Public Charter School Student Market Share Increases in Third Annual "Top Ten" Survey
Most Communities Post Increases in Market Share - New Orleans Tops List with 55% of Students Enrolled in Charter Schools
Washington, DC – The market share of public school students enrolled in charter
schools continues to grow, with a record 12 communities now having at least 20% of
students in charter schools. The increases are detailed in third annual “Top Ten” survey
released today by the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools.
New Orleans tops the list with 55% of all public school students attending charter
schools. The total number of New Orleans students in charters rose by nearly 3,000 or
21% over the previous year.
“Public charter schools are increasing in popularity among parents and students both
nationally and in New Orleans,” said National Alliance for Public Charter Schools
President and CEO Nelson Smith. “Their popularity is a result of high-quality public
charter schools helping students - many coming from under-privileged backgrounds – to
achieve academic success.”
As evidence of their growing popularity across the country, the number of communities
with 20% or more of public school students enrolled in charter schools has grown from 6
to 12 in the past two years. A total of 64 communities now have at least 10% of students
enrolled in public charter schools.
A total of 17,925 students were enrolled in New Orleans public charter schools and
14,962 were enrolled in other public schools during the 2007-2008 school year. In the
previous year, the enrollment figures were 14,822 and 11,343. Washington D.C. (31%)
was second among communities with the highest percentage of students in public
charter schools.
Visit here for the full report.
High-quality public charter schools
The Alliance will shortly be releasing the fifth edition of its meta-analysis of research
documenting the gap-closing impact of public charter schools. “These studies show why
charters have strong support, especially in our most urban communities,” said Smith.
“Considering that charters serve more minorities and low-income students, many
enrolling with serious academic deficiencies, it’s clear that they are helping to close the
well-known and troubling gaps in achievement between socio-economic groups of
students.”
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