CRPE’s research examines both the promise and the challenges of charter schools and school choice, with a focus on how they can expand opportunity, drive innovation, and better serve diverse student needs. We study charter schools alongside district schools and other models, highlighting lessons that can inform the broader system. New data and evidence help innovators across the country collaborate, communicate, and develop best practices.
In their efforts to expand school choice, city leaders have good intentions and lofty ambitions. They want to allow for diverse approaches to education, offering schools and programs that meet the demands and interests of a wide variety of students and families.
District budgets are badly strained when many of their schools are under-enrolled. This is one of the biggest reasons that districts with growing charter enrollment hit financial hurdles.
The portents of market failure—things like inadequate information and a lack of competition—are everywhere in public education. So, when it comes to school choice, government has an important role to play: reducing information asymmetries, bolstering accountability, and ensuring fairness.
One of the key advantages charter schools have is the ability to start from scratch financially. However, that advantage can quickly erode if charter schools make the same decisions as their district predecessors when it comes to spending on buildings, employees, and retirees.
This guide helps city education leaders understand the benefits and costs of a fully unified enrollment system and outlines the questions they should ask before initiating changes.
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