Charter Schools

Charter School Proposal

Prior to starting the proposal process, a mandatory orientation/training is required. The Director of the Charter School Authorization Office will provide helpful information and answer questions about the authorization process. Once completed, you may start developing the proposal. It must provide enough evidence and support that the proposed charter school would offer a sound fiscal, business, and educational model that facilitates quality choice, innovative educational opportunities as well as active and student centered learning.

Proposal Interview

(Invitation Only)
The capacity to work effectively together is vital. The proposal interview allows the opportunity to meet the proposed school’s leadership team, obtain additional information that could not be ascertained in the written proposal, and evaluate the extent to which we can collaborate and work together to form a successful partnership. All board members must attend and be on site for the interview.

Full Application for Proposed Charter School

(Invitation Only)
If the interview merits, the applicant is given the opportunity to submit a full application. This application provides the opportunity to expand and elaborate on the initial proposal.  Reviewers will be looking for a clear, articulate, complete, and consistent description of the proposed charter school. When completed, the application will be reviewed by the Utah Tech Board of Trustees or their designees

Full Application Application Guidelines

Capacity Interview - Strengths & Needs Meeting

(Invitation Only)
The Board of Trustees or their designees will meet with you to discuss the Charter School Application. Strengths and needs identified from the application will be discussed followed by action planning. All board members must attend and be on site for this meeting.

Charter Authorization Determination

As part of the Utah Tech authorization process, there are six steps in total. The first four steps have generated a substantial amount of information. This data, along with the information provided by the proposed charter school, will be analyzed to ensure alignment with Utah Tech University’s mission and vision as well as its overall viability.

Based on this analysis, a decision will be made on whether to proceed with the authorization process. If the decision is made to move forward, the final decision to grant authorization will be made by Utah Tech University’s Board of Trustees.

Get Charter Agreement Reviewed and Signed

The final step of the process is to provide the proposed charter school with information regarding the review and signing of the Utah Tech Charter School Agreement.

You will receive a copy of the agreement for review no later than two weeks after the proposed charter school is notified that authorization has been granted. Please review the agreement carefully and submit any questions that arise to Utah Tech University’s Director, Office of Charter Schools, Suzanne Bolar, via email at charterauthorizing@utahtech.edu. These questions must be submitted within two weeks of receiving the agreement for review.

Your questions will be reviewed with Utah Tech’s Board of Trustees, Legal Counsel, and/or staff to ensure you receive appropriate responses. A date and time will then be scheduled for all parties to meet at Utah Tech University to sign the agreement.

Please note that the agreement with Utah Tech University will outline required training (e.g., pre-operational training) that the board and school

leadership must attend, as per R277-552-2 (8a). Additionally, the agreement will detail the processes and timelines Utah Tech will follow to evaluate your pre-operational plan, ensuring compliance with legal requirements for public and charter schools, including required policies and student data systems, with an emphasis on student data privacy.