Georgia Code
Article 31 - Charter Schools Act of 1998
§ 20-2-2062. Definitions

As used in this article, the term:
(1.1) “Charter attendance zone” means all or any portion of the local school system in which the charter school is located and may include all or any portion of other local school systems if the charter school is jointly authorized pursuant to subsection (c) of Code Section 20-2-2063.
(3.1) “Charter school governing board” or “governing board” means the governing board of the nonprofit organization that is involved in school-level governance of the local charter school and that is subject to the training requirements provided for in Code Section 20-2-2072.
(3.2) “Charter system” means a local school system that is operating under the terms of a charter pursuant to Code Section 20-2-2063.2.
(4.1) “Educationally disadvantaged students”means all or a subset of the following: students who are economically disadvantaged, students with disabilities, limited English proficient students, neglected or delinquent students, and homeless students, as each such subset is defined by the State Board of Education in accordance with federal education guidelines and regulations.
(5.1) “Governing council” means a school level council of parents, teachers, administrators, and others who are involved in school level governance within a charter system.
(5.2) “High school cluster” means a high school and all of the middle and elementary schools which contain students who matriculate to such high school. The schools in a high school cluster may include charter schools, local schools, or a combination of both.
(12.1) “School level governance” means decision-making authority in personnel decisions, financial decisions, curriculum and instruction, resource allocation, establishing and monitoring the achievement of school improvement goals, and school operations.
History. Code 1981, § 20-2-2062 , enacted by Ga. L. 1998, p. 1080, § 3; Ga. L. 2001, p. 148, § 22; Ga. L. 2002, p. 388, § 1; Ga. L. 2005, p. 798, §§ 7, 8/SB 35; Ga. L. 2007, p. 185, § 3/SB 39; Ga. L. 2013, p. 1061, § 24/HB 283; Ga. L. 2014, p. 866, § 20/SB 340; Ga. L. 2015, p. 103, § 3-1/HB 372; Ga. L. 2022, p. 302, § 1/HB 1215.
The 2014 amendment, effective April 29, 2014, part of an Act to revise, modernize, and correct the Code, substituted “Code Section 20-2-2063.2” for “Code Section 20-2-2063.1” at the end of paragraph (3.1).
The 2015 amendment, effective July 1, 2015, added paragraph (4.1).
The 2022 amendment, effective July 1, 2022, rewrote paragraph (3), which read: “‘Charter school’ means a public school that is operating under the terms of a charter.”; added paragraph (3.1) and redesignated former paragraph (3.1) as paragraph (3.2); substituted “authorized by a local board and the state board to operate under the terms of a charter approved by the charter petitioner, the local board, and the state board” for “operating under the terms of a charter between the charter petitioner and the local board” in paragraph (7); and substituted “authorized by the state board to operate” for “operating” in paragraph (16).
Editor’s notes.
Ga. L. 2007, p. 185, § 1/SB 39, not codified by the General Assembly, provides: “This Act shall be known and may be cited as the ‘Charter Systems Act.’”
Ga. L. 2007, p. 185, § 2/SB 39, not codified by the General Assembly, provides: “The General Assembly finds that schools and school systems should be given high flexibility to tailor their educational programs to meet the unique needs of their communities. In furtherance of this, schools and school systems should be encouraged to use innovative educational programs including local management of schools and should be provided resources to help design and implement innovative programs. The General Assembly further finds that schools and school systems shall be held accountable for student achievement.”
Law reviews.
For annual survey on local government law, see 71 Mercer L. Rev. 189 (2019).
For note on 2007 amendment of this Code section, see 24 Ga. St. U.L. Rev. 121 (2007).