I was recently working with some buyers with young children and the topic of Charter Schools came up. I felt I needed to educate myself a little more on the subject and have done some general research, which I gladly share with you. Charter Schools are a great option in the public school system and are becoming increasingly popular choices for many families.
Charter schools are public schools. They are accountable to a state or local school board and their sponsors for both academic results (such as FCAT in Florida and the Federal requirements under No Child Left Behind) as well as fiscal practices.
Charter schools have a certain amount of freedom from bureaucracies that operate traditional public schools. They have the independence and autonomy to make their own decisions.
Charter schools expand the capacity of the public school system giving both students and teachers more learning and teaching opportunities.
Charter schools must be open to any student covered in an inter-district agreement or residing in the school district in which the charter school is located. If the charter school receives more applications than they can accommodate the selection of students is random. So everybody has the same chance to be chosen.
Click on the link below for an updated list of Dade County charter schools ranging from elementary to high school level.
http://charterschools.dadeschools.net/cs_09_10/CS_09_10-Rev_12_1_09.pdf