Myths and Facts About Ohio Charter Schools

Myth:   Charter schools are not public schools.

Fact:     Given the fact that charter schools cannot select their children and must take all children who wish to enroll if there is space, charter schools might be the most public of all schools.

Myth:   Charter schools don’t perform as well as traditional schools.

Fact:    Average scores on value-added and performance index exceed, and often far exceed, the averages for traditional district schools.

Myth:   The worst schools in the state are often charter schools.

Fact:     Very few charter schools are among the worst-performing schools in their district.

Myth:   Critics have claimed that Stanford University’s Credo study concluded that Ohio charter schools don’t do as well as traditional public schools

Fact:     Actually, the Credo study stated the opposite.

Myth:    Charter schools are funded the same as traditional district schools.

Fact:      Charter schools are funded significantly less than traditional schools, often receiving less than 50 percent of State funding on a per-pupil basis. 

Myth:    At-risk children in charter schools receive the extra funding they should receive.

Fact:      While these schools receive federal Title I dollars, they only receive 25 percent of the Targeted Assistance dollars.

Myth:    Charter schools lower the per-pupil funding that traditional schools receive.  

Fact:      The opposite is true. When a student leaves a traditional school for a charter school, the per-pupil funding in the district is increased.

Myth:    E-schools take a significant amount of money from brick-and-mortar district schools.

Fact:      Less than two percent of Ohio’s students are enrolled in e-schools, and they are funded at a much lower rate than the average district school. The loss is minimal.

Myth:    Charter schools are less accountable than traditional public schools.

Fact:      Charter schools are in many ways far more accountable since they must comply with more than 300 compliance items each year. Additionally, more than 30 percent of charter schools have closed over the past six years; due to Ohio’s automatic closure law, which is among the strictest in the country and which also does not apply to traditional public schools.

Myth:    Charter schools are not audited, regulated or supervised by the State of Ohio.

Fact:      Charter schools are overseen by the Ohio Auditor of State and the Ohio Department of Education. They must undergo yearly audits.

Myth:    Charter schools are held to a different academic accountability system than traditional public schools.

Fact:      Charter schools meet the same test and report card standards as traditional public schools.

Myth:    Charter schools are for-profit schools.

Fact:      All charter schools in the State of Ohio, as required by law, are non-profit. 

Myth:    Charter schools with for-profit vendors don’t do as well.

Fact:      There is no evidence to support that claim. Many of the top-performing schools in Ohio, including the State’s highest performing school, are managed by for-profit entities.  

Myth:    Most other charter states ban for-profit operators.

Fact:      Not only do most states allow for-profit operators, but nearly all of the largest school districts in Ohio (and nationally) use for-profit vendors.