2011 Nevada Revised Statutes
Chapter 386 - Local Administrative Organization
NRS 386.520 - Membership of committee to form charter school; contents of application to form charter school; request by proposed sponsor for review of application by Department; written notice and opportunity to correct deficiencies.

1. A committee to form a charter school must consist of:

(a) One member who is a teacher or other person licensed pursuant to chapter 391 of NRS or who previously held such a license and is retired, as long as his or her license was held in good standing;

(b) One member who:

(1) Satisfies the qualifications of paragraph (a); or

(2) Is a school administrator with a license issued by another state or who previously held such a license and is retired, as long as his or her license was held in good standing;

(c) One parent or legal guardian who is not a teacher or employee of the proposed charter school; and

(d) Two members who possess knowledge and expertise in one or more of the following areas:

(1) Accounting;

(2) Financial services;

(3) Law; or

(4) Human resources.

2. In addition to the members who serve pursuant to subsection 1, the committee to form a charter school may include, without limitation, not more than four additional members as follows:

(a) Members of the general public;

(b) Representatives of nonprofit organizations and businesses; or

(c) Representatives of a college or university within the Nevada System of Higher Education.

3. A majority of the persons who serve on the committee to form a charter school must be residents of this State at the time that the application to form the charter school is submitted to the Department.

4. An application to form a charter school must include all information prescribed by the Department by regulation and:

(a) A written description of how the charter school will carry out the provisions of NRS 386.490 to 386.610, inclusive.

(b) A written description of the mission and goals for the charter school. A charter school must have as its stated purpose at least one of the following goals:

(1) Improving the academic achievement of pupils;

(2) Encouraging the use of effective and innovative methods of teaching;

(3) Providing an accurate measurement of the educational achievement of pupils;

(4) Establishing accountability and transparency of public schools;

(5) Providing a method for public schools to measure achievement based upon the performance of the schools; or

(6) Creating new professional opportunities for teachers.

(c) The projected enrollment of pupils in the charter school.

(d) The proposed dates for accepting applications for enrollment in the initial year of operation of the charter school.

(e) The proposed system of governance for the charter school, including, without limitation, the number of persons who will govern, the method for nominating and electing the persons who will govern and the term of office for each person.

(f) The method by which disputes will be resolved between the governing body of the charter school and the sponsor of the charter school.

(g) The proposed curriculum for the charter school and, if applicable to the grade level of pupils who are enrolled in the charter school, the requirements for the pupils to receive a high school diploma, including, without limitation, whether those pupils will satisfy the requirements of the school district in which the charter school is located for receipt of a high school diploma.

(h) The textbooks that will be used at the charter school.

(i) The qualifications of the persons who will provide instruction at the charter school.

(j) Except as otherwise required by NRS 386.595, the process by which the governing body of the charter school will negotiate employment contracts with the employees of the charter school.

(k) A financial plan for the operation of the charter school. The plan must include, without limitation, procedures for the audit of the programs and finances of the charter school and guidelines for determining the financial liability if the charter school is unsuccessful.

(l) A statement of whether the charter school will provide for the transportation of pupils to and from the charter school. If the charter school will provide transportation, the application must include the proposed plan for the transportation of pupils. If the charter school will not provide transportation, the application must include a statement that the charter school will work with the parents and guardians of pupils enrolled in the charter school to develop a plan for transportation to ensure that pupils have access to transportation to and from the charter school.

(m) The procedure for the evaluation of teachers of the charter school, if different from the procedure prescribed in NRS 391.3125 and 391.3128. If the procedure is different from the procedure prescribed in NRS 391.3125 and 391.3128, the procedure for the evaluation of teachers of the charter school must provide the same level of protection and otherwise comply with the standards for evaluation set forth in NRS 391.3125 and 391.3128.

(n) The time by which certain academic or educational results will be achieved.

(o) The kind of school, as defined in subsections 1 to 4, inclusive, of NRS 388.020, for which the charter school intends to operate.

(p) A statement of whether the charter school will enroll pupils who are in a particular category of at-risk pupils before enrolling other children who are eligible to attend the charter school pursuant to NRS 386.580 and the method for determining eligibility for enrollment in each such category of at-risk pupils served by the charter school.

5. The proposed sponsor of a charter school may request that the Department review an application before review by the proposed sponsor to determine whether the application is substantially complete and compliant. Upon such a request, the Department shall review an application to form a charter school to determine whether it is substantially complete and compliant. If an application proposes to convert an existing public school, homeschool or other program of home study into a charter school, the Department shall provide written notice to the applicant that the application is ineligible for consideration by the proposed sponsor.

6. The Department shall provide written notice to the applicant and the proposed sponsor of the charter school of its determination whether the application is substantially complete and compliant. If the Department determines that an application is not substantially complete and compliant, the Department shall include in the written notice the basis for that determination and the deficiencies in the application. The staff designated by the Department shall meet with the applicant to confer on the method to correct the identified deficiencies. The applicant must be granted 30 days after receipt of the written notice to correct any deficiencies identified in the written notice and resubmit the application. If the Department determines an application is substantially complete and compliant, the Department shall transmit the application to the proposed sponsor for review pursuant to NRS 386.525.

7. As used in subsection 1, teacher means a person who:

(a) Holds a current license to teach issued pursuant to chapter 391 of NRS or who previously held such a license and is retired, as long as his or her license was held in good standing; and

(b) Has at least 2 years of experience as an employed teacher.

The term does not include a person who is employed as a substitute teacher.

(Added to NRS by 1997, 1844; A 1999, 3292; 2001, 3125; 2007, 2568; 2009, 257; 2011, 2279, 2359, 3044)