State education staff presented data to the board showing Choice Charter School had a substantial drop in statewide assessment participation and a sharp increase in chronic absenteeism between 2024 and 2025. Department staff said Choice's 2025 chronic absenteeism rate was about 51.37% and noted the performance framework in the school's contract had an ambitious goal of fewer than 1% chronic absenteeism.

Choice Charter Director Dr. Cynthia Knight told the board the school serves students who arrive with significant disengagement and that comparing the school to other online programs can be "apples and oranges" because attendance and participation are logged differently across institutions. Knight described interventions the school has implemented this year—orientation programs, RISE (intervention) sessions, a mentoring program, weekly check-ins, and an MTSS approach—and said early signals show improvement in attendance for middle-school grades.

Knight also said technical and logistical barriers limited in-person assessment participation (students spread statewide; testing sites at libraries with limited hours) and expressed optimism that new law-authorized remote proctoring will substantially increase participation next year. The department emphasized that assessment participation is an ESEA requirement (95% federally for compliance) and told the board Choice will be subject to contract performance review and potential consequences at renewal.

Board members pressed for details on how attendance is recorded and whether performance framework targets should be revised, and department staff said they will continue monitoring results and work with the school to adjust contract performance targets where appropriate.

Ending: Choice Charter will be monitored closely; the department and the board will revisit performance framework targets and renewal decisions in the coming authorization cycle.