Charter Schools

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A Charter school is a public elementary or secondary school that has the following characteristics:

• it has been granted a charter within the rules of the state in which it exists, usually by the state legislature, or another designated authority
• it is either created new or transformed from a pre-existing public or private school
• it may be run by a regular school district, as well as by a chartering organization or a state education agency
• its governance may be a a group or organization, including, for example, a collection of educators, a university, or a corporation
• it is granted more authority than other public schools, but has accountability standards directly related to its mission and written into its standards
• its charter is periodically reviewed and may be revoked
• like magnet and private schools, charter schools can have themes, carry out particular educational philosophies, or serve particular populations