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Charter founders rock!
Thank you for providing a high-quality education for North Dakota students.
Annual Evaluation
The superintendent of the Department of Public Instruction will monitor your performance as a school to ensure you’re meeting the annual performance targets and legal compliance requirements laid out in your Charter Performance Agreement. That will take place in an annual evaluation (oh joy!).
Note that the evaluation will be tied to the specific performance expectations and measures laid out in the agreement that assess how the school is doing relative to those indicators. It’s not one-size-fits all!
What happens if you don’t meet the requirements? You’ll be given a reasonable opportunity to remedy the problems and must be given at least 15 days to respond to the superintendent’s notification of “unsatisfactory” performance.
Performance Reports
The superintendent of the Department of Public Instruction is required to issue a performance report for your school each five-year term of a charter performance agreement. The indicators will again come from the charter performance agreement’s performance framework. It must be provided no later than 75 days before your fourth year of operation begins. The report must include:
- Renewal application guidance, as needed
- Notice of any concerns that may jeopardize the renewal if not rectified.
If problems were identified, you would be given at least 30 days to respond to the performance report and submit any corrections or clarifications.
Renewal
Your governing board must submit a renewal application to the superintendent no later than the 1st day of instruction in the final authorized year of operation
Renewal application must include:
- Performance report and additional evidence in support of renewal
- Improvements undertaken or planned for the school
- Plans for the next charter term
A renewal decision will be made in 45 days or less after the renewal application was filed
The charter school can have a public meeting with the superintendent regarding the renewal decision if desired
The superintendent of the Department of Public Instruction will publish a report summarizing the basis for each decision, including supporting evidence.
Policy Updates
The rulemaking process at the Department of Public Instruction is underway and expected to be finalized by April 1, 2026!
As the rulemaking process unfolds or if and when the legislature makes changes to North Dakota’s charter law, we will include updates here.
Marketing Your Charter
Running a successful charter means making sure your target audience knows you’re there!
Here are a few best practices.
Have a logo (even a simple one) designed for your school and choose a couple of brand fonts and a palette of 3-5 brand colors, including a mix of bold/dark and light/subtle colors to make your brand consistent and identifiable. You can hire a designer or do this yourself on Canva or another free design app.
Be clear about who your school is. Classical? STEM? Montessori? Arts-driven? Great athletic program? Pick an identity and make it obvious so your target audience can spot you!
Identify your key radius (usually a 15-minute drive maximum) around your school so you know where to run physical or digital advertising.
Start social media pages to connect with parents and run digital ads. Meta (Facebook) and Instagram are good places to start. Consider LinkedIn if you’re looking to attract talent to your school. Make sure your pages are clearly named, feature your brand, and include regular posts with key updates and images of your school in action (with parent’s permission, of course!).
Consider hosting an open house or a community event where families can come tour your school and meet staff and teachers ahead of your target launch year. Late spring of the prior school year is an ideal time.
If you have advertising dollars you want to spend, here is where to start:
- Run ads with Meta, geotargeting a 5-mile radius around your likely location.
- Send a direct mail piece to families with school-age children in your zip code. If you aren’t working with a marketing firm, you can purchase a consumer list through an online provider — or simply do every door direct (hits everyone in an area, regardless of demographic. It’s usually cheaper per piece but can result in a lot of “wasted” mail. It is good for building community awareness.)
- Host a table at a local event or farmer’s market where parents will be. Have materials printed, and have a couple of teachers or staff members at the table to greet families and answer questions.
Want to go deeper? We recommend hiring a local marketing firm to help you do more. Here are a few we’d recommend.
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Webinars & Events
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