Is the Charter School Boom Really Good for Kids?
The latest report from the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools shows that the charter school boom is showing no signs of abating. In six cities—New Orleans; Washington, D.C.; Detroit; Kansas City, Missouri; Flint, Michigan; and Gary, Indiana—more than 30 percent of students now attend charter schools. In New Orleans, an astounding 70 percent of students are enrolled in charters. But, when it comes down to the sheer number of students attending charters, Los Angeles takes the enrollment crown.
Over the past decade, charter schools' growth in Los Angeles has been meteoric. In 1993, a year after California passed the nation's second charter school law, only 16 charters operated in the city, a mere blip on the region's