TRENTON — New Jersey's urban education sector could see a shakeup in the coming years, as more charter school operators continue to look to open schools in the state's cities. Most of the 50 charter school applications received by the state Department of Education ask to open schools in urban areas, particularly Camden, Newark and Jersey City. The list,...
Clik here to view.
Bernard Strickland, 10, and Jasmine Nazaire, 10, draw the bones of the hand during an art class at Discovery Charter School in Newark. Ten charter school operators have applied to open up a school in Newark.TRENTON — New Jersey's urban education sector could see a shakeup in the coming years, as more charter school operators continue to look to open schools in the state's cities.
Most of the 50 charter school applications received by the state Department of Education ask to open schools in urban areas, particularly Camden, Newark and Jersey City.
The list, released by the department today, shows Newark has attracted the most interest, with ten operators hoping to open charter schools there.
A small percentage of the applications also hope to open schools in suburban areas, including Montclair. The full list can be viewed here.
Currently, 73 charter schools serve 26,000 students in New Jersey, a group that accounts for 1.4 percent of the state's total K-12 student population.
Gov. Chris Christie supports expanding access to charter schools, and has pushed for legislators to allow public, private and parochical schools to easily convert to charter status.
The department will announce decisions on the applications Jan. 15.
Many charter school applications do not survive the state's rigorous approval process. The state approved six of 36 applications in the first cycle.
Previous coverage:
• N.J. Department of Education receives record number of charter school applications
• Editorial: Charter schools deserve even playing field
• Acting N.J. education chief announces $30M in low-interest bonds for charter schools
• Gov. Christie seeks private companies to operate charter schools
