Accounting, Audit, Tax, and Advisory for Charter Schools

AAFCPAs delivers in-depth financial expertise, strategic guidance, and compliance solutions to charter schools and Charter Management Organizations (CMOs) nationwide. We understand the unique challenges you face—balancing educational excellence with fiscal accountability, managing public funding, and navigating evolving regulations. Our support empowers business office leaders to streamline operations, optimize resources, and focus on what matters most: delivering exceptional outcomes for students.

We partner with diverse charter schools and CMOs nationwide to uphold fiduciary responsibilities tied to critical funding sources, ensuring transparency, accountability, and sustainability in your mission to provide high-quality education and opportunities for all learners.

Depth of Solutions and Expertise

AAFCPAs has a dedicated charter school team, with deep expertise providing financial and operational advice in the industry. In addition, we are backed by a U.S. Top 100 firm of 350+ multi-disciplinary professionals including CPAs, Consulting Tax Attorneys, Fractional CFOs & Controllers, Data Analysts, Business Process, and IT Security Professionals, as well as Investment Advisors. Our bench is deep with hands-on expertise serving charter schools and CMOs.

Compliance

Charter schools and CMOs operate in a highly regulated environment where compliance is critical to your success. Our team offers deep financial accounting expertise including deep knowledge of GASB & FASB standards and delivers meticulous financial statement audits and employee benefit plan audits that provide clarity, accuracy, and confidence for your stakeholders. Whether you’re navigating complex state reporting requirements, seeking to maintain funding eligibility, or implementing new Accounting Standards Updates (ASUs), we ensure you remain compliant while minimizing disruption to your operations.

We also provide specialized support to maximize financial opportunities and resources, including debt and tax credits-based financing for facilities and growth initiatives. These include tax exempt bonds, new markets tax credits, federal and state Historic Rehabilitation tax credits. We also have experience with Qualified Zone Academy Bonds (QZAB) and Qualified School Construction Bonds (QSCB) financing obligations. If you need additional support, our outsourced accounting and fractional CFO solutions deliver experienced leadership to help you manage ongoing reporting, state filings, and compliance requirements with ease. With AAFCPAs, you can trust that your financial foundation is strong, transparent, and positioned to support your mission.

Operational Efficiency

At AAFCPAs, your business offices are also tasked with running lean, efficient operations while meeting rigorous accountability standards. Our outsourced accounting and fractional CFO solutions provide the expertise and support charter schools need to manage day-to-day finances, improve reporting accuracy, and maintain compliance—without overextending internal resources. Whether you require interim or fractional leadership or ongoing transactional support, we ensure your financial operations are reliable, transparent, and aligned with your mission.

We also help you streamline workflows and reduce manual tasks through business process assessments and robotic process automation (RPA). By evaluating your systems and processes, we identify opportunities to improve efficiency, eliminate bottlenecks, and refocus your team on high-value initiatives. When it’s time to enhance your technology, our specialists guide you through system selection and implementation, ensuring you adopt solutions that meet your needs and integrate seamlessly with your operations. With AAFCPAs, you gain a trusted partner dedicated to helping you achieve operational excellence so you can focus on delivering exceptional educational outcomes.

Strategic Decision-Making

At AAFCPAs, we recognize that charter school and CMO leaders face complex decisions that impact your students, staff, and communities. Our strategic decision-making solutions provide the clarity and insights you need to confidently guide your schools forward. With robust data analytics, we transform financial and operational data into actionable intelligence, helping you identify opportunities to optimize performance and resources. Our financial forecasts and modeling ensure you can plan for long-term sustainability, respond to shifting enrollment trends, and align budgets with your mission-driven goals.

We also provide tailored market analysis to uncover trends that inform growth, new school development, or regional expansion strategies. If your organization is exploring mergers, collaborations, or shared services, AAFCPAs delivers proven guidance to evaluate opportunities, mitigate risk, and maximize the benefit for your stakeholders. From investment management strategies that strengthen reserves to board and governance consulting that enhances leadership effectiveness, our solutions empower you to make confident, forward-thinking decisions in an ever-changing education landscape.

Risk Management

Charter schools and Charter Management Organizations (CMOs) face unique risks that can impact your operations and reputation. Our IT & Cybersecurity solutions provide the protection you need to safeguard sensitive student and financial data from ever-evolving threats. We help you assess vulnerabilities, implement robust defenses, and develop a proactive approach to cybersecurity. In addition, our business continuity planning ensures that your operations can withstand unexpected disruptions, keeping your schools running smoothly even in the face of emergencies or unforeseen events.

We also focus on strengthening your internal controls to minimize the risk of fraud and ensure compliance with financial regulations. Our fraud prevention strategies help you detect and prevent fraudulent activities before they cause damage, while our internal controls assessments provide a detailed review of your current processes and systems to identify gaps and recommend improvements. Lastly, we offer expert board and governance consulting to help you build strong, effective leadership and decision-making frameworks that mitigate risk and guide your organization toward long-term success.