VI. Pop-In Visit

All reviews, including first year reviews, will include a pop in visit. All schools in the Board's portfolio should be prepared for a pop-in by Board staff at any time, regardless of whether they are scheduled for a review in a given year. The pop-in visit may be conducted any time during the school year, before or after the Virtual Review call.

Pop-in visits will focus on reviews of safety documentation (such as fingerprinting and occupancy), as well as adherence to, and implementation of, a charter holder’s program of instruction. At a pop-in visit, Board staff will conduct classroom observations, review key compliance documentation, and meet with school administration (if available) for a quick conversation. The pop-in visit should be no more than three hours as the amount of time needed from charter or school staff will be limited.


The focus of a pop-in goes beyond compliance. Pop-ins are intended to familiarize Board staff with schools, build relationships with charter and school leaders, and to see the hard and good work schools do each and every day.

Preparing for a Pop-In

  1. Ensure that the individuals that cover your front desk know what to do when Board staff arrives. If this job is handled by many people, or covered during lunches or breaks, spend a few minutes ensuring that everyone knows what the protocol will be, specifically, where documentation to be provided to Board staff is stored.

  2. Ensure that a documentation is at the desk and ready for Board staff at any time. This should include:

  • A map of the school building, labeled with grade levels and, preferably, teacher names. This will help staff find classrooms to conduct observations and confirm individuals providing instruction to students.

  • Instructional schedules for all classes. This allows Board staff to know which classes to visit at which times, specifically to view reading or math instruction, or instructional blocks key to the school's program of instruction.

  • A complete staff list, identifying instructional and non-instructional staff, and all paid staff members, including maintenance staff, aides, and contractors. This will be used to understand who is (and should be) on campus, and to check fingerprint information.

  • Occupancy Documentation for all buildings at the school.

Ensure that the front desk staff has easy access to Experience and Education information for all instructional staff, including how parents are notified that it is available, and the Fingerprint information for all staff. This could be in a drive ready to be downloaded to a flash drive, or in paper form in binders housed in an office or at the desk. Either way, it should be accessible and able to be provided to Board staff as quickly as possible. As a reminder, these are items that should always be up to date and available for review to maintain compliance with statutory requirements. After the pop-in visit, a charter holder will have 48 hours to provide any missing documentation to Board staff.

Board staff has created a sample agenda and preparation checklist for the pop-in visit. This helpful guidance can be found on the Reviews tab of the Board's website under the "Pop-ins" heading.