While the Mayor and Chancellor of the District of Columbia Public Schools  (DCPS) oversee traditional public schools, PCSB is responsible for holding  the District’s charter schools accountable for academic results and  compliance with applicable laws. The D.C. School Reform Act allows PCSB to grant up to 10 charters per  year. Although PCSB Operates as an Independent Agency, It Is Subject to Performance Hearings and Financial Oversight

While the Mayor appoints members to the board, PCSB functions as an  independent agency within D.C. government. As such, it operates outside  of the policies and direction of the Mayor, and operates outside of DCPS  and the Chancellor’s purview (see figure 1). While several agencies may conduct activities to review the performance  and operations of PCSB, the most regular and comprehensive activities are  conducted by the D.C. Council and Office of the Chief Financial Officer  (OCFO) (see figure 2). In addition, OCFO oversees PCSB’s financial management. According to  OCFO and PCSB, OCFO’s oversight of PCSB includes reviewing budget  estimates and proposals, reviewing financial processes, and overseeing  cash management and procurement activities. Other agencies may conduct audits or investigations when issues arise. Auditor may also conduct  investigations or audits of PCSB. PCSB Implemented a New Accountability System to Monitor Charter Schools

		PCSB’s New Accountability System Is Currently Undergoing Revision

To improve oversight of charter schools, PCSB launched a new  accountability system—called the Performance Management Framework  (PMF)—to capture school performance information for the 2009-2010  school year (see figure 3 for the current version of the PMF). However, in  October 2010, about 2 weeks before the PMF results were to be released,  the board voted to withhold the results from the public, citing concerns  about the accuracy of the school-level data collected. As it revises the  new system, PCSB is working collaboratively with charter school leaders. The PMF is also designed to assess schools’ nonacademic performance in  finance, governance, and compliance with ESEA and other applicable  laws. Charter Schools Receive Funding and Other Resources for Their Operations and Facilities

		D.C. Charter Schools May Receive Local, Federal, and Private Funding for Their Operations and Facilities

D.C. charter schools may receive funding for their operations and facilities  from a range of sources. Like traditional public schools in the District, the  primary source of funding for charter schools is local appropriations,  which is allocated on the basis of a per-pupil formula that takes several  factors into consideration. D.C. Charter Schools Have Access to Nonfinancial Resources

D.C. charter schools may receive local personnel and services from the  District. Charter schools may also lease former D.C. public school buildings  through a provision in D.C. law, enacted in late 2004, which provides a  “right of first offer” to charter schools for school buildings DCPS  determines it no longer needs. The Basis for the District’s Decisions to Reject Charter School Offers for Former D.C. School Buildings Is Unclear

For the offers that are rejected, we found that the RFO does not detail all  of the factors the District may consider in deciding whether to award a  school building to a charter school and that the basis for the District’s  decision to reject a charter school’s offer is not always sufficiently  documented. Conclusions

In the District, charter schools, which enroll nearly 40 percent of all public  school children in the city, offer parents more educational choice. PCSB plans to collaborate with charter schools to  develop and revise the system, and has more recently begun providing  more detailed information to charter schools about its plans for  implementing the revised system for the 2010-2011 school year. Additional clarity and transparency regarding how the  District decides to use former D.C. school buildings may increase charter  schools’ understanding of the process and may help to avoid the  appearance of a lack of fairness among charter school officials and  advocates. Recommendation for Executive Action

To ensure that the criteria for evaluating offers from charter schools to use  surplus D.C. school buildings are clear and the reasons for denial of offers  are communicated, we recommend that the Mayor of the District of  Columbia direct DRES to take the following two actions:    ensure the RFO on former D.C. school buildings clearly indicates all  factors that may be considered by the selection panel, and inform charter schools, in writing, of the reasons their offers were rejected  or of the opportunity to request a briefing to obtain such information. The District  agreed with our recommendations and stated that DRES has begun taking  steps to improve the process for awarding former D.C. school buildings to  charter schools and will continue to identify ways to improve the selection  process. GAO-05-7. GAO-03-11.
Why GAO Did This Study

Almost 40 percent of all public school students in the District of Columbia (D.C. or District) were enrolled in charter schools in the 2010-11 school year. The D.C. School Reform Act established the Public Charter School Board (PCSB) for the purpose of authorizing and overseeing charter schools. Congress required GAO to conduct a management evaluation of PCSB. GAO addresses the following: (1) the mechanisms in place to review the performance and operations of PCSB, (2) the procedures and processes PCSB has in place to oversee and monitor the operations of D.C. charter schools, and (3) the resources available to charter schools for their operations and facilities. GAO interviewed officials from D.C. agencies and 7 charter schools and reviewed oversight procedures for PCSB and charter schools. GAO also reviewed the processes for providing resources to charter schools and analyzed data on these resources.

What GAO Found

Although the Mayor appoints members to the board, PCSB has operated outside of the control of the Mayor and the Chancellor of traditional D.C. public schools; however, several agencies review PCSB's performance and operations. The D.C. Council holds annual hearings to examine PCSB's organization, personnel, budget, programs, policies, contracting, and procurement. The Office of the Chief Financial Officer oversees PCSB's budget development, operations, and financial reporting and reviews PCSB's monthly financial reports and year-end audits. Other offices monitor compliance with applicable laws and may conduct investigations or audits of PCSB when issues arise. PCSB launched its new performance accountability system to oversee the District's charter schools in school year 2009-2010. However, in October 2010, just weeks before the results were to be released, PCSB decided to withhold the results from the public due to concerns about data accuracy and plans to use the data collected to further test and develop the system. The new system, called the Performance Management Framework (PMF), is designed to assess charter schools using common measures for academic performance, compliance with applicable laws, and financial management, among other things. As it implements the new system for the 2010-2011 school year, PCSB is currently collaborating with charter schools to develop and revise the system, and has more recently begun providing more detailed information to charter schools about how it will revise the system. D.C. charter schools may receive funding from local, federal, and private sources for their operations and facilities and also have access to other District resources, including former D.C. school buildings; however, the criteria for awarding former school buildings to charter schools could be more transparent. The primary source of support for charter schools is local per-pupil funding, which is allocated to charter schools on the same basis as all public schools in the District. Charter schools also receive a per-pupil allotment from the District for facilities. In addition to local funds, charter schools are eligible to receive federal formula funding, federal discretionary grants, and private funding, such as foundation grants and commercial loans to purchase or renovate school buildings. To date, charter schools lease or will lease about half of the former D.C. school buildings that have been made available pursuant to a provision in D.C. law that provides charter schools with a right of first offer for these buildings. However, we found that the District does not include in its requests for offers all factors it may consider, such as economic development or other goals of the Mayor, when determining whether to accept or reject an offer. In addition, the District does not sufficiently document the basis for rejecting offers. Charter school officials and advocates expressed concern about the transparency and fairness in how the District makes decisions regarding former D.C. school buildings.

What GAO Recommends

GAO recommends that the Mayor of the District of Columbia direct the Department of Real Estate Services to disclose all factors considered in reviewing charter school offers for former D.C. school buildings and make available to schools, in writing, the reasons the offers were rejected. The District agreed with our recommendations and noted that the Department of Real Estate Services has already taken steps to improve the process for awarding former D.C. school buildings to charter schools.