Frequently Asked Questions

Public Charter Schools

Do Charter Schools Take Money from Public Schools?

Charter schools ARE public schools. Just as when a family moves from one neighborhood to another, when a child leaves for a public charter school the money follows that child.

Do Charter Schools Work?


Yes. In addition to the positive pressure they put on the public school system as a whole, charter schools satisfy and serve their primary constituents (teachers, parents, and students) by providing exciting and viable new education in an inclusive, individual manner.

Harvard University Professor and Economist Caroline Hoxby recently released a study called "A Straightforward Comparison of Charter Schools and Regular Public Schools in the United States." The study compared 4th grade students in charter schools with 4th graders in the public schools that the charter students would go to absent the charter option and made several important conclusions:

Compared to students in the nearest regular public school, charter students are 4 percent more likely to be proficient in reading and 2 percent more likely to be proficient in math, on their state’s exam.

Compared to students in the nearest regular public school with a similar racial composition, charter students are 5 percent more likely to be proficient in reading and 3 percent more likely to be proficient in math.

In states where charters are well established, such as Arizona and California the advantage tends to be greater.

How Are Charter Schools Funded?


Charter schools are public schools. Like district public schools, they are funded according to enrollment and receive funding directly from the state according to the number of students attending. However, in a number of states, they do not receive the full equivalent of their district counterparts: Minnesota charters only receive the state portion (about 75 percent of a district school’s total per-pupil allocation); charters in New Jersey and Colorado also receive less than 100 percent of the per-pupil funding. In other states, charters must negotiate their funding in their charter contract, often below the level of funding of their district counterparts. In Arizona, charter students are funded at about 80 percent of their district peers. Nevada public charter schools are funded at approximately 98% of the reveneue of the school district in which they are located.

However, unlike district schools, Nevada's public charter schools do not have the authority to issue tax bonds and therefore do not have additional funding to secure a facility. Therefore, Nevada's public charter schools are forced to use basic revenue funds to not only pay operational expenses, but also to pay for facility costs.

Other states address the issue of facilities in a variety of ways. Some charter schools are actually conversion schools that were once district neighborhood schools. A few states provide capital funding to start-up schools, and some start-up schools are able to take over available unused district space, but most must rely on other, independent means. Recent federal legislation provides funding to help charters with start-up costs, but the task remains imposing.

How Do Charter Schools Differ From Traditional District Public Schools?


Charter schools operate on three basic principles:

Choice: Charter schools give families an opportunity to pick the school most suitable for their child’s educational well-being. Teachers choose to create and work at schools where they directly shape the best working and learning environment for their students and themselves. Likewise, charter sponsors choose to authorize schools that are likely to best serve the needs of the students in a particular community.


Accountability: Charter schools are judged on how well they meet the student achievement goals established by their charter contract. Charter schools must also show that they can perform according to rigorous fiscal and managerial standards.


Freedom: While charter schools must adhere to the same major laws and regulations as all other public schools, they are freed from the red tape that often diverts a school’s energy and resources away from educational excellence. Instead of constantly jumping through procedural hoops, charter school leaders can focus on setting and reaching high academic standards for their students.

Although E-TECHS is dedicated to project-based, career and technical education, some charter school programs focus on the basics —reading, writing and the traditional school subjects that some children struggle with. Other schools have special arts or music programs. Some charters look just like other public schools. There also are dropout prevention programs, adult education programs, charters that serve Head Start and day care needs, and charters that work with children who want to go to college.

How Do Charter Schools Impact the Public School System?

The "Ripple" Effect: Conventional public school districts often view charter schools as a threat but time has shown that these new schools can serve a valuable teaching role. Increasingly, members of the traditional public school system are turning to charter schools for examples of “best-practices” regarding everything from curriculum to staffing and teacher retention. The attitudes of leading administrators in the conventional public school system are also changing. Instead of viewing charter schools as nuisances many realize the need for improvement spurred on by charter schools.

In addition, this benefits the public school system by instilling a sense of accountability into the system regarding its services to the student and parents and its fiscal obligations. Fiscally, charter schools have demonstrated efficiency. For example, ABC's "Prime Time Live" ran a story on Yvonne Chan, the energetic principal of a San Fernando Valley’s Vaughn Next Century Charter School. The local school district, one of the largest and most bureaucratic in the nation, typically took a year to buy computers for its classrooms. Ms. Chan thought that was ridiculous. It took her charter school six days to purchase computers, and for less money. As a result, the Los Angeles Unified School District revised its purchasing system. Overall, in its first year of operation, Vaughn Next Century generated, through operational changes and efficiencies, a $1 million plus surplus, which it used to expand facilities to benefit both students and staff.

How Do Charter Schools Work?

Before you can have charter schools, you must have a state law. Forty states and the District of Columbia have enacted charter school laws.

As is the case with most education laws, charter schools are born at the state level. Typically a group of concerned lawmakers drafts a bill that allows the creation of any number of charter schools throughout a state.

Nevada's Charter School Law, NRS 386.500, was approved during the 1997 Legislative Session. There are currently 19 public charter schools operating in Nevada.

SPONSORSHIP: In order to be approved to operate, a charter school must have a Sponsor. Nevada provides for either a school district, or the State Board of Education, to sponsor public charter schools.

The role of the charter school sponsor is to first approve charter applications and then monitor the schools to ensure success. The more organized and active a sponsor is, the more likely problems within individual charter schools will be uncovered and fixed early. Sponsors are ultimately responsible for the operational and educational integrity of each charter school they sponsor and for closing any that fail to function responsibly.

In other states, charter school sponsors are local school boards, state boards of education, state universities, state departments of education, or a separate entity created by law that has the sole duty to sponsor and oversee charter schools in the state.

FOUNDERS: Virtually anyone can submit an application to open and operate a charter school. Nevada's only requirement is that at least three certified teachers must be on the Founding Committee. Others that may participate include parents, educators, museums, civic groups, business leaders, and service organizations. Charter schools are started when community members see an educational need and decide to actively address it.

GOVERNANCE: Every charter school is required by law to have a board of directors that is ultimately responsible for what the school does. Legally, the board oversees the operations of the school and makes sure it is financially sound and follows the law. The Board also helps to create the vision for how the school should operate and often is compiled of parents of children attending the charter school.

TEACHERS: Teachers choose charter schools because these schools help them avoid the frustrations of constant bureaucracy. In addition to hiring the same certified teachers as traditional public schools, charter schools can hire qualified individuals that often have significant professional experience in their subject area. This makes for education infused with real-world experience.

What are public charter schools?

Charter schools are new, innovative public schools that are accountable for student results. They are designed to deliver programs tailored to educational excellence and the needs of the communities they serve.

Charter schools are one of the fastest and most successful growing reforms in the country. The first charter school opened its doors in St. Paul, Minnesota in 1992 and now, a decade and a half later, more than 3,600 charter schools are serving over 1 million children across 40 states and the District of Columbia.

Based on the belief that America’s public schools should meet standards of excellence and be held accountable, parents are lining up to choose these innovative public schools that are able to meet the individual needs of their children.

Why Are Charter Schools So Popular?

Educational quality: The primary reason for charter schools is to make sure every child has access to a quality education. With the freedom and choice to do so, charters set higher standards and must meet them to stay in business.

Focus on the kids: Perhaps most important, a charter school is set up around the needs of children, not around the needs of adults. The focus should always be on the kids, and programs should be designed to help children succeed, no matter what it takes.

Safer, stronger communities: Charter schools typically engage local businesses and other organizations to help provide resources and services to the school and its families. Many charter schools create a community hub, whether it is turning an inner-city ghetto into bustling and safer neighborhood or whether it is bringing families in rural America together, charter schools have a proven effect on the strength and safety of a community.