Minnesota
passed the nation's first charter school law in 1991, and over the
years 40 other states and the District of Columbia have approved
similar legislation. In Minnesota alone, approximately 16,000 students
are enrolled in charters.
Public schools that operate
independently of traditional school districts, charters are managed by
boards of directors elected by teachers and the parents of children
enrolled. Unless a Minnesota charter school has a waiver, over half of
its board members are required to be teachers who work within the
school.
Charter schools must be nonsectarian, and they
may not administer admissions tests or charge tuition. Like other
public schools, charters are expected to meet all state and federal
health and safety guidelines. In Minnesota, students who attend charter
schools are also required to fulfill state requirements for testing and
completion of credits for graduation.
Funding
for charter schools is based on the average state allocation per pupil.
In cases where the state provides extra money for students from
low-income families or for students with disabilities, those funds also
follow enrolled students.
All charter schools share two
fundamental likenesses. First, they are schools of choice. Students
attend charter schools because they choose to, and teachers work in
them because they want to. Second, all charters schools are accountable
for the goals they have outlined to the state. If boards of directors
do not operate in fiscally responsible ways, or if students fail to
meet academic standards, charter schools can be closed.
Adapted, with permission, from Schools and Communities Working Together (2001) by the Center for School Change.
