Charter Schools

Charter schools are public schools that are typically subject to fewer regulations and restrictions than traditional public schools. Charter schools operate under a formal, written contract – or charter – with a sponsoring or authorizing entity, such as a school district, university, or Tribal government. That charter specifies how the school will be organized and governed, what students will be expected to achieve, and how success will be measured. Like traditional public schools, charter schools are publicly funded, free to students, non-sectarian, and must accept all students without regard to race, religion, disability status, or other essential characteristics.

Currently, 45 states and the District of Columbia have authorized charter schools and these schools enrolled 3.7 million students, or 7 percent of all U.S. public school students in 2020-21, in approximately 7,800 schools.

Oklahoma initially passed the Oklahoma Charter School Act in 1999. In 2022-23, there were 30 charter schools serving just over 50,000 students in 2022-23, or about 7% of the overall public school population in Oklahoma. The charter school population has fallen from a peak of over 80,000 students in 2020-21 during the COVID-19 pandemic.  Of the 30 charter schools operating in 2020-21, 6 were virtual and 24 were brick-and-mortar schools. The largest charter school, EPIC virtual, accounted for over half of total enrollment.

In 2023, the Statewide Virtual Charter School Board voted to authorize the application of the Catholic archdiocese of Oklahoma City to operate St. Isidore Virtual Charter School. This would be the first expressly religious public charter school anywhere in the United States. The Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled the school contract unconstitutional in June 2024; the archdiocese has expressed its intent to appeal the ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court.