What is a Charter School?

The District of Columbia's public charter schools are independently operated, non-sectarian public schools open to all DC residents, regardless of their neighborhood, socioeconomic status, academic achievement, or ethnicity. There are no admission tests or tuition fees. Parents and students choose to attend a particular charter school because of its unique focus, curriculum, structure, size, environment or other features that meet the needs of those families. Enrollment is on a space-available basis. When a charter school has reached its maximum enrollment, a waiting list is developed, and a lottery system is used as spaces become available. Public charter schools receive public funds based on the number of students they enroll, as do all District of Columbia public schools.

The idea behind public charter schools is that parents, given a variety of public schools to choose from, will pick the schools they think best meet the academic needs of their children. This will create competition for students among public schools - charter and traditional - that will bring across-the-board improvements in public education. Public charter schools are organized as non-profit corporations and are freed from most of the rules that burden traditional public schools. In exchange for this freedom from central control, public charter schools are held accountable for improved student achievement. How a public charter school gets its students to learn is up to the school's board of trustees; whether student achievement has been sufficient is monitored by each school's chartering authority.

Thirty-six states and the District of Columbia have passed public charter school laws, often in response to the demands of parents. Public charter schools are especially popular with urban parents, many of whose children have long been denied quality education. In the District of Columbia, roughly 31 percent of all public school children now attend public charter schools.

KIPP DC thanks Friends of Choice in Urban Schools (www.focusdc.org) and the DC Public Charter School Board (www.dcpubliccharter.com) for this explanation of public charter schools.