
efforts the school will
take to meet goal
Organization Goals
2023-2024 Progress Toward Attainment of Organization Charter Goals
Organization goals
Measure
used to evaluate progress
toward attainment of goal
2023-2024 progress
toward attainment of goal
Met/Not Met
If not met, describe
efforts the school will
take to meet goal
Financial Goals
2023-2024 Progress Toward Attainment of Financial Charter Goals
Financial goals
Measure
used to evaluate
progress toward
attainment of goal
2023-2024 progress toward
attainment of goal
Met/Not Met
If not met, describe
efforts the school will
take to meet goal
Entry 12 – Audited Financial Statements
Required of ALL Charter Schools
10
ALL SUNY-authorized charter schools must upload the financial statements and related
documents in PDF format into the Annual Report Portal and into the SUNY Epicenter
document management system no later than 11:59 PM on November 1, 2024. SUNY-
authorized charter schools are asked to ensure that security features such as password
protection are turned off.
ALL Regents, NYCDOE, and Buffalo BOE-authorized charter schools must upload final,
audited financial statements to the Annual Report Portal no later than 11:59 PM on
November 1, 2024. Upload the independent auditor’s report, any advisory and/or
management letter, and the internal controls report as one submission, combined into a PDF
file, ensuring that security features such as password protections are removed from all
school uploaded documents.
10
NOTE: This task appears as visible and optional task in the online portal until August 1, 2024, but will be identified as a required
task thereafter and due on November 1, 2024.
17
Entry 12a – Audited Financial Report Template
SUNY-Authorized Charter Schools ONLY
SUNY-authorized schools must download the Excel spreadsheet entitled “Audited Financial
Statement Template” at http://www.newyorkcharters.org/fiscal/. After completing, schools
must upload the document into the Annual Report Portal and into the SUNY Epicenter
document management system no later than 11:59 PM on November 1, 2024.
Entry 12b – Audited Financial Report Template
Regents-Authorized Charter Schools ONLY
Regents-authorized schools must download and complete the Excel spreadsheet entitled
“Audited Financial Report Template” from the online portal or the 2023-2024 Annual
Reports webpage. Upload the completed file in Excel format and submit no later than 11:59
PM on November 1, 2024.
Please complete one spreadsheet at the Education Corporation level and submit the
same spreadsheet for each of the schools.
Entry 12c – Additional Financial Documents
Regents, NYCDOE and Buffalo BOE authorized schools must upload financial documents
and submit no later than 11:59 PM on November 1, 2024. The items listed below should
be uploaded, with an explanation if not applicable or available. For example, a “federal Single
Audit was not required because the school did not expend federal funds of more than the
$750,000 Threshold.”
1. Advisory and/or Management letter
2. Federal Single Audit
3. Agreed-Upon Procedure Report
4. Evidence of Required Escrow Account for each school
11
5. Corrective Action Plan for Audit Findings and Management Letter Recommendations
Entry 12d – Financial Contact Information
Regents, NYCDOE, and Buffalo BOE authorized schools should enter financial contact
information directly into the form within the portal no later than 11:59 PM on November
1, 2024.
11
Note: For BOR schools chartered or renewed after the 2017-2018 school year, the escrow account per school is $100,000.
18
Entry 13 – Fiscal Year 2024-2025 Budget
SUNY-authorized charter schools should download the 2024-2025 Budget and Quarterly
Report Template and the 2024-2025 Budget Narrative Questionnaire from the SUNY website
and upload the completed templates into the Annual Report Portal and into the Epicenter
document management system. Due no later than 11:59 PM on November 1, 2024.
Regents, NYCDOE, and Buffalo BOE authorized charter schools should upload a copy of
the school’s FY25 Budget using the 2024-2025 Budget Template into the Annual Report
Portal or from the Annual Report website. Due no later than 11:59 PM on November 1,
2024.
The Assumptions column should be completed for all revenue and expense items unless the
item is self-explanatory. Where applicable, reference the page number or section in the
application narrative that indicates the assumption being made. For instance, student
enrollment would reference the applicable page number in Section I, C of the application
narrative.
