Charter Schools

Historical Background

Charter schools have been a prominent item on the U.S. educational reform agenda since Minnesota passed the first charter school law in 1991. At the beginning of the 2005–2006 school year, forty states and the District of Columbia had charter school laws. In 2003–2004 approximately 3,000 charter schools were in operation in thirty-nine of these areas; just over 789,000 students, or 1.6 percent of all public school students nationwide were enrolled in charter schools, although enrollment varied considerably across states.

For example, the District of Columbia had the highest percentage of students enrolled in charter schools (16.6 percent) followed by Arizona (8 percent) and Delaware (5.3 percent). With only one school [Page 117]enrolling 196 students, which amounted to a fraction of its 869,113 public school students, Maryland had the lowest enrollment of students in charter schools. Not surprisingly, as the state with most public school students, California had the highest share of the total charter school students in 2003–2004 (20.2 percent), followed by Arizona (10.4 percent) and Michigan (9.1 percent).

Legal and Policy Issues

Charter school laws are not only constantly evolving, but they also differ widely from state to state. This is illustrated by a comparison of a few aspects of the charter school legislation in effect as of May 2005 for the three states that enroll the greatest number of charter school students—California, Michigan, and Arizona. There are similarities and differences across the three states in (a) the types of public agency empowered to authorize charter schools, (b) the certification requirements for charter school teachers, and (c) provisions allowing private schools to convert to charter school status.

In California, most charters are granted by local school districts, although county boards of education and the state board of education can also approve charter schools if a charter is denied by a local school district or if the school provides countywide or statewide services that are not provided by local school districts. In Michigan, charter schools are called Public School Academies (PSAs) and can be authorized by local school boards and the governing boards of community colleges and public universities. In Arizona, charters can be granted by school districts, the state board of education, and the Arizona State Board for Charter Schools, the state agency charged with overseeing charter schools.

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