CHARTER SCHOOL PUBLICATIONS

For Charter School Developers and Charter-Granting Agencies

Charter School Development Guide

Expanded Fifth Edition, Revised Spring 2003

With 2004 update supplement

The Charter School Development Guide is a comprehensive guide to the process of planning and starting a charter school. The book spans the first four major stages of charter school development, including planning, charter drafting, charter approval, and school start-up. Though developed for a California audience, many of the principles, practical ideas, and strategic concepts have proven useful to charter developers and charter-granting agencies across the country. Based on the author's extensive experience with both "from scratch" and "conversion" schools nationally, this book provides essential information and hundreds of helpful tips. Detailed appendices provide the actual text of California's Charter Schools Act (incorporating 2002 amendments), sample charter petition documents, a template for a charter development timeline, and a pre-operations start-up checklist.

Paper bound, 171 pages. By Eric Premack. $44 plus $5 shipping/handling for the first book, $3 for each additional book.

California Charter School Finance

Revised March 2003

Reprinted with 2004 update supplement

This book provides a comprehensive overview of California charter school finance. It provides a comprehensive, detailed, yet understandable explanation of how California provides funding for its charter schools--including funding from local, state, federal, and other special sources.  The book is an essential source of information for charter school developers and operators, charter-granting agencies, and others.  

Written in plain English, the detailed guide provides:

  • Understandable explanations of the dozens of revenue sources available to California's charter schools under the charter school "block grant" funding system, including a detailed description of each funding source, eligibility criteria, amounts and formulas, compliance and reporting requirements, and application and contact information. 
  • An overview of California's evolving policies on attendance accounting 
  • An overview of California's special education finance and service delivery systems and how charter schools "fit" into these systems, financially and programmatically
  • Practical tips on how to negotiate financial arrangements between charter schools and their charter-granting agencies, including a sample financial agreement between a charter school and its sponsor agency
  • A simple explanation of how to develop a basic charter school budget and financial plan, including a sample start-up budget, operating budget, cash flow projection, and long-term financial projection
  • An overview of how to develop the "back office" functions of a charter school, including a checklist of essential start-up activities and tasks
  • Sample charter school financial management policies, designed to help your school clarify who is responsible for financial decision-making and day-to-day financial management
  • Detailed appendices providing relevant regulations, a sample financial agreement between a charter school and sponsor school district, and a set of basic financial management policies

By Eric Premack, 132 pages, paper bound. $44 plus $5 shipping/handling for the first book, $3 for each additional book.

*NOTE: The Finance manual is recommended primarily for California audiences due to the state-specific nature of much of the material, though out-of-state readers may find the latter chapters of the book on budget development and financial management very helpful.

About the Author

Eric Premack co-directs the Charter Schools Development Center at the California State University Institute for Education Reform where he assists charter school developers, charter granting agencies, and policy makers to both create charter schools and implement charter school reform policies. He has provided consulting support for dozens of charter school developers across the country and published widely on charter school policy and technical assistance matters. His expertise spans the range of school development disciplines with emphasis on finance, staffing, governance, legal, and organizational development matters. Eric is was staff to the US Department of Education-sponsored National Study of Charter Schools, co-developed the "USCharterschools" web site, and provides assistance to charter school developers nationally through the Charter Friends National Network. He serves on the board of CANEC (California's charter schools association), the National Charter School Alliance, and on the board of a major nonprofit organization that operates two charter schools. Premack formerly served as non-partisan education finance staff to the California Legislature and as a management consultant to dozens of California school districts.

What the readers say:

"A comprehensive, useful, and practical guide. It will save charter school developers months of research."

"Both of my copies are filled with dog ears and 'post-it' notes . . . they've  been our guide throughout the whole process.  We couldn't have done it without them."

Please Note:  Due to a heavy travel schedule, my ability to ship until after December 12, 2004 is very limited.  Please e-mail me using the address below if you need to receive your books soon.   

Order Form

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Volume discount: order 3 or more of any combination and subtract $5 per book from order total. All prices include applicable sales tax. Most orders are shipped via US Postal Service Priority Mail. Please send check payable to: Eric Premack at 365 35th Street, Sacramento, CA 95816.

For pricing information on bulk orders of 10 or more books or orders outside of the US, send an e-mail to: epremack@aol.com  

Purchase price refunded if you are not completely satisfied and the books are returned within 10 days. Sorry, credit card payment is not currently available.