What is a charter school?

Charter schools are public schools that offer parents the opportunity to pick a school that best fits the needs of their child. There is never a cost to attend and they are open to all students regardless of their school zoning.

Charter schools make decisions close to the students, empowering teachers to provide innovative, high-quality instruction and giving them the autonomy to design a classroom that fits their students’ needs.

Charter schools are led by principals who have the flexibility to create a school culture that best fits the needs and demands of their surrounding community.

Charter schools are obligated to meet performance standards and are held accountable by their communities and authorizers.

• Public schools are funded solely by the government while charter schools are government-funded, but also funded by various sponsors.
• Charter schools are subject to the same government regulations as public schools, but they are also more autonomous.
• Charters are not required to accept students simply based on where they live as public schools do.
• Charter schools keep their funding based on how the students perform on assessment tests, unlike public schools who have government-funding regardless of performance results.
• Public schools are established by the government, whereas Charter schools are founded and maintained by individuals and private organizations.

Because charter schools are started by individual people, every single one has a unique approach to their design and core values. AZLS, for instance, is offering full immersion program both in French and Spanish.

Because performance is rewarded with funding, charter schools are some of the top-performing schools in the nation.
Charter schools raise the bar for education standards by not using a “one-size fits all” curriculum standard.
Children who graduate from a Charter School have a higher percentage of being accepted into a college or university.

No, charter schools are independently-operated public schools that sit outside the control of school districts. Charter schools provide a high-quality public education option to all students choosing to attend them, upholding high standards that meet and often exceed what is required by the district and state.

No. Charter schools are public schools. They are unique public schools that are independently operated. Although charter schools sit outside the control of the local school district, they are still part of the public education ecosystem, rather than entities that divert funding from this ecosystem.

Public schools—both district and charter—have three primary sources of funding: federal, state, and local. The relative amount of funding from each of these three sources differs between charter schools and district schools. While charter schools receive less total funding than district schools, they usually receive a higher proportion of their funding from states and a lower proportion from local sources.

Charter schools do not have admission requirements or entrance exams. Most charter schools have an enrollment period when parents can submit applications for the school. If there are more applications submitted than seats available, they will hold a randomized blind lottery to determine which students are admitted.

There are exceptional public schools of both types–district and charter. Charter schools provide a high-quality education option to public school students whose families are looking for something different, while upholding high standards that meet and often exceed district or state requirements.