STATE PARTNER
California Charter Authorizing Professionals (CCAP)
ABOUT US
California Charter Authorizing Professionals (CCAP)
CCAP is comprised of a group of educational leaders with a vision to provide authentic support and resources to those who do the critical work of professional charter school authorizing in California.
The California Charter Authorizing Professionals (CCAP, pronounced “SEA cap”) is a nonprofit association founded in 2013 by a group of experienced charter school authorizing staff members from school districts and county offices of education around California, who came together to strengthen charter school authorizing practices.
Mission: to advance quality public education for all students by providing professionals with the support, resources, and collective voice necessary to foster high-performing, fiscally sound, autonomous, and accountable charter schools.
CCAP EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Tom Hutton
Tom Hutton became CCAP’s executive director in August of 2020. His professional background includes work on behalf of school districts, authorizers, and charter schools. Tom is also a founding member of the NN4DA Governing Council.
Tom is a former school attorney who served in-house with the National School Boards Association and its Council of School Attorneys and later in private practice in Seattle. As a law student, he was a co-founder of Thurgood Marshall Academy Public Charter School, a law-themed high school in the District of Columbia. More recently, Tom served as the first executive director of the Hawaii State Public Charter School Commission, a statewide authorizing agency, and then as an independent consultant to charter authorizers nationally.
Tom also has served on the governing board of Wai‘alae Elementary Public Charter School in Honolulu and has been both a participant and a coach in the Leadership Program of the National Association of Charter School Authorizers (NACSA).
During his career, Tom has been a frequent speaker, writer, and news media source, as well as a sometime adjunct professor of education law, most recently at Indiana University Bloomington. Additionally, he recently served for almost four years as the Interim Executive Director of the Education Law Association, a professional association of professors, attorneys, administrators, students, teachers, and others interested in the intersection of the law with all sectors and levels of our education system.
Tom was educated in public schools in New Hampshire, Wisconsin, and Colorado. He attended Connecticut College, holds a graduate certificate in public administration from the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, and earned his J.D. from the Georgetown University Law Center.
CURRENT TRAINING
2026 Trailer Bill Implementation
The 2026 Education Omnibus Trailer Bill (AB 126) includes some of the most significant changes to California’s charter school oversight framework in years.
Some provisions require immediate attention, while others will be implemented over time. Authorizers need to understand not only what the law says, but also what it means for day-to-day authorizing and oversight practices.
CCAP is working with authorizers, state partners, county offices, and other stakeholders to provide practical implementation support as the new requirements take effect.
CCAP is offering local trainings throughout California to help authorizers understand the new requirements and prepare for implementation. These trainings are presented jointly with the Charter Authorizers Support Initiative (CASI). Sessions are designed primarily for school district and county office charter authorizing staff and governing board members. Other charter-sector partners may also be welcome depending on the training location. Whether you are new to charter authorizing or an experienced authorizer, these sessions will connect the new statutory requirements to practical oversight responsibilities.
CCAP Partners in California
California collaborates with a wide range of organizations to support and strengthen charter authorizing, including the following groups.
STRENTHENING AUTHORIZING THROUGH COLLABORATION
Join the National Network for District Authorizing
Be a part of a growing community of state partners, district authorizers, and education leaders working together for stronger school and brighter futures.