As CSI enters its third decade, we’re excited to share our 2026-2029 Strategic Plan: Authorizing for Possibility. Building for Students.
CSI was created by the General Assembly in 2004 to expand access to high-quality public school options across Colorado. Today, we authorize over 50 public charter schools serving more than 20,000 students across the state. This plan builds on that foundation and sets our direction for the next three years.
Built With Input from the Field
This plan came together over several months, facilitated by the National Charter Schools Institute.
It started in December 2025, when the CSI Board and leadership team met to focus on strengthening authorizing practices and clarifying CSI’s role in Colorado’s education system. From there, the Board and staff worked to identify the shared values that should guide our decisions. That work produced alignment around four core values that now anchor the plan.
Our Values
Accountability, Integrity, and Excellence in Authorizing
– We operate with transparency, honesty, and responsible stewardship of public trust
– We maintain clear expectations, make consistent decisions, and ensure meaningful accountability
– We are committed to high-quality authorizing practices and holding ourselves accountable to the same high standards we set for schools
Student-Centered Quality and Opportunity
– We ground every decision in what is best for students
– We are committed to expanding access to high-quality public school options
– We focus on strong outcomes and real opportunities for all students
– We ensure families have meaningful, high-quality choices
Partnership, Service and Support
– We build strong, trust-based partnerships with schools and communities
– We collaborate, listen, and respond to the needs of those we serve
– We provide support that strengthens school success and student outcomes
Innovation, Autonomy and Continuous Improvement
– We encourage innovation and diverse educational models
– We respect school autonomy as a foundation of charter public education
– We embrace learning, adaptation, and continuous improvement in our own work
Our Theory of Action
CSI’s strategic plan is grounded in a clear theory of action: when CSI authorizes with excellence, expands access to high-quality and innovative schools, and removes barriers to school success, more students are positioned to achieve stronger outcomes. The four goals in this plan reflect that logic.
Goal 1: Deliver Excellent Authorizing that Strengthens Schools and Student Outcomes.
Goal 2: Expand Access to High-Quality and Innovative Schools.
Goal 3: Remove Barriers and Strengthen Conditions for School Success.
Goal 4: Strengthen Student Outcomes Across the Portfolio.
Our Commitments to Stakeholders
CSI’s work touches many lives. We hold ourselves accountable not only to our Board and the state, but to the students, families, school leaders, staff, and partners who depend on us to do this work well. This plan reflects the following commitments.
To Students: We authorize and support schools where students learn, grow, and thrive, holding them accountable for real outcomes, and we advocate for the resources they need to succeed.
To Families: We ensure access to high-quality public school choices, stay transparent about school performance, and work to expand great options in every community.
To School Leaders and Boards: We’re a fair, consistent, and responsive partner. We respect school autonomy, support innovation, and provide the right support for each school’s context, communicating clearly along the way.
To CSI Staff: We invest in our team’s growth and well-being, build a culture of collaboration and shared purpose, and equip staff with the tools and leadership they need to do excellent work.
To the Field: We share what we’re learning, contribute to broader conversations on quality and access, and model the authorizing practice we believe in.
In response, we built structured pre-intervention conversations into the process, strengthened cross-team relationships, and tailored pacing, communication, and support plans to each school’s reality. Strong relationships and consistent communication became essential components of every tiered support. The impact was clear: schools experienced more relevant, responsive assistance, and we saw improved engagement, clearer problem-solving partnerships, and more durable progress.
This lesson reinforced others along the way: that clarity matters more than volume in our resources, that standardized tools need training and feedback loops to drive adoption, and that early-warning signals require careful refinement to distinguish real risk from normal variation.
Looking Ahead
This plan asks CSI to be all of what this moment requires: rigorous and responsive, ambitious and humble, consistent and adaptive. It asks us to keep students at the center of every decision — in every authorization conversation, every support interaction, every policy position, and every internal investment.
We are grateful for the partners who helped shape this plan and are energized by the work ahead!
