(a) The district board shall hold a public hearing within thirty (30) calendar days after receiving an application for any charter school to consider the application. A determination of a Complete application by the district superintendent is required prior to submission under this Section. The thirty (30) calendar days for the district board to hold a hearing shall commence on the day the district superintendent grants the application a status of Complete.
(b) The following requirements shall apply to all hearings conducted by the district board as a result of W.S. § 21-3-308 and this Section: - (i) Appropriate notice of the hearing shall be given to the public in accordance with the Wyoming Public Meetings Act (W.S. §§ 16-4-401 through 16-4-408 );
- (ii) A quorum of the district board shall attend the hearing;
- (iii) The proceeding, including all testimony, shall be reported verbatim stenographically or by any other means determined appropriate by the district board or officer presiding at the hearing; and
- (iv) The Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act (W.S. § 16-3-101 et seq.) shall govern the hearings to consider the approval or denial of charter school applications.
(c) The district board shall at a minimum consider the following in considering the application for any charter school: - (i) The level of community and parental support for the application if the application is for a new charter school or the level of teacher and parental support if the application is for a converted or a charter school within a school; and
- (ii) The purpose of the charter school, including whether it is to provide teachers, parents, pupils and community members with the ability to establish and maintain a school that operates independently from the existing school district as a method to:
- (A) Improve pupil learning;
- (B) Increase learning opportunities for all pupils, with special emphasis; on expanded learning experiences;
- (C) Encourage the use of different and innovative teaching methods;
- (D) Create new professional opportunities for teachers, including the opportunity to be responsible for the learning program at the school site; and
- (E) Provide parents and pupils with expanded choices in the types of educational opportunities that are available within the public school system.
(d) District boards shall utilize an Evaluation Rubric as outlined in these Rules to assist in the consideration of the application arid make a deterriiination as to the Final Approval/Denial Status of the application.
(e) The district board shall make a decision to approve or deny the application within sixty (60) calendar days of receipt of the application. - (i) Upon request by the applicant, subject to provisions of W.S. § 21-3-308(a) and (c), the district board may approve the charter school application subject to specified conditions which provide the applicant sufficient time to acquire necessary funding for securing or otherwise finalizing arrangements for facilities or equipment necessary for the operation of the proposed school.
- (ii) Prior to approving a charter school application the board shall approve and adopt the contents and terms of the contract as provided by W.S. § 21-3-308(a).
(f) If the district board denies a charter school application, the district board shall notify the applicant in writing, including the reasons or basis for the denial, within forty-five (45) calendar days of its decision.
(g) To operate in the upcoming school year the charter school application shall be approved and the contract shall be executed, including any waivers by the State Board that may be necessary, on or before March 1 of the previous, school year.
206-32 Wyo. Code R. § 32-10