Marian Hejl, Executive DirectorPeople are surprised to learn that many charter schools do not require tuition and are open to all who enroll. They are also surprised that all charter schools in the United States are designated as public schools. Two of the most basic foundations many charter schools are built on, autonomy and accountability, allow charter school leaders, staff and students to continue to thrive in the organizations that they are a part of.
Smaller Sizes Allow for Nimble Change
Charter schools are born from communities that have identified a gap in the school system, typically traditional districts. The need for more autonomy in the educational structure to fill the gap within the system, ranging from rigor to hands-on experiences, results in applications for charter schools to be approved by the authorizer. Although authorizers, districts and other state-approved organizations work with charter school applicants within parameters both organizations must honor, the autonomy charter schools are granted allows them to make the changes needed to support their students and families more effectively than traditional schools within large districts. I like to compare size and autonomy to boats. To show how size can affect change and flexibility, I compare charter schools to a speedboat: it is typically operated by one person, can change direction quickly and can get to places quickly. Traditional districts and schools are more like aircraft carriers: they are big, have many different working parts and take a long time to change direction. Charter schools' organizational autonomy allows them to adjust their course of action much faster than a traditional district or school because of the ability to identify needs, organize resources and invest in change.
Financial Autonomy
Charter school leaders assess the academic, behavioral and social-emotional needs of their schools and present those needs to their boards to secure the tools they need to address what they see in their school population. 62 percent of charter schools in the United States are single-site schools (National Alliance for Public Charter Schools), which lets them make site-based decisions and adjust quickly as needed. Charter schools are also financially autonomous from school districts, allowing them to fund initiatives and meet needs faster than traditional district schools, where teachers and sites must get approval through multiple levels before resources are approved.
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The balance between the autonomy charter schools have and the accountability they are bound to continue to contribute to their success.
Autonomy Meets Accountability
Being an autonomous organization does not mean that there is an absence of accountability. This is where Charter School Boards and their authorizing units (AUs) work together to hold accountability standards high. Charter schools must report everything from assessment scores to enrollment numbers and financial reports to their AUs. This supports accountability for program quality and provides insight into future programming needs. If a charter school fails to meet its performance goals or violates financial rules, the AU can require specific remediation steps or choose to non-renew the charter agreement. Accountability stabilizes the equation; it ensures autonomy does not outweigh learning and growth or allow an organization with an unsound foundation to continue running unchecked.
Charter schools offer unique programming, differentiated instructional techniques and high levels of parental involvement. Their autonomy in decision-making, finances and programming makes them stand out in the educational community, but it does not come without accountability. The balance between the autonomy charter schools have and the accountability they are bound to continue to contribute to the success of these unique educational organizations, which is why the charter school landscape continues to grow.
