Giving kids a
real choice
Charter schools continue to emerge
as an inclusive new opportunity
BY ISABEL SONG BEER
With 272 charter schools
throughout the fi ve boroughs
of New York City, many parents
are wondering what exactly makes
a charter school different from a more
traditional public school.
If there are drastic differences or benefi
ts between public and charter schools
that suit their children’s learning styles,
is it a good idea to make the switch?
And what exactly is a charter school?
According to the National Alliance
for Public Charter Schools, charter
schools receive government funding but
CHARTER SCHOOLS
operate outside the previously established
school system in the area where
the charter school is physically located.
They maintain independent operation
from traditional school districts, giving
them freedom “to design classrooms
that meet the students’ needs.”
The New York State Education Department
(NYSED) reports that approximately
145,000 NYC students are
enrolled in charter schools – roughly
14% of all NYC students.
Charter schools in NYC also encourage
a diverse enrollment of students. According
to the NYSED, in the 2020-21 school
year half of the student body in the NYC
Kids at play at Challenge Charter School in Far Rockaway, Queens.
charter school system identifi ed as Black
and 40% as Latinx. Additionally, 79%
of charter school students are economically
challenged, 8% are multilingual and
9.3% live in temporary housing.
“Charter schools employ many
many Black and Latinx educators,” said
James Merriman the CEO of NYC’s
Charter school system on Jan. 13. “I
think increasingly we are having a ‘moment’,
and I think people are beginning
to realize that while it is fi ne to have a
white teacher and white administrators,
it is so important that Black students see
people like them in positions of leadership
in front of the classroom, who understand
some of the struggles that kids
come into school with.”
Since charter schools do not operate
in any of NYC’s established public
school systems, they are able to implement
certain rules and regulations that
other public schools in the area are not
– especially COVID-related protocol.
“Charters are overseen by an independent
board of trustees, which itself
is overseen usually by one of three entities
in New York City – either by the
board of education, by the NYS education
department Board of Regions and
also by the Charter School Institute of
the SUNY Trustees,” said Merriman.
Because of this, charter schools are
not governed by the NYC Schools Chancellor
or the Department of Education,
and each school is able to make independent
decisions regarding the safety
PHOTO VIA FACEBOOK/CHALLENGE CHARTER SCHOOL
of their students as the COVID-19 pandemic
continues to spread.
“Charter schools have to follow the
same health and safety regulations that
district schools do,” said Merriman.
“They follow what the department of
health NYC and NYS tell them to do
in terms of testing, vaccination. social
distancing. But on the other hand,
they can also make their own decisions
about whether it makes more sense to
go virtual. Many of the charters – not
all – stayed open, but many decided that
they would hold the fi rst two weeks of
class virtually.”
Charter schools are designed to accommodate
the individual learning
needs of students, and this includes students
in need of special education.
“At the NYC Charter School Center
we actually have a collaborative which
almost every charter school belongs to
better provide special education,” said
Merriman. “Providing special education
well is very very diffi cult, but charter
schools are stepping up to that and have
basically the same rates of students who
are identifi ed as needing special education
as those in district schools.”
With fi ve more charter schools being
planned to open in the coming year, it
is clear that the popularity of charters
is increasing.
“We are trying to make sure students
actually get the services they need, and
beyond that succeed as we hope all students
do,” said Merriman.
Two arts-rich public K-5 schools in
Manhattan
Afterschool Available
www.manhaancharterschool.org
212-533-2743 212-964-3792
18 January 20, 2022 Schneps Media
/www.manhaancharterschool.org
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