Charter schools are innovative, public schools designed by educators, parents or civic leaders that are open by choice, accountable for results, and free from most rules and regulations governing conventional public schools. Today, over 4,000 charter schools serve more than a million children in forty states plus the District of Columbia.

Charter Schools 101

• What is a charter school?
• What states have charter laws?
• What states have charter schools?
• What are cyber and virtual charter schools?
• How are charter schools doing? A look at the latest on student academic achievement in charter schools.
• Link here for some more Quick Facts About Charter Schools.

Find A Charter School

• CER's Find a Charter School interactive map allows you to locate charter schools across the country by city and state. From there you can also link to CER's National Online Charter School Directory to search for schools by name, grades served, program details and address.
• Toolkit: How to Start a Charter School

School Spotlights

• One Parent's Perspective: How a charter school changed everything for my son
• Working together for the community
• Urban charter closes the achievement gap