118.40(4)
(4) Charter school duties and restrictions. 118.40(4)(a)(a)
Duties. A charter school shall do all of the following:
118.40(4)(a)1.
1. If the charter school replaces a public school in whole or in part, give preference in admission to any pupil who resides within the attendance area or former attendance area of that public school.
118.40(4)(a)2.
2. Be nonsectarian in its programs, admissions policies, employment practices and all other operations.
118.40(4)(b)
(b)
Restrictions. A charter school may not do any of the following:
118.40(4)(b)2.
2. Except as provided in
par. (c), discriminate in admission or deny participation in any program or activity on the basis of a person's sex, race, religion, national origin, ancestry, pregnancy, marital or parental status, sexual orientation or physical, mental, emotional or learning disability.
118.40(4)(c)
(c)
Single-sex schools and courses. A school board may enter into a contract for, and an entity under
sub. (2r) may establish or enter into a contract for, the establishment of a charter school that enrolls only one sex or that provides one or more courses that enroll only one sex if the school board or entity under
sub. (2r) makes available to the opposite sex, under the same policies and criteria of admission, schools or courses that are comparable to each such school or course.
118.40(5)
(5) Charter revocation. A charter may be revoked by the school board or the entity under
sub. (2r) (b) that contracted with the charter school if the school board or, if applicable, the entity under
sub. (2r) (b) finds that any of the following occurred:
118.40(5)(a)
(a) The charter school violated its contract with the school board or the entity under
sub. (2r) (b).
118.40(5)(b)
(b) The pupils enrolled in the charter school failed to make sufficient progress toward attaining the educational goals under
s. 118.01.
118.40(5)(c)
(c) The charter school failed to comply with generally accepted accounting standards of fiscal management.
118.40(6)
(6) Program voluntary. No pupil may be required to attend a charter school without his or her approval, if the pupil is an adult, or the approval of his or her parents or legal guardian, if the pupil is a minor.
118.40(7)
(7) Legal status; applicability of school laws. 118.40(7)(a)(a) Except as provided in
par. (am), the school board of the school district in which a charter school is located shall determine whether or not the charter school is an instrumentality of the school district. If the school board determines that the charter school is an instrumentality of the school district, the school board shall employ all personnel for the charter school. If the school board determines that the charter school is not an instrumentality of the school district, the school board may not employ any personnel for the charter school.
118.40(7)(am)1.1. Except as provided in
subds. 2. and
3., if a charter school is established under
sub. (2m) and located in the school district operating under
ch. 119, the school board of that school district shall determine whether or not the charter school is an instrumentality of the school district. If the school board determines that a charter school is an instrumentality of the school district, the school board shall employ all personnel for the charter school. If the school board determines that a charter school is not an instrumentality of the school district, the school board may not employ any personnel for the charter school.
118.40(7)(am)2.
2. A charter school established under
sub. (2r) or a private school located in the school district operating under
ch. 119 that is converted to a charter school is not an instrumentality of any school district and no school board may employ any personnel for the charter school. If the chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-Parkside contracts for the establishment of a charter school under
sub. (2r), the board of regents of the University of Wisconsin System may employ instructional staff for the charter school.
118.40(7)(am)3.
3. Notwithstanding
subd. 2., if the city of Milwaukee contracts with an individual or group operating for profit to operate a school as a charter school, the charter school is an instrumentality of the school district operating under
ch. 119 and the board of the school district operating under
ch. 119 shall employ all personnel for the charter school.
118.40(7)(ar)
(ar) Nothing in this subsection affects the rights of personnel of a charter school that is an instrumentality of the school district in which it is located to engage in collective bargaining pursuant to
subch. IV of ch. 111.
118.40(7)(b)
(b) Except as otherwise explicitly provided,
chs. 115 to
121 do not apply to charter schools.
118.40(8)(a)(a)
Location. For the purposes of
sub. (7) (a),
(am), and
(ar), a virtual charter school is considered to be located in the following school district:
118.40(8)(a)1.
1. If a school board contracts with a person to establish the virtual charter school, in the school district governed by that school board.
118.40(8)(a)2.
2. If 2 or more school boards enter into an agreement under
s. 66.0301 to establish the virtual charter school, or if one or more school boards enter into an agreement with the board of control of a cooperative educational service agency to establish the virtual charter school, in the school district specified in the agreement.
118.40(8)(b)1.1. The governing body of a virtual charter school shall assign an appropriately licensed teacher for each online course offered by the virtual charter school. No person holding only a permit to teach exclusively in a charter school may teach in a virtual charter school, and no person holding both a license to teach exclusively in a charter school and a license to teach in other public schools may teach, in a virtual charter school, a subject or at a level that is not authorized by the latter license.
118.40(8)(b)2.
2. If a pupil attends a virtual charter school, any person providing educational services to the pupil in the pupil's home, other than instructional staff of the virtual charter school, is not required to hold a license or permit to teach issued by the department.
118.40(8)(c)
(c)
Staff duties. In a virtual charter school, an instructional staff member is responsible for all of the following for each pupil the instructional staff member teaches:
118.40(8)(c)3.
3. Prescribing content delivery through class activities.
118.40(8)(c)5.
5. Reporting outcomes to administrators and parents and guardians.
118.40(8)(d)
(d)
Required days and hours. A virtual charter school shall do all of the following:
118.40(8)(d)1.
1. Provide educational services to its pupils for at least 150 days each school year.
118.40(8)(d)2.
2. Ensure that its teachers are available to provide direct pupil instruction for at least the applicable number of hours specified in
s. 121.02 (1) (f) 2. each school year. No more than 10 hours in any 24-hour period may count toward the requirement under this subdivision.
118.40(8)(d)3.
3. Ensure that its teachers respond to inquiries from pupils and from parents or guardians of pupils by the end of the first school day following the day on which the inquiry is received.
118.40(8)(e)
(e)
Parent advisory council. The governing body of a virtual charter school shall ensure that a parent advisory council is established for the school and that it meets on a regular basis. The governing body shall determine the selection process for members of the parent advisory council.
118.40(8)(f)
(f)
Required notices. At the beginning of each school term, the governing body of a virtual charter school shall inform the parent or guardian of each pupil attending the virtual charter school, in writing, the name of, and how to contact, each of the following persons:
118.40(8)(f)1.
1. The members of the school board that contracted for the establishment of the virtual charter school and the administrators of that school district.
118.40(8)(f)2.
2. The members of the virtual charter school's governing body, if different than the persons under
subd. 1.
118.40(8)(f)3.
3. The members of the virtual charter school's parent advisory council established under
par. (e).
118.40(8)(g)1.1. Whenever a pupil attending a virtual charter school fails to respond appropriately to a school assignment or directive from instructional staff within 5 school days, the governing body of the virtual charter school shall notify the pupil's parent or guardian.
118.40(8)(g)2.
2. Subject to
subd. 2m., the third time in the same semester that a pupil attending a virtual charter school fails to respond appropriately to a school assignment or directive from instructional staff within 5 school days, the governing body of the virtual charter school shall also notify the school board that contracted for the establishment of the virtual charter school, the school board of the pupil's resident school district, and the department. The school board that contracted for the establishment of the virtual charter school may transfer the pupil to his or her resident school district. If the pupil is a resident of the school district that contracted for the establishment of the virtual charter school, the school board may assign the pupil to another school or program within that school district. If the school board transfers or assigns a pupil, it shall notify the pupil's parent or guardian and the department.
118.40(8)(g)2m.
2m. If the parent or guardian of a pupil attending a virtual charter school notifies the virtual charter school in writing before a school assignment or directive is given that the pupil will not be available to respond to the assignment or directive during a specified period, the school days during that period do not count for purposes of
subd. 2. The virtual charter school shall require the pupil to complete any assignment missed during the period. This subdivision applies to no more than 10 school days in a school year.
118.40(8)(g)3.
3. The parent or guardian of a pupil transferred to the pupil's resident school district under
subd. 2. may appeal the transfer to the department within 30 days after receipt of the notice of transfer. The department shall affirm the school board's decision unless the department finds that the decision was arbitrary or unreasonable.
118.40(8)(h)1.1. Subject to
subds. 3. and
4., beginning in the 2009-10 school year, the total number of pupils attending virtual charter schools through the open enrollment program under
s. 118.51 in any school year may not exceed 5,250.
118.40(8)(h)2.
2. By the first Friday following the first Monday in April, the governing body of each virtual charter school shall report to the department all of the following:
118.40(8)(h)2.a.
a. The number of pupils who have initially applied and been accepted to attend the virtual charter school through the open enrollment program under
s. 118.51.
118.40(8)(h)2.b.
b. The number of pupils attending the virtual charter school through the open enrollment program under
s. 118.51 in the current school year who are expected to continue attending a virtual charter school through the open enrollment program under
s. 118.51 in the succeeding school year.
118.40(8)(h)2m.
2m. If the department determines that the sum of the pupils reported under
subd. 2. a. and
b. by all virtual charter schools is no more than the limit under
subd. 1., the department shall notify the virtual charter schools that all pupils reported under
subd. 2. a. and
b. may attend virtual charter schools in the succeeding school year. If the department determines that the sum of the pupils reported under
subd. 2. a. and
b. by all virtual charter schools is more than the limit under
subd. 1., the department shall calculate the sum of pupils reported under
subd. 2. b. by all virtual charter schools.
118.40(8)(h)3.
3. If the department determines under
subd. 2m. that the sum of the pupils reported under
subd. 2. b. by all virtual charter schools is equal to or greater than the limit allowed under
subd. 1., the department shall notify the virtual charter schools that all pupils reported under
subd. 2. b. and
c. may attend virtual charter schools in the succeeding school year notwithstanding the limit under
subd. 1., but that no other pupils reported under
subd. 2. a. may do so.
118.40(8)(h)4.
4. If the department determines under
subd. 2m. that the sum of the pupils reported under
subd. 2. b. by all virtual charter schools is less than the limit allowed under
subd. 1., the department shall add to the sum the number of pupils reported under
subd. 2. c. for all virtual charter schools. If the new sum is equal to or greater than the limit allowed under
subd. 1., the department shall notify the virtual charter schools that all pupils reported under
subd. 2. b. and
c. may attend virtual charter schools in the succeeding school year notwithstanding the limit under
subd. 1., but that no other pupils reported under
subd. 2. a. may do so, except as provided in
subd. 5. If the new sum is less than the limit allowed under
subd. 1., the department shall notify the virtual charter schools that all pupils reported by the virtual charter schools under
subd. 2. b. and
c. may attend virtual charter schools in the succeeding school year. The department shall select pupils for the remaining available spaces on a random basis from the pupils reported by the virtual charter schools under
subd. 2. a. and shall notify the virtual charter schools of the selections.
118.40(8)(h)4m.
4m. In performing the calculations under
subds. 2m. to
4., the department shall count a pupil who has applied to more than one virtual charter school only once.
118.40(8)(h)5.
5. The department shall maintain a waiting list for those pupils not selected at random under
subd. 4. Each virtual charter school shall notify the department whenever it determines that a pupil determined to be eligible to attend the virtual charter school under
subd. 4. will not be attending the virtual charter school. The department shall select pupils on a random basis from the waiting list to fill the newly available spaces.
118.40 Annotation
A public school district did not violate the equal protection clause of the U.S. constitution by refusing to bus the students of a charter school created under sub. (2r) located within its geographical boundaries. Racine Charter One, Inc. v. Racine Unified School District,
424 F.3d 677 (2005).
118.43
118.43
Achievement guarantee contracts; state aid. 118.43(1)(a)
(a) "Class size" means the number of pupils assigned to a regular classroom teacher on the 3rd Friday of September.
118.43(1)(b)
(b) "Low income" means the measure of low income that is used by the school district under
20 USC 2723.
118.43(2)(a)(a) The school board of any school district in which a school in the previous school year had an enrollment that was at least 50% low-income is eligible to participate in the program under this section, except that a school board is eligible to participate in the program under this section in the 2000-01 school year if in the 1998-99 school year a school in the school district had an enrollment that was at least 0% low-income.
118.43(2)(b)
(b) In the 1996-97 school year, the school board of an eligible school district may enter into a 5-year achievement guarantee contract with the department on behalf of one school in the school district if all of the following apply:
118.43(2)(b)1.
1. In the previous school year, the school had an enrollment that was at least 30% low-income.
118.43(2)(b)2.
2. The school board is not receiving a grant under the preschool to grade 5 program on behalf of the school under
s. 115.45.
118.43(2)(bg)
(bg) In the 1998-99 school year, the school board of an eligible school district may enter into a 5-year achievement guarantee contract with the department on behalf of one school in the school district if all of the following apply:
118.43(2)(bg)1.
1. In the previous school year, the school had an enrollment that was at least 30% low-income.
118.43(2)(bg)2.
2. The school board is not receiving a grant under the preschool to grade 5 program on behalf of the school under
s. 115.45.
118.43(2)(br)
(br) In the 2000-01 school year, the school board of an eligible school district may enter into a 5-year achievement guarantee contract with the department on behalf of one or more schools in the school district if all of the following apply:
118.43(2)(br)2.
2. The school board is not receiving a grant under the preschool to grade 5 program on behalf of any of the schools under
s. 115.45.
118.43(2)(br)3.
3. The school board, if eligible to participate in the program under this section in the 1996-97 and 1998-99 school years, had participated in the program during either school year.
118.43(2)(br)4.
4. None of the schools is a beneficiary of a contract under this section.
118.43(2)(c)
(c) Notwithstanding
pars. (b) and
(bg), the school board of the school district operating under
ch. 119 may enter into an achievement guarantee contract on behalf of up to 10 schools under
par. (b) and up to 10 schools under
par. (bg).
118.43(2)(d)
(d) If an eligible school district has more than one school that qualifies under
par. (b), the school board shall apply on behalf of the school with the largest number of low-income pupils in grades kindergarten and one.
118.43(2)(e)1.1. If the school board of an eligible school district does not enter into an achievement guarantee contract with the department, a school board that has entered into such a contract, other than the school board of the school district operating under
ch. 119, may apply to the department to enter into such a contract on behalf of one or more schools that meet the requirements under
par. (b),
(bg) or
(br).
118.43(2)(e)2.
2. If more than one school board applies under
subd. 1., the department shall determine which school board to contract with based on the number of low-income pupils in grades kindergarten and one enrolled in the schools and on the balance of rural and urban school districts currently participating in the program.
118.43(2)(g)
(g) The department may renew an achievement guarantee contract under
pars. (b),
(bg), and
(br) for one or more terms of 5 school years. As a condition of receiving payments under a renewal of an achievement guarantee contract, a school board shall maintain the reduction of class size achieved during the last school year of the original achievement guarantee contract for the grades specified for the last school year of the contract.
118.43(3)
(3) Contract requirements. Except as provided in
pars. (am) and
(ar), an achievement guarantee contract shall require the school board to do all of the following in each participating school:
118.43(3)(a)
(a) Class size. Reduce each class size to 15 in the following manner:
