Between fall 2009 and fall 2019, overall public charter school enrollment increased from 1.6 million students to 3.4 million students and the number of public charter schools increased from approximately 5,000 to 7,500. During this period, the percentage of public school students who attended charter schools increased from 3 to 7 percent.
A public charter school is a publicly funded school that is typically governed by a group or organization under a legislative contract—a charter—with the state, the district, or another entity. The charter exempts the school from certain state or local rules and regulations. In return for flexibility and autonomy, the charter school must meet the accountability standards outlined in its charter. A school’s charter is reviewed periodically by the entity that granted it and can be revoked if the conditions of the charter are not met.1 Between school years 2009–10 and 2019–20, the number of public charter schools in the United States (defined in this indicator as the 50 states and the District of Columbia) increased from approximately 5,000 to 7,500. Meanwhile, the number of traditional public schools decreased from 93,900 to 90,900. Accordingly, the percentage of all public schools that were charter schools increased from 5 to 8 percent.
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1 Prekindergarten schools are defined as schools that offer grade prekindergarten only. Elementary schools are defined as schools that offer more of grades K–4 than higher grades.
2 Middle schools are defined as schools that offer more of grades 5–8 than higher or lower grades. Secondary/high schools are defined as schools that offer more of grades 9–12 than lower grades.
3 Other schools are defined as schools that offer all other combinations of grades, including K–12 schools. Ungraded schools are defined as schools that offer ungraded education only.
NOTE: Data in this figure represent the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Some data have been revised from previously published figures.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data (CCD), “Public Elementary/Secondary School Universe Survey,” 2009–10 through 2019–20. See Digest of Education Statistics 2021, table 216.20.
# Rounds to zero.
NOTE: U.S. average in this figure represents the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Categorizations are based on unrounded percentages.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data (CCD), “Public Elementary/Secondary School Universe Survey,” 2019–20. See Digest of Education Statistics 2021, table 216.90.
# Rounds to zero.
NOTE: Data in this figure represent the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Race categories exclude persons of Hispanic ethnicity. Although rounded numbers are displayed, the figures are based on unrounded data. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data (CCD), "Public Elementary/Secondary School Universe Survey," 2009–10 and 2019–20. See Digest of Education Statistics 2021, table 216.30.
NOTE: Data in this figure represent the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data (CCD), “Public Elementary/Secondary School Universe Survey,” 2009–10 and 2019–20. See Digest of Education Statistics 2021, table 216.30.
1 Rafa, A., Erwin, B., Kelly, B., and Wixom, M.A. (2020). 50-State Comparison: Charter School Policies. Denver, CO: Education Commission of the States. Retrieved December 7, 2021, from https://www.ecs.org/charter-school-policies/.
2 Prekindergarten schools are defined as schools that offer prekindergarten only. Elementary schools are defined as schools that offer more of grades K–4 than higher grades.
3 Middle schools are defined as schools that offer more of grades 5–8 than higher or lower grades. Secondary/high schools are defined as schools that offer more of grades 9–12 than lower grades.
4 Other schools are defined as schools that offer all other combinations of grades, including K–12 schools. Ungraded schools are defined as schools that offer ungraded education only.
5 Finnigan, K., Adelman, N., Anderson, L., Cotton, L., Donnelly, M.B., and Price, T. (2004). Evaluation of the Public Charter Schools Program: Final Report. U.S. Department of Education, Office of the Deputy Secretary. Washington, DC: Policy and Program Studies Service. Retrieved December 7, 2021, from https://www2.ed.gov/rschstat/eval/choice/pcsp-final/finalreport.pdf.
6 Rafa, A., Erwin, B., Kelly, B., and Wixom, M.A. (2020). 50-State Comparison: Charter School Policies. Denver, CO: Education Commission of the States. Retrieved December 7, 2021, from https://www.ecs.org/charter-school-policies/.
7 The percentage of public charter school students who were Asian increased from 3.8 percent in fall 2009 to 4.2 percent in fall 2019.
8 The percentage of public charter school students who were American Indian/Alaska Native decreased from 1.0 percent in fall 2009 to 0.8 percent in fall 2019.
9 Includes students whose National School Lunch Program eligibility has been determined through direct certification.
10 In fall 2019, some 9 percent of public charter school students and less than 1 percent of traditional public school students attended schools that did not participate in free or reduced-price lunch or had missing data.