2015 Request for Proposals Released

The SUNY Charter Schools Institute (“Institute”) announces the release of the 2015 SUNY Request for Proposals (“RFP”) to open new charter schools in New York State, including New York City.  The New York Charter Schools Act of 1998 (as amended, the “Act”) requires New York’s charter authorizers to solicit applications to establish new charter schools by way of a Request for Proposals process. The statute also mandates that SUNY issue a draft RFP for public comments prior to issuing the RFP. The Response to Public Comments is available here. All comments were reviewed by Institute staff, and changes were made to the RFP based on the feedback received.

The Institute is holding two rounds for available responses to this RFP: one commencing on July 10, 2015 and one commencing on December 11, 2015. 

Timelines for each round are outlined in the RFP; following are some key dates :                                             

For the cycle commencing on July 10, 2015:

• Required Letter of Intent Due: July 10, 2015 by 12:00 p.m. EST
• Final Proposal Due: July 29, 2015 by 12:00 p.m. EST
• Target School Opening Date: Fall 2016 or 2017
• The Institute anticipates presenting any new charter recommendations that may result from the July 2015 cycle to the SUNY Board of Trustees’ Charter Schools Committee in October 2015.

For the cycle commencing on December 11, 2015, key dates include:

• Required Letter of Intent Due: December 11, 2015 by 12:00 p.m.  EST
• Final Proposal Due: January 22, 2016 by 12:00 p.m. EST
• Target School Opening Date: Fall 2017