Charter Schools Program: Grants to Charter Management Organizations for the Replication and Expansion of High-Quality Charter Schools
Charter Management Organizations (CMOs) grants fund CMOs to replicate or expand one or more high-quality charter schools.
Average award: $2,000,000 per year
Number of awards: 15-20 per year
Cost share/matching required: Yes
Most recent deadline: January 10, 2020
Expected Award Cycle: Annual
The program has been offered every year over the past four years. Latest due date was January 10, 2020.
The Charter Schools Program (CSP) Grants to Charter Management Organizations (CMOs) for the Replication and Expansion of High-Quality Charter Schools provides funds to enable CMOs to replicate or expand one or more high-quality charter schools. Grants may be used to expand the enrollment of one or more existing high-quality charter schools, or to replicate one or more new charter schools based on an existing high-quality charter school model.
For the most recent cycle, CMOs had to meet one of two absolute priorities by demonstrating (1) that they will replicate or expand high-quality charter schools in a rural community or (2) that they operate or manage charter schools with student bodies that are comprised of at least 40% students who are individuals from low-income families. The application also included the five following competitive preference priorities, which are not required, but are highly encouraged:
- Spurring investment in Federally Qualified Opportunity Zones
- Operating or managing a preferred number of charter schools (applicants must demonstrate that they currently operate or manage two to five charter schools)
- Serving high school students
- Serving Native American students
- Reopening academically poor-performing schools as charter schools
Priorities can shift with each solicitation. Please review current solicitation for details
In 2020, a total of $65,000,000 was available to make 15-20 grants ranging from $250,000-$15,000,000 per year and averaging $2,000,000 per year over five years. Grantees must use funds to replicate or expand the charter school model or models for which the applicant has presented evidence of success. Grant funds must be used to carry out one or more of the following activities:
- Preparing teachers, school leaders, and specialized instructional support personnel, including through paying costs associated with
- Providing professional development
- Hiring and compensating, during the applicant’s planning period specified in the application for funds, one or more of the following: Teachers. School leaders. Specialized instructional support personnel
- Acquiring supplies, training, equipment (including technology), and educational materials (including developing and acquiring instructional materials)
- Carrying out necessary renovations to ensure that a new school building complies with applicable statutes and regulations, and minor facilities repairs (excluding construction)
- Providing one-time, startup costs associated with providing transportation to students to and from the charter school
- Carrying out community engagement activities, which may include paying the cost of student and staff recruitment
- Providing for other appropriate, non-sustained costs related to the replication or expansion of high-quality charter schools when such costs cannot be met from other sources
- Applicants must ensure that all costs included in the proposed budget are authorized under the CSP and are reasonable and necessary in light of the goals and objectives of the proposed project
Charter Management Organizations, defined as nonprofit organizations that operate or manage a network of charter schools linked by centralized support, operations, and oversight.
- $6,479,250 to Scholarship Prep Charter Schools (Santa Ana, CA) to expand and replicate from two schools and establish eight additional schools within the next five years.
- $788,014 to Crescent City Schools (New Orleans, LA) to expand an existing high-quality PreK-8 school and replicating the successful schools model to turn around a low-performing K-8 school.
- $718,490 to the Chicago Charter School Foundation (Chicago, IL) to expand 10 charter school campuses to add pre-K programming.
Submit application via Grants.gov.
Kandice Kostic
Charter Schools Program, Replication and Expansion of High-Quality Charter Schools
U.S. Department of Education, Office of Elementary & Secondary Education
400 Maryland Ave SW
Washington, DC 20202
202.453.5563