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News & Observer Archives - North Carolina Coalition for Charter Schools

Dec 16
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New reports highlight national and state charter enrollment growth

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New reports reveal public charter school enrollment continues to grow in North Carolina and across the country, even as district enrollment is declining. According to a recent article in the News & Observer, enrollment at state charter schools and lab schools increased by 3% this year, representing an additional 4,654 students.

Meanwhile, 105 of 115 North Carolina school districts experienced an enrollment decline during this 2025-26 school year. In total, this was a decrease of 24,110 students, or a 1.8% drop.

State enrollment trends this year continue enrollment patterns that began a number of years ago. As the News & Observer reports:

Since 2019, enrollment has fallen by 76,175 students, or 5.4%, in traditional public schools. It’s risen by 50,614 students, or 46.6%, in charter schools and lab schools. Over that time span, 102 of the 115 school districts have seen their enrollment decrease.

The same trends have been occurring all across the country, according to the 2025 enrollment brief from the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, which was released last month. That report, which evaluated enrollment trends between 2019-20 and 2024-25, revealed increases for 39 of 43 state charter sectors in the most recent year.

North Carolina saw the fourth-largest charter student enrollment gain of any state between 2019-20 and 2024-25. Only Texas, Florida, and California saw larger increases in charter student enrollment. 

National enrollment trends mirror those in North Carolina, as the report makes clear:

Charter schools are experiencing consistent, nationwide growth, adding over half a million students over the last six years (+15%) even as the overall school-age population shrinks. According to state agency data – which is reliable, timely, and transparent – district schools lost nearly 2 million students (-4.4%) during the same time period.

Here’s a screenshot from the report, showing how North Carolina’s charter enrollment growth stacks up nationwide:

“Enrollment Brief: Charter Schools 2025,” National Alliance for Public Charter Schools.

Above: Shutterstock photo.

 

May 20
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Dave Machado on new charter applications for 2025

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The state’s Office of Charter Schools (OCS) received 17 applications for new charter schools during the 2025 application cycle. Those figures were provided by Ashley Baquero, the director of OCS, at the May 5 meeting of the North Carolina Charter Schools Review Board. The application cycle closed on April 25.

Five of the new charter applications are from Wake County, three are from Mecklenburg County, and two are from Gaston County. The following counties each had one application: Durham, Moore, Forsyth, Edgecombe, Franklin, Pender, and Union.

One of the Gaston County applicants has already withdrawn, according to a new article published yesterday by the News & Observer. That article also included input from Coalition Executive Director Dave Machado about the new applications, parental choice, and demand for charter schools.

We share an excerpt from the News & Observer’s article below:

… Dave Machado, executive director of the N.C. Coalition for Charter Schools, said what matters most is that charter schools are helping some families escape from low-performing schools.

“Parents have the option to decide where their children will go to school not based on their ZIP code,” Machado said in an interview.

Some charter schools in Wake have had problems attracting students. Machado said the market will decide whether any current or new charter schools rise or fall.

“I don’t know if there’s a number that a person or a bureaucrat can put on what is the saturation point,” Machado said. “Saturation is when people stop applying, and for the most part people have not stopped.”

Read the full article from the News & Observer. See EdNC’s coverage of the May CSRB meeting.

Aug 26
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NC charters: ‘Demand like never before’

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Shutterstock photo.

North Carolina’s rapidly growing charter sector has garnered some media attention lately. In case you missed it, the Coalition compiled comments and coverage in a press release last week.

From the Coalition’s release:

… Carolina Journal published a story (“NC charter schools remain fastest growing K-12 segment”) with insights from a public charter school parent: “[My wife and I] saw increased parent engagement, which helped them to be more involved [with] their kids’ learning,” Jerry Cooper, a father of two from Raleigh, told the outlet. “We also found charters to be deeply connected to the community.”

… The News & Observer published a story about strong demand for public charter school facilities: “Statewide, charter school enrollment is expected to eclipse 145,000 students this year, according to the state Department of Public Instruction, as several schools are expanding to accommodate some of the more than 85,000 students on waiting lists. . .’There is demand like never before,’ said Bartley Danielsen, a member of the Charter [Schools] Review Board.”

Lindalyn Kakadelis, executive director of the N.C. Coalition for Charter Schools, said,

Public charter schools continue to surge in popularity, complementing traditional public schools by offering innovative curricula enabling students to specialize in certain fields. Charter schools are a successful piece of the school choice landscape because of the flexibility afforded them by legislators.

In 2023-24, charter school waitlists included over 85,000 students across North Carolina.  

Aug 06
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NC charter schools: fastest growing sector of K-12 enrollment

By News

Charter schools represented the fastest growing sector of K-12 enrollment in North Carolina last year. New numbers released last week by the state’s Division of Non-Public Education show a 3.2% increase in 2023-24 homeschool enrollment and a 3.5% increase in 2023-24 private school enrollment.

By comparison, charter school enrollment last year–as reported in the News & Observer–grew by 4.9%. (More recent numbers from 2023-24 show charter growth was even higher last year–almost 5.2%.) District school enrollment, however, dropped by 0.4%.

The Coalition followed the News & Observer’s article with a press release highlighting charter growth and popularity. In the release, Lindalyn Kakadelis, the Coalition’s executive director, said:

Public charter schools continue to surge in popularity, complementing traditional public schools by offering innovative curricula enabling students to specialize in certain fields. An additional 85,000 student names are on 2023-24 charter school waitlists. Charter schools are a successful piece of the school choice landscape because of the flexibility afforded them by legislators.