3/15/05
Minnesota charter public school enrollment sees dramatic increase
by Joe Nathan
Whatís behind the dramatic 72% increase in Minnesota charter public school enrollment over the last 4 years?
Itís good ideas, and hard-working people like Joy Carlson, Daniel DeBruyn, James Steckart, Isabelle Olson and Melissa Martyr-Wagner. So the number of Minnesotan students attending free, charter public schools increased from 10,162 in the 2001-2002 school year, to 17,441 this year. In that same period, district school enrollments declined from 831,355 to 809,787, about 3%.
Dan DeBruyn is the administrator of the PACT Charter School in Ramsey.
PACT stands for Parents Allied with Children and Teachers. PACTís founders wanted a small, college prep K-12 school with a real family atmosphere. They clearly have succeeded, with 540 students, and a waiting list of approximately 800 students. The school opened in Anoka, in 1994, and is one of Minnesotaís oldest, and most successful charter schools. www.pact.charter.k12.mn.us
James Steckart, director of the Coon Rapids Learning Center, uses student comments to help describe his school: ìCRLC exists to serve students who do not have a face at the traditional schoolÖ(CRLC is for) students who got lost at the big school.î 90% of the schools classes are team taught and interdisciplinary. The school has scheduled 11 field studies with outside agencies.î This is a small, personalized school featuring active learning. www.crlc.charter.k12.mn.us
Monticello parents like Isabelle Olson recognized the value of hands-on Montessori education. So, starting this fall, the SWAN River Montessori charter will be available for families. Itís a unique partnership between families and the city of Monticello. Students will be able to use physical fitness facilities at the Monticello Community Center, and Monticello residents will be able to use the historic, restored, Little White Church, which has been moved next to the center, and will be used for classrooms. 763-271-SWAN
Joy Carlson helped start North Lakes Academy, a charter middle school in Forest Lake. She describes what moved parents and teachers: ìWe started NLA to meet needs, and it began with what we saw in our own children. We looked traditional, large public junior highs and saw students getting lost in the shuffle. Our group of parents and educators wanted a learning environment where children would thrive, not merely survive.î www.northlakesacademy.org
As she explained, ìwe went for what we wanted and neededÖwe did not want to be told we could not give our children the education we perceived as best.î
Nationally, research is very clear about small, focused public schools. When students from similar communities are compared, smaller schools do better. They are safer. Students learn more. There is less violence. Attendance, achievement and graduation rates are higher. And smaller schools are NOT necessarily more expensive.
For more information on Minnesotaís charter public schools, please see the Profiles of Minnesota Charter Schools on the Center for School Change Web site ñ www.centerforschoolchange.org.
Meeting needs. Using the best available research. Parents not being satisfied to complain, but doing the hard work to create. Itís not hard to understand why charter school enrollment increased by more than 3000 students in just the last year.
Joe Nathan directs the Center for School Change at the University of Minnesota's Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs. He can be reached at jnathan@hhh.umn.edu.
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