Connect to California Charter Schools

Why Charter Schools?

What are charter schools? Not totally sure what a “charter school” is? That’s ok! The term is frequently misapplied and often conflated with other school reform efforts and initiatives (such as vouchers, private schools, etc.).

Charter schools are:

• Publicly-funded
• Tuition-free (i.e. not private)
• Nonsectarian and nondiscriminatory
• Highly accountable

How are they started? Charter schools are created through a founding legal document (“charter petition”) articulating the school’s academic goals and how it will hold itself accountable in measuring and achieving them.

Why market/sell to them? Once approved, charter schools must work hard to meet the terms of their petitions. However, in exchange for this heightened scrutiny, charters enjoy a degree of flexibility and autonomy.

Relative to traditional schools, many charters have:

• Cultures of innovation and experimentation
• Streamlined procurement processes
• Greater budgetary flexibility

Why California Charters?

Charter schools provide communities across California with public, tuition-free, educational options. The charter school movement in California is larger than that of any other state, comprising nearly 20% of total charter schools in the United States. There are approximately 1,300 active charter schools in California, serving over 600,000 students. A directory of all California charter schools by county can be found here.

Why the CSDC Conference?

The CSDC Conference is intended for–and widely attended by–California public charter schools.

It connects attendees to the California charter sector and provides a unique opportunity to engage with many of the schools and leaders we have supported during our 30+ year history, including:

Hundreds of member schools

As an educational nonprofit, CSDC is primarily sustained by the direct support of hundreds of member charter schools. With their support, CSDC is able to provide a wide range of helpful tools and resources. Collectively, our member schools represent the majority of charter school students in California.

Thousands of training program alumni

Over 30+ years, we have trained thousands of school leaders through our in-depth leadership trainings (including our CBO Training, Leadership Intensive, and HR Academy). Many of these alumni return to the conference annually to stay up-to-date.

The sector’s leading thinkers and practitioners

The CSDC Conference is widely regarded for its content. In addition to presentations by CSDC’s team of experts, we also manage a Call for Proposals process to highlight the most impactful voices and thinkers tackling some of the biggest challenges.