Abstract

This dissertation focused on defining the range of choices charter public school developers make in establishing governance structures, including legal structures, board composition and policies to manage potential conflicts of interest. Drawing from publicly available data sources (from the California Department of Education and charter petitions), from the results of the 2007 annual school survey conducted by the California Charter Schools Association and interviews and focus groups with charter school leaders, a typology of charter school governance structures was constructed and used to compare the academic success of the schools by governance type. This research found a strong correlation between allowing heads of schools to serve as voting members of their boards and that resources invested in developing networks of charter schools built on proven practices appear to produce higher academic achievement results. This research is important because governance structures and practices are a major area of charter school innovation that differentiates them from non-charter public schools.