About CSI

A Brief History of the Charter School Institute

The Charter School Institute was created by the Colorado state legislature in 2004 as an independent agency within the Department of Education. The Institute is governed by a nine-member Board of Directors; seven members are appointed by the Governor, two by the Commissioner of Education. The original board members were appointed in September 2004.
Funding
      The Institute received no state funding for start up. Generous grants of $50,000 from the Daniels Fund and $137,000 from the Walton Family Foundation provided the funding to begin operations. That funding allowed the hiring of an Executive Director in February of 2005, the provision of an office space, and the conduct of the first round of applications for new Institute charter schools.
The First Year (2005)
      Twelve applications were submitted in January of 2005 for schools to open in the Fall of 2005. After an intensive process, two of those applications were approved: Colorado Springs Charter Academy and Ross Montessori School in Carbondale. Those schools opened in August, 2005, with a total enrollment of 377 K-6 students.
2006
        The Institute received nine applications for the 2006-2007 school year, including two proposals from existing charter schools seeking to transfer from local district authorization to the Institute. The Institute Board approved seven proposals for charter schools: Pinnacle Charter School and The Academy at High Point in Metro Denver, Northern Colorado Academy of Arts & Knowledge in Ft. Collins, Stone Creek School in Avon, and the Colorado Distance & Electronic Learning Academy (Statewide).
2007
        The Institute approved four new schools and one school to transfer to the Institute for the fall of 2007: Caprock Academy, Colorado Springs Early Colleges, Ricardo Flores Mag�n Academy, Cesar Chavez Colorado Springs Central and 21st Century Charter School @ Colorado Springs. One new school was approved to open in the Fall of 2008: Cesar Chavez Colorado Springs North- Central.
2008
          The Institute received 7 applications and approved four new schools, one new school, one a current program of another charter school, one school to transfer to the Institute in Fall of 2008, and one to open in Fall 2009: Early Colleges High School, GOAL Academy, Vanguard Academy, Animas High School(fall 2009)
         The Institute received six applications for new schools to open in the fall of 2009. Two applicants withdrew, two applications were deemed incomplete, one school has been approved to open in Fall 2009, and one school has been approved to open in Fall 2010.
            - Thomas MacClaren State Charter School (Colorado Springs) Fall 2009
            - Provost Academy State Charter School (Online) Fall 2010