Mississippi charter authorizer urges cautious expansion, clearer rules for CMOs and stronger accountability

Lisa Karmacharya, executive director of the Mississippi Charter School Authorizer Board, told the Senate Education Committee the authorizer wants to "authorize high quality charter schools, particularly those ... designed to serve underserved students" while guarding against rapid, low-quality growth. "The application is rigorous as it should be," she told senators, describing a multi-stage review process that begins with letters of intent and proceeds through threshold and independent reviews and a capacity interview.

Karmacharya said Mississippi currently has 10 operating charter schools in five districts and has expanded from under 500 to more than 4,200 students. She said the state's 2013 charter law intentionally limits openings to D and F districts — a design that focuses charters on higher-need communities but also restricts where charters can start. "That places significant restrictions on where charter school expansion... and limits access to public options for families," she said.

Why expand beyond those districts? Karmacharya said the authorizer's three policy requests for the legislature are clear: allow expansion into additional districts with parameters to preserve quality; clarify statutory definitions — in particular between charter management organizations (CMOs) and educational service providers; and strengthen accountability so the authorizer can act when schools demonstrate persistent problems.

Committee members pushed back on the performance record. Several senators noted that, in 2025, most charter schools carried C, D or F ratings in the state's accountability system and asked whether expansion could be justified while several existing charters underperform. Karmacharya responded that national research shows that while some charter models perform strongly, others do not; a strong authorizer must both screen rigorously up front and hold schools to high standards across academics, finance and organizational health. "We have a moral, ethical, fiduciary responsibility to make sure our schools are spending taxpayer dollars in the right way," she said.

Karmacharya also flagged a practical barrier: state law enables applicants to apply in A, B or C districts, but local school boards often do not put charter applications on their agendas — a step she said can effectively block expansion in communities where families might benefit.

What's next: Karmacharya asked the committee to consider statutory changes that would clarify the authorizer's authorities, tighten definitions to improve oversight of CMOs (and track where Mississippi public dollars go), and permit more nimble action when indicators of distress appear during a charter's five-year contract.

The committee did not take immediate legislative action; senators asked staff to continue follow-up, and the authorizer offered to share additional cost and stakeholder-survey data requested during the hearing.