Charter School

"Charter schools" were started in Minnesota in the early 1990s. They operate independently of the local school system, thus offering much-needed competition.

(Oxford English Dictionary)
Charter School
The name given to schools established in Ireland by the Charter Society founded in 1733, to provide Protestant education for the Catholic poor. In 1745 a special tax was devoted by parliament to their support.

1763 DUKE OF NORTHUMBERLAND Sp. Irish Parlt. in Ann. Reg. 197/1 For this purpose your protestant Charter schools were established. 1796 MORSE Amer. Geog. II. 206 [Galway] has..a charter-school, and an hospital. 1881 FROUDE Eng. in Irel. I. 573 The long celebrated Charter Schools so fiercely condemned by the Catholic priests. 1883 LECKY Hist. 18th Cent. II. 200.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/21/national/21budde.html?Ray
Budde, 82, First to Propose Charter Schools, Dies
By SUSAN SAULNY
Published: June 21, 2005

Ray Budde, an education professor who defined the term charter school and stated the ideas that led to a nationwide school reform movement, died on June 11 in Springfield, Mass. He was 82.
(...)
Dr. Budde, a former assistant professor at the school of education at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, first suggested the term "charter" for use in education in the 1970's to describe a novel contracting arrangement designed to support the efforts of innovative teachers within the public school system. He long opposed the later idea that charter schools could be an alternative to public education.

The charter arrangement could result in a new type of school, Dr. Budde said, that would give teachers increased responsibility over curriculum and instruction in exchange for a greater degree of accountability for student achievement.

In 1988, Dr. Budde elaborated on the concept in a book, "Education by Charter: Restructuring School Districts" (Learning Innovations).

http://www.insideschools.org/home/glossary.php
Charter school
A school established by a charter granted by the chancellor, the State University of New York or the Board of Regents of the State of New York. Charter schools receive taxpayer funding for each child, but operate independently of the local district and regional office. Although required to admit students by lottery and give the same standardized tests as other public schools, charter schools are free of most other Department of Education regulations. Charters are issued for five years and can be revoked if the school fails to perform as promised.

http://www.newyorkcharters.org/charterny/index.html
Charter Schools In New York

When Governor Pataki approved the New York Charter Schools Act in December 1998 he called charter schools the "single greatest improvement in education in [New York] State history." Charter schools provide concerned parents, teachers and community leader with the chance to offer children new and better ways to receive a public education.

Because charter schools are such an innovative way of providing public education, there is much to learn about them. We have put together a set of "Frequently Asked Questions" which help explain how charter schools are created, operated, monitored and funded in New York.

To see how actual schools are using the Charter Schools Act to create new learning opportunities, there are profiles of public charter schools in New York. Also available are the guidelines for accountability plans that each charter school authorized by the State University Trustees must develop.

The New York Charter Schools Act of 1998 also is included for review.

18 November 1991, Star-Tribune (Twin Cities Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN), "Winona vote may lead to first charter school" by Mary Jane Smetanka, pg. 1B
A Montessori education shouldn't be limited to the children of the wealthy, Michael Dorer says. That's one reason Dorer, the principal of Bluffview Montessori School in Winona, Minn., wants to turn the private school into a public school.

If the Winona school board approves that plan today, the school will be the first in the United States to take the initial step toward being a charter school.

Five years after the issue of school choice focused national attention on Minnesota, politicians and educators around the United States again are watching as the state pioneers efforts to set up public schools that operate free of school district control.

State officials estimate that 10 to 15 groups around the state are seriously discussing opening a charter school.

30 January 1992, Milwaukee Sentinel, "Board will seek authority to start 'charter schools'" by Paula A. Poda, pg. 1A:
The School Board Wednesday decided, 6-3, to ask the Legislature for authority to establish "charter schools."

"I really, honestly think that it's going to help to improve our schools," said School Board member Christine Sinicki, who introduced the proposal.

"This is our answer. It's going to work. I'm confident."

Charter schools offer innovative programs that would be operated under contract by community organizations, public or private educators, or other groups.

18 November 1992, Richmond (VA) Times-Dispatch, "Charter School May Fill Clinton Bill" by Robert Holland, pg. A17:
AS FOR CHOICE, it is doubtful Clinton will reverse his campaign stand against private-school vouchers any time soon. However, look for Clinton to embrace a form of public-school choice that might shake up the system almost as much as vouchers: the charter school.

Begun in Minnesota and now spreading to several other states, including New Jersey and California, this innovation empowers teachers, principals, and parents to design entirely new schools freed from union or bureaucratic rules and judged only by performance-based standards. Charter schools vary greatly according to learning philosophy, teaching methods, and curriculum, and families are free to choose the one that appeals to them.