Charter schools are independent public schools that operate under contracts, or charters, for a fixed period. They are authorized by entities such as state departments of education, county school boards, and local school districts; local districts are the most frequent authorizer. Charter schools are tuition free, nonsectarian, and open to all students on a first-come, first-served basis. They are required to use a lottery system if demand exceeds capacity.

Unlike traditional public schools, charter schools have flexibility over fiscal, operational, and curricular issues. With their increased autonomy, charter schools implement innovative practices that provide parents and students with diverse educational options.
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The first charter school law was passed in Minnesota in 1991. Since then, 40 states and the District of Columbia have passed charter school legislation.  As of September 2007, the Center for Education Reform estimates that 4,147 charter schools are operating in the country with an enrollment of 1.24 million students.

Charter public school students often outperform their district public school peers academically, particularly among poor and minority students, who most frequently fall behind in traditional settings. Charter schools serve a disproportionately high number of economically disadvantaged students. They have fewer safety issues and experience fewer behavior problems than do comparable traditional public schools, and they often have higher attendance and lower dropout rates. Additionally, parents cite smaller school and class sizes and increased curriculum options as reasons for favoring charter schools.

This is an excerpt from The NEXT American Opportunity. The full text can be downloaded as an Adobe PDF Document.