Senate Bill 1882 Texas Partnerships Applications, Cycles 8 and 9
| Date: | May 30, 2024 |
|---|---|
| Subject: | Senate Bill 1882 Texas Partnerships Applications, Cycle 8 and 9 |
| Category: | SB 1882 Partnerships |
| Next Steps: | Share with district and campus administrators |
Overview
Senate Bill (SB) 1882, passed by the 85th Legislature in 2017, provides an opportunity for school districts to access potential financial and/or accountability benefits by entering into a partnership with a non-profit, institution of higher education or another governmental entity to manage a district campus or set of campuses to promote innovation and dramatically improve student outcomes. These Texas Partnerships offer districts the opportunity to expand the diversity of school options, bring in targeted expertise for innovation and turnaround support and empower school leaders and partners with greater autonomy. Most importantly, effective partnerships give more students access to great schools.
This correspondence outlines required actions and application due dates for Texas Partnerships (SB 1882) benefits that begin in the 2025-2026 school year (Cycle 8) and the 2026-2027 school year (Cycle 9).
Deadline for Submission for Texas Partnerships Benefits That Begin in 2025-2026
There are two priority deadlines and a final deadline for districts to submit their Texas Partnerships Benefits Application Package to the Texas Education Agency (TEA) for partnerships beginning operation in school year (SY) 2025-2026.
The final deadline to submit an application package is 5:00 p.m. (Central Time) on Monday, March 31, 2025.
| Deadline and Description | Date |
|---|---|
|
Deadline for mandatory submission of non-binding Letter of Intent Districts submit the Letter of Intent by completing this online form. The deadline to submit the Letter of Intent is the same for all application due dates. TEA will not accept a Texas Partnerships Benefits Application Package from a district unless the district has completed a Letter of Intent by the required deadline. |
Friday, December 6, 2024, at 5 p.m. (Central Time) |
|
Texas Partnerships Benefits Application Package Priority Deadline 1 Districts must submit by this date for the campus/operator to be eligible to apply for a Charter School Program Start-Up Grant. |
Monday, December 16, 2024, at 5 p.m. (Central Time) |
|
Texas Partnerships Benefits Application Package Priority Deadline 2 Districts that submit by this date do not have to submit a Pre-Opening Checklist and Implementation Plan. |
Friday, January 31, 2025, at 5 p.m. (Central Time) |
|
Texas Partnerships Benefits Application Final Deadline Districts that submit in February or March must include a Pre-Opening Checklist and Implementation Plan with their application. |
Monday, March 31, 2025, at 5 p.m. (Central Time) |
Required Actions for Benefits Eligibility (2025-2026)
To be eligible to receive Texas Partnership benefits, districts must:
- Submit a non-binding Letter of Intent;
- Attend mandatory webinars;
- Adopt and implement the TEA model charter authorizing policy or a similar policy approved by TEA;
- Adopt and implement the TEA model campus charter application or a similar application and scoring rubric approved by TEA; and
- Submit the application for benefits no later than March 31, 2025.
Each of these requirements are detailed in the sections below.
Mandatory Letter of Intent (2025-2026)
Districts that are considering pursuing a Texas Partnership that begins in SY 2025-2026 are required to submit a non-binding Letter of Intent by Friday, December 6, 2024, at 5:00 p.m. (Central Time).
Districts submit the Letter of Intent by completing this online form. The deadline to submit the Letter of Intent is the same for all application due dates. TEA will not accept a Texas Partnerships Benefits Application Package from a district unless the district has completed a Letter of Intent by the required deadline.
Local Authorizing Policy and Local Campus Application Approval (2025-2026)
Districts that are not using the TEA model charter authorizing policy, TEA model campus charter application or TEA model scoring rubric must have these locally developed items approved prior to submitting the application for Texas Partnership benefits or must notify TEA that the district has adopted and implemented the TEA models. These materials are submitted via this online form and are due Friday, December 6, 2024, at 5:00 p.m. (Central Time) or no later than 5 working days prior to local campus application release (whichever date is sooner). We encourage districts to submit locally developed materials as early as possible since these resources are used to develop partnerships. Model documents and eligibility requirements for district-created documents can be found at https://txpartnerships.org/tools.
Mandatory Webinars for Districts and Proposed Operating Partners (2025-2026)
Districts that intend to submit a Texas Partnerships Benefits Application Package and their proposed or potential operating partners must each attend mandatory training webinars.
TEA will not accept a Texas Partnerships Benefits Application Package from a district unless the district has attended the following webinars:
- Texas Partnerships Overview (90 minutes)
- Submitting a Successful Texas Partnerships Application (60 minutes)
- Texas Partnerships Performance Contracts (60 minutes)
Required attendees from the district are the superintendent or a cabinet member.
TEA will not accept a Texas Partnerships Benefits Application Package from a district unless its proposed or potential operating partner has attended the following webinars:
- Texas Partnerships Overview (90 minutes)
- Texas Partnerships Performance Contracts (60 minutes)
A required attendee from the proposed or potential operating partner is a board member or a full-time staff employee of the partner organization.
The webinar date and time options, all to take place via Zoom and all registration links can be found on the Texas Partnerships website.
Summary of Important Dates Related to Texas Partnerships for Benefits that Begin in 2025-2026
| Required Activities | Date |
|---|---|
| District and Proposed Partners Attend Required Webinars | Late Summer-Early Fall 2024 (time and date options can be found on the Texas Partnerships website) |
| District submits Mandatory Letter of Intent | No later than Friday, December 6, 2024, at 5 p.m. (Central Time) |
| District submits locally developed charter authorizing policy, local campus partner application and/or local application scoring rubric OR notifies TEA that the district has adopted TEA models | No later than Friday, December 6, 2024, at 5 p.m. (Central Time) or no later than 5 working days prior to local campus application release (whichever date is earlier) |
| Texas Partnership Benefits Application Package due |
|
Deadline for Submission for Texas Partnerships Benefits that Begin in 2026-2027
There are two priority deadlines and a final deadline for districts to submit their Texas Partnerships Benefits Application Package to the Texas Education Agency (TEA) for partnerships beginning operation in school year (SY) 2026-2027.
The final deadline to submit an application package is 5:00 p.m. (Central Time) on Tuesday, March 31, 2026.
| Deadline and Description | Date |
|---|---|
|
Deadline for mandatory submission of non-binding Letter of Intent Districts submit the Letter of Intent by completing this online form. The deadline to submit the Letter of Intent is the same for all application due dates. TEA will not accept a Texas Partnerships Benefits Application Package from a district unless the district has completed a Letter of Intent by the required deadline. |
Friday, December 5, 2025, at 5:00 p.m. (Central Time) |
|
Texas Partnerships Benefits Application Package Priority Deadline 1 Districts must submit by this date for the campus/operator to be eligible to apply for a Charter School Program Start-Up Grant. |
Monday, December 15, 2025, at 5:00 p.m. (Central Time) |
|
Texas Partnerships Benefits Application Package Priority Deadline 2 Districts that submit by this date do not have to submit a Pre-Opening Checklist and Implementation Plan. |
Friday, January 30, 2026, at 5:00 p.m. (Central Time) |
|
Texas Partnerships Benefits Application Final Deadline Districts that submit in February or March must include a Pre-Opening Checklist and Implementation Plan with their application. |
Tuesday, March 31, 2026, at 5:00 p.m. (Central Time) |
Required Actions for Benefits Eligibility (2026-2027)
To be eligible to receive Texas Partnership benefits, districts must:
- Submit a non-binding Letter of Intent;
- Attend mandatory webinars;
- Adopt and implement the TEA model charter authorizing policy or a similar policy approved by TEA;
- Adopt and implement the TEA model campus charter application or a similar application and scoring rubric approved by TEA; and
- Submit the application for benefits no later than March 31, 2026.
Each of these requirements are detailed in the sections below.
Mandatory Letter of Intent (2026-2027)
Districts that are considering pursuing a Texas Partnership that begins in SY 2026-2027 are required to submit a non-binding Letter of Intent by Friday, December 5, 2025, at 5:00 p.m. (Central Time).
Districts submit the Letter of Intent by completing this online form. The deadline to submit the Letter of Intent is the same for all application due dates. TEA will not accept a Texas Partnerships Benefits Application Package from a district unless the district has completed a Letter of Intent by the required deadline.
Local Authorizing Policy and Local Campus Application Approval (2026-2027)
Districts that are not using the TEA model charter authorizing policy, TEA model campus charter application, or TEA model scoring rubric must have these locally developed items approved prior to submitting the application for Texas Partnership benefits or must notify TEA that the district has adopted and implemented the TEA models. These materials are submitted via this online form and are due Friday, December 5, 2025, at 5:00 p.m. (Central Time) or no later than 5 working days prior to local campus application release (whichever date is sooner). We encourage districts to submit locally developed materials as early as possible since these resources are used to develop partnerships. Model documents and eligibility requirements for district-created documents can be found at https://txpartnerships.org/tools/.
Mandatory Webinars for Districts and Proposed Operating Partners (2026-2027)
Districts that intend to submit a Texas Partnerships Benefits Application Package and their proposed or potential operating partners must each attend mandatory training webinars.
TEA will not accept a Texas Partnerships Benefits Application Package from a district unless the district has attended the following webinars:
- Texas Partnerships Overview (90 minutes)
- Submitting a Successful Texas Partnerships Application (60 minutes)
- Texas Partnerships Performance Contracts (60 minutes)
Required attendees from the district are the superintendent or a cabinet member.
TEA will not accept a Texas Partnerships Benefits Application Package from a district unless its proposed or potential operating partner has attended the following webinars:
- Texas Partnerships Overview (90 minutes)
- Texas Partnerships Performance Contracts (60 minutes)
A required attendee from the proposed or potential operating partner is a board member or a full-time staff employee of the partner organization.
The webinar date and time options, all to take place via Zoom, and all registration links can be found on the Texas Partnerships website.
Summary of Important Dates Related to Texas Partnerships for benefits that begin in 2026-2027
| Required Activities | Date |
|---|---|
| District and Proposed Partners Attend Required Webinars | Late Summer-Early Fall 2025 (time and date options can be found on the Texas Partnerships website) |
| District submits Mandatory Letter of Intent | No later than Friday, December 5, 2025, at 5 p.m. (Central Time) |
| District submits locally developed charter authorizing policy, local campus partner application, and/or local application scoring rubric OR notifies TEA that the district has adopted TEA models | No later than Friday, December 5, 2025, at 5 p.m. (Central Time), or no later than 5 working days prior to local campus application release (whichever date is earlier) |
| Texas Partnership Benefits Application Package due |
|