Charter School Information

What is a Charter School?

A charter school is a tuition-free school of choice that is publicly funded but independently run. Charters are bound to the terms of a contract, or “charter,” that lays out a school’s mission, academic goals, fiscal guidelines, and accountability requirements. On the other side of a charter contract is an authorizer—that has the power to shut down charter schools that do not meet the terms of their contracts. Charter schools do not draw students from an assigned area; families choose to send their children to them. If demand for enrollment in a charter school exceeds space, students are usually picked by a random lottery.

Who runs a Charter School?

On a day-to-day, operational level, a charter school is run by a school leader or principal and overseen by an appointed board. Charter schools are ultimately overseen by an authorizer. The majority of charter schools in the country are single campus schools, but sometimes they are run by larger management organizations.

Where does the funding come from?

Charters receive state and local funds based on the number of students they enroll, as well as money from the federal government to provide special education services, just like traditional district schools. Charter schools—like district and private schools—can also raise additional funds through private donations that fund the expansion of charter schools in urban areas serving low-income students. Most charters are Non-Profit.

Public or private?

Charters are generally viewed under state laws as public schools whose students are required to take all the same assessments as those who attend traditional district schools.

Why choose a Charter School?

Charter schools are touted as a way to spur school and classroom innovations and to provide parents with more public-school choices. Charters frequently take alternative curricular approaches or emphasize particular fields of study, such as the arts or technology, or set out to serve special populations of students such as special education or at-risk students.

Parents may choose charter schools because of the strong, dedicated teachers, because the school's focus matches their child’s needs, or simply because their child was struggling in their assigned public school and needed to try something new. Charter schools can provide families with options in public education, allowing parents to take a more active role in their child’s education.

*Source: Education Week and the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools