In response to the pandemic, more parents than ever before exercised choice in education—some even leaving public education altogether, but others choosing another public school option for their kids. Charter schools—a public school option that is free and open to all—experienced a 9% growth in enrollment, making it the only type of public school that experienced consistent growth after the on-set of the pandemic. The Get Schooled on Public Education podcast sat down with Drew Jacobs, senior director of policy, research, and evaluation at the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools and co-author of a recent analysis on public school enrollment trends, to dig deep on why this happened and what it could mean for the future of public education.
Key Takeaways:
- Charter school enrollment continues to grow—a nine percent increase between 2019-2020 school year up to the 2022-2023 school year.
- Charter School student enrollment growth outpaced state population trends.
- Parents want public school options.
