Legal challenges continue to be a major obstacle in the charter school movement. Many schools are forced to divert financial resources away from important educational programs in order to address challenges such as overregulation by authorizers and facilities inequities, among other things.
CCSA established the Charter Schools Legal Defense Fund (LDF) with the goal of providing California charter school students continued access to programs, facilities, and resources needed for high-quality education.
The Charter Schools Legal Defense Fund:
- Litigates key issues which substantially impact California's charter school movement
- Monitors and participates in State and Federal cases that are focused on key charter school issues
- Contributes to the expansion of the charter school movement's legal capacity
- Coordinates a program offering certain pro bono and reduced rate incorporation services.
- Participates in charter school trainings on topics such as Proposition 39 applications and incorporation practices.
- Considers applications for and issues 24-month, zero-interest loans for legal support to CCSA member schools and developers facing unfair treatment by their school districts/authorizers or who are confronting other barriers in the expansion of the charter school movement.
Loan issuance is subject to:
- Charter school applicant's fulfillment of LDF Loan Program criteria
- Charter schools applicant's completion of LDF Loan Application process
- CCSA's determination of capacity
Compilation of Selected Laws Applicable to Charter Schools
In partnership with the law firm Procopio Corey Hargreaves & Savitch, CCSA's LDF publishes a Compilation of Selected Laws Applicable to Charter Schools. This booklet is a handy reference for charter school operators and board members-- bookmark it or print it out and keep it handy for easy desk reference. It contains all the relevant legislative and regulatory changes affecting charter schools in 2011.