Thousands of additional Georgia students will soon have the opportunity to attend a high-quality public charter school. The Georgia Strategic Charter School Growth Initiative announced the launch of two programs to support the expansion, replication, or creation of additional public charter schools. The Replication and Expansion Cohort program provides resources to existing, high-quality charter schools, and the New School Leader Fellowship facilitates the successful launch of new charter schools. A total of nine schools were selected for both programs.

Six public charter schools were competitively selected for a rigorous, year-long Replication and Expansion Cohort program that will provide them with the support, guidance, and resources to successfully bring their high-quality educational models to other parts of the state or expand their existing campuses. Atlanta Classical Academy, D.E.L.T.A. STEAM Academy, Du Bois Integrity Academy, The Museum School of Avondale Estates, Tybee Island Maritime Academy, and Utopian Academy for the Arts were chosen as participants in the first-ever Replication and Expansion Cohort program of the Georgia Strategic Charter School Growth Initiative. The program will assist schools with achieving their short and long-term growth objectives with the ultimate goal of serving more Georgia children.

As a part of the Replication and Expansion Cohort program, participating schools will receive technical assistance on facilities, finance, charter petition creation and plan implementation support from the Georgia Charter Schools Association’s Facility Resource Center and Incubator Program. In addition, Bellwether, a national nonprofit dedicated to equity in education, will provide long-range planning guidance and support for scaling school operations, including a visit to other successful charter schools that have experienced growth. Schools participating in the cohort will be eligible for grants up to $300,000 to carry out their plans for expansion or replication.

Three leaders from approved new charter schools were selected for the inaugural cohort of the New School Leader Fellowship program. School leaders from Miles Ahead Charter School, Sankofa Montessori, and The Anchor School will participate in a cohort-style technical assistance program offered by Lead with Excellence, a nonprofit organization established to support new charter school leaders. Through the program, these leaders will establish leadership and organizational structures for their schools to ensure student achievement, strong operations, and community engagement. In addition, participants will receive a $100,000 stipend, and their schools will be eligible for up to $300,000 in grant funds to assist with opening activities. The three schools are slated to open in Fall 2023.

Participants in each program were selected through a competitive process by representatives of the Charter Growth Initiative. To be eligible for participation in the Replication and Expansion Cohort, schools must operate at least one existing charter school in Georgia and remain in good standing with their charter school authorizer. To be eligible for participation in New School Leader Fellowship Program, schools must have an approved charter contract to open in Fall 2023 and remain in good standing with their charter school authorizer. Schools were selected based on criteria that included responsiveness to community need, growth mindset, commitment to the program, and readiness for replication or expansion or school opening.

The Georgia Strategic Charter School Growth Initiative was made possible by a $4.1 million grant awarded by the Office of Governor Brian Kemp as part of the Governors Emergency Education Relief Fund (GEER II). Under the Governor’s Emergency Education Relief Fund (GEER Fund), the U.S. Department of Education (Department) awards grants to Governors for the purpose of providing local educational agencies (LEAs), institutions of higher education (IHEs), and other education-related entities with emergency assistance as a result of COVID-19. The initiative is a partnership between the State Charter Schools Foundation of Georgia, the State Charter Schools Commission of Georgia, and the Georgia Charter Schools Association. The initiative will provide technical assistance and grants to support the creation or expansion of ten charter schools by September 2023. In addition, the initiative will offer public information sessions and a new dedicated website to allow Georgians to learn more about public charter schools and their public charter school options.