Charter School Services

The San Diego County Office of Education (SDCOE) ensures organizational efficiency by developing and administering oversight for the 11 SDCOE-authorized charter schools. The County Office also provides technical assistance and training to San Diego County charter schools and school districts related to charter school oversight, operations, and legal requirements.

View a list of charter schools operating in San Diego County. To search for a charter school by their authorizing district, please use the California Department of Education (CDE) School Directory and choose the Advanced Search option.

Get in Touch

For general inquiries about services for charter schools and charter school district authorizers in San Diego County, please email charters@sdcoe.net.

Upcoming Opportunities for Charter Schools & Authorizers

More to Explore

• Professional Development Opportunities and Resources
• Charter School Authorizer Resources
• Charter School Resources
• Charter Petition Submissions
• Current Charter Petitions - Pending Reviews
• San Diego County Charter School LCAP Submissions
• Charter School ADA Reports
• Quarterly Interest Reports
• Student Records Requests
• SDCOE Authorized Charter School Annual Reports 2024

Professional Development Opportunities and Resources

These virtual meetings are designed to bring together charter school instructional leaders across San Diego County. Each session's agenda is different, filled with relevant topics, resources, and presentations from subject matter experts in the various fields that impact student instruction and their overall well-being. Charter schools are encouraged to have their leadership and staff attend.

These virtual workshops are designed for charter school human resource leaders and staff. Together we will look at relevant topics and the laws and provisions that charter schools fall under, as it relates to Human Resources. You’ll hear from SDCOE’s Human Resource Services, Credentialing, Teacher Effectiveness and Preparation teams and more as they share the latest updates and opportunities for charter schools across San Diego County.

Join the SDCOE Charter School Services team as we dive into finances, operations, and considerations for financial reporting. This will be an interactive opportunity to discuss finance and operations requirements, hear guidance on reporting deadlines, ask questions, and hear best practices from other San Diego County charter business / fiscal teams.

With the legislation landscape for charter schools constantly changing you may be wondering about the details and how the new laws may affect your charter school or your role as an authorizer. Join us to hear a 2024 charter school legislative update from an attorney on Nov. 14.

Authorizer Connection is a workshop series that began in 2019 for charter school authorizers and the staff that manage their district or county office's charter school oversight.

Each workshop will focus on a specific agenda topic and will be an opportunity to bring together charter school authorizing agencies throughout the county and state to discuss the many facets of charter school oversight and the changing legislation that affects annual oversight obligations.

As we know, an affinity group is a group formed around a shared interest or common goal, to which individuals formally or informally belong. Charter leaders often exist on the islands of their charter communities. Unlike school district leaders, charter leaders do not usually have job-alike colleagues within their systems. The idea of this affinity group is to create a place to make connections and have a forum for questions, answers, and advice.

Registration is limited to the charter school executive director or an equivalent administrator role at a charter school responsible for leading the organization.

Professional Development - Archived Resources

San Diego County Charter Instructional Leader Meetings

• 2024-25 Archived presentations
  • Coming Soon

  Charter School Leader Human Resources Workshops

  • 2024-25 Archived presentations
    • Coming Soon

    Charter Business Network Meetings

    • 2024-25 Archived presentations
      • Coming Soon

      AUTHORIZER Connection Workshops

      • 2024-25 Archived presentations
        • Coming Soon

        Please note that these archived presentations will be posted through the current fiscal year.

        Charter School Authorizer Resources

        Budget Interim Reporting

        • 2023-24 Charter Unaudited Actual Review Template (.xlsx) (Coming Soon!)
        • 2024-25 Adopted Budget Review Template (.xlsx) (Coming Soon!)
        • 2023-24 Interim Review Template (Coming Soon!)
        • SAMPLE Financial Reporting Template (.xlsx)
        • SAMPLE Charter Debt Disclosure Form (.docx)
        • Multi-Year Unaudited Actual Comparison (.xlsx)

        In-Lieu Property Taxes

        • CDE In-Lieu of Property Tax Calculator (.xlsx)
        • CDE In-Lieu of Property Tax Resources (CDE)

        Template Oversight Documents

        • SAMPLE Board Agenda Review Template (.docx)
        • SAMPLE Board Meeting Observation Template (.docx)
        • SAMPLE Quarterly Enrollment Adds / Drops Template (.docx)
        • SAMPLE Fall Student Enrollment Template (.docx)
        • SAMPLE LCAP Summary Review Template
        • LCAP Charter School Education Code Sections (PDF)
        • SAMPLE Charter School Special Education Provider Template (.xlsx)
        • SAMPLE Charter School Health and Safety Compliance Template (.docx)
        • SAMPLE Faculty Staff Roster Template (.docx)
        • SDCOE Charter Petition Review Matrix SAMPLE (.docx)
        • SAMPLE Charter School Oversight Calendar (PDF)
        • SAMPLE Pre-Opening Checklist (PDF)
        • SAMPLE Annual Certification of Charter School Visit (PDF)

        Other Charter Authorizer Resources

        • FCMAT Charter School Fiscal Health Risk Analysis
        • CDE Charter School Resources
        • FCMAT Charter School Annual Oversight Checklist
        • FCMAT Charter School Accounting and Best Practices Manual
        • National Association of Charter School Authorizers

        Charter School Resources

        • Charter School Welcome Packet (PDF)
        • California Education Code Search (Leginfo)
        • Charter Petition Review Rubric (.docx)
        • LCAP Resources
        • SDCOE Authorized Charter Schools

        Finance Information, Independent Auditor Selection, and County Treasury Guide

        • SDCOE Auditor Transfer Website Login
        • SDCOE Auditor Transfer Website User Guide and Video Tutorial
        • Charter Schools: San Diego County Treasury Account Guide (PDF)
        • 2023-24 Unaudited Actuals Alternative Form Technical Checklist (.xlsx)

        Additional Information and Resources

        • California Department of Education (CDE) - Charter School Division​
        • California Public School Directory (CDE)
        • Charter School Locator (CDE)
        • Charter School General Information (CDE)
        • Charter School Resources (CDE)
        • Frequently Asked Questions about Charter Schools (CDE)
        • Legislation Impacting Charters (CDE)

        Charter Petition Submissions

        Charter Renewal Petitions

        • Renewal Process (PDF)
        • Renewal Application (.docx)
        • SDCOE Petition Review Matrix 47605 (.docx)
        • SDCOE Petition Review Matrix 47605.6 (.docx)

        Charter Petition Appeals

        • Appeal Process (PDF)
        • Petition to Establish Appeal Application (.docx)
        • Nonrenewal Appeal Application (.docx)
        • SDCOE Petition Review Matrix 47605 (.docx)

        Countywide Benefit Petitions

        • Countywide Charter Petition Process (PDF)
        • Countywide Charter Petition Application (.docx)
        • SDCOE Petition Review Matrix 47605.6 (.docx)

        Additional Resources

        • San Diego County Board of Education Calendar
        • Determining Charter School Performance Categories (CDE)
        • Legislation Impacting Charter Schools (CDE)
        • State Board of Education Appeal Process Frequently Asked Questions (CDE)
        • State Board of Education Appeals (CDE)

        Current Charter Petitions - Pending Reviews

        Charter Petition	Initial Public Hearing Date	Second Public Hearing and Board Action Date	Link to Staff Report
        No petitions under review at this time	N/A	N/A	N/A

        Staff reports will be posted 15 days before the San Diego County Board of Education action meeting, at 3 p.m. Pacific Standard Time. Please direct questions to charters@sdcoe.net.

        San Diego County Charter School LCAP Submissions

        Education Code Section 47604.33 requires charter schools to submit a Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) to their chartering agencies and the county superintendent of schools on or before July 1 of each year.

        As of 2022, all charter schools operating in San Diego County will upload their board-approved LCAP as a single PDF document to SDCOE Charter School Services on or before July 1 via an online form. All charter schools operating in San Diego County should use the 2024-25 LCAP submission form link that was sent via email to charter schools and district authorizers beginning in April 2024.

        For the 2024-25 charter school LCAP submissions, the single PDF document must contain the following information:

        • Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) Budget Overview for Parents
        • 2023-24 LCAP Annual Update
        • LCAP Template
          • Plan Summary
          • Engaging Educational Partners
          • Goals and Actions
          • Increased or Improved Services for Foster Youth, English Learners, and Low-Income Students
          • Action Tables
          • Instructions

          It is important to ensure the 2024-25 LCAP is submitted to the county office in the above noted order and as one PDF document in order to meet Section 508 compliance for individuals with disabilities. Additional information about the required LCAP components can be found on the California Department of Education’s LCAP webpage.

          All charter school LCAPs submitted to SDCOE will be posted in the SDCOE School Finder's Charter Directory.

          Please note, for charter schools operating in San Diego County, the online submission replaces the previous submission to finrep@sdcoe.net. Should you have any questions or concerns regarding the submission of a charter school LCAP please contact charters@sdcoe.net.

          Charter School ADA Reports

          Please note that the ADA report(s) above are pulled from CDE's Principal Apportionment Data Collection (PADC) Web Application following the Attendance Report Deadlines.

          Quarterly Interest Reports

          Profile of the San Diego County Investment Pool

          The San Diego County Investment Pool (Pool) was created when the State Legislature established the five-member San Diego County Board of Supervisors in 1853. It is a local government money fund which ranges in size from $10.2 - $15.9 billion in assets on an annual basis. The Pool is headed by the San Diego County Treasurer-Tax Collector, an elected official who is responsible for tax collection, banking, investment, disbursement and accountability of public funds. The Pool is managed by the Treasurer’s Office on behalf of Pool participants. You may learn about the Investment Pool here.

          San Diego County pool interest rates will be posted here on a quarterly basis, as the information is shared out from the San Diego County Treasury.

          Student Records Requests

          Please note, individuals requesting transcripts and school records should contact the school of attendance from which the records are needed. Please reference the California Department of Education's school directory to search for your school's contact information.

          Q: I attended a charter school in San Diego County. Can SDCOE provide me with copies of my student records?

          A: SDCOE does not hold student records for charter schools throughout the county unless the charter school was once authorized by the San Diego County Board of Education and is now closed. Please contact the charter school you attended to request copies of your student records.

          Q: What if my charter school has closed?

          A: California Education Code Section 47605(c)(5)(O) requires each charter to contain a description of the procedures for maintenance and transfer of pupil records including what happens to those records if the school closes. Each school should have a designated person from the charter school that could be contacted after closure. In some cases, the charter's authorizing district may have received copies of the student records from the closed charter school. This would typically be designated during the school's closing procedures.