Start a New School

New Charter School Application Process and Timeline

Below is the timeline for the new school application process:

Key Process Steps                                                                                                                                                            Month

Call for Application Released October 2020
Letter of Intent Due November 3, 2020
Charter Application Due February 1, 2021
Charter Institute Capacity Meetings with applicants TBD
Charter Institute Board Meeting Schedule Click Here

Letter of Intent (LOI)

Step 1: Interested applicants planning to open new charter school in the 2022-2023 school year must submit the LOI to Charter Institute at Erskine by November 3, 2020. Click here to download Letter of Intent

Step 2: Completed Letter of Intent must be submitted electronically to the following.

Step 3: The Institute will confirm the receipt of your LOI by an email to the Planning Meeting Chair. The chair for the planning meeting will be the point of contact for any further communications from the Institute.

Charter Application

Step 1: Electronic Copy

Completed electronic copy of the charter application must be submitted to the South Carolina Department of Education and Charter Institute at Erskine by February 1, 2021 at 5:00 p.m. Applications submitted after 5:00 p.m., February 1, 2021 will not be accepted.

Documents required to complete the Charter Application can be found here.

Completed Charter Applications must be submitted electronically to the following:

  • SC Department of Education
    Email the completed Charter Application to [email protected]
  • Charter Institute at Erskine
    Load the completed Charter Application to a Google Drive or Dropbox in a neatly organized format that includes a table of contents. Email the link to [email protected].
    The Institute will confirm the receipt of your submission.

Step 2: Hard Copy

Completed hard copy of the charter application can be submitted to Charter Institute at Erskine to the mailing address below:
1201 Main St, Suite 300, Columbia, SC 29201.

For further information, please contact us at authorizationcoord@erskinecharters.org.