Colorado Charter Schools

About

The Charter School Office serves as the vital nexus connecting charter schools, charter authorizers, education stakeholders, and the public with the Colorado Department of Education (CDE). The office is one of two offices under the Schools of Choice (SOC) Unit and exists to serve families and support internal and external stakeholders who provide innovative, high-quality school choice options to students in Colorado that increase opportunity, access, and inclusion.

The Charter School Office is a key point in connecting state and federal policy to Colorado charter schools. It aggregates state data collections to author legislative reports and stands ready to address a myriad of policy inquiries. Moreover, it manages the statutory waiver process for all charter schools statewide, maintaining records on all contracts, contract terms, and waivers approved by the Colorado State Board of Education.

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SOC Newsletter Archive

Frequently Asked Questions

Office Staff Contact

What are Charter Schools?

Charter schools are tuition-free, public schools that have the flexibility to be innovative, entrepreneurial, self-governing, and yet are held accountable for student and operational performance. Open to all students, each of these independent public schools is different, increasing the variety of high-quality school choices available across Colorado.

From core knowledge, classical and early college curriculums to Montessori, language immersion and more, charter schools allow families to select the school that best fits their child's unique learning style. In exchange for operational freedom and flexibility, charters are subject to higher levels of accountability.

News & Updates

CDE Bi-Weekly Communications

During the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the charter office created an emergency contacts distribution list that was used to share timely information with charter leaders to keep them informed of any recent changes we were learning about at the state. Over time, this list can fall out of date with any school staffing changes. Recently, we have been forwarding to this same list any communications from the commissioner that have been sent to superintendents and BOCES directors so that charter leaders are also kept informed of any timely updates coming from CDE. If you are a charter leader and you believe that your organization may not be receiving these communications (typically 1-2 have been sent per week over the past few weeks), please check with your campus leadership and send an email to Megan Richardson (richardson_m@cde.state.co.us) with your name, email address you would like to have included, and your role at the school.

Nominate the next 2026 Colorado Teacher of the Year

Do you know an outstanding educator who deserves to be celebrated? Nominations are open for the 2026 Colorado Teacher of the Year! This prestigious program recognizes and elevates exceptional teachers across the state. The selected educator will go on to represent Colorado as a nominee for the National Teacher of the Year and join other state honorees in Washington, D.C. The nomination form is available online and will remain open through Monday, March 17, 2025. For more details and to submit a nomination, visit our website. Help us honor Colorado’s incredible educators!

Open Educational Resources Colorado Webinar

The annual, Global Open Education (OE) Week is March 3-7. In celebration of this Week, the Office of Online and Blended Learning (OBL) at CDE is hosting an informational webinar about the OERColorado Hub and OERColorado Microsite platforms. These platforms include free, openly-licensed education materials for Colorado’s classrooms and educators.

We invite you and any of your colleagues to join us on Tuesday, March 4, 2025 at 4 p.m. for our Open Educational (OE) Week OERColorado Information Webinar (link here goes directly to the meeting, so plan to make an appointment for yourself and save this link. Also feel free to share with colleagues).
If you are unable to join us, you are welcome to check out the OERColorado Social Media sites including the videos on the OERColorado YouTube Channel. For updates on the K-12 OER Project, please visit OBL’s Current Work Webpage on CDE’s website.

Colorado Charter School Program

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Resources and Past Trainings

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Charter School Authorizers

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Opening New Schools

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Parent's Corner

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Data and Publications

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Please note: We are currently updating our website for improved accessibility and navigation and as a result, some links may be broken and resources unavailable. Please email soc@cde.state.co.us if you come across a broken link or needed resource. Thank you for your patience.