What is a Charter School?

Charter schools have a unique educational philosophy that offers an alternative to traditional public schools. As a public school, there is no tuition. Students must apply and are selected on a lottery basis or via a waitlist.

The “charter” establishing each such school is a performance contract detailing the school’s mission, program, goals, students served, and ways to measure success.

New Hampshire charter schools report directly to the state’s Department of Education in Concord. Students must meet or exceed all state academic requirements and participate in standardized assessment testing.

PLEASE CLICK HERE to view The Birches Academy’s 2012 charter application.

PLEASE CLICK HERE to view The Birches Academy’s 2022 charter renewal application.

There is no tuition to attend The Birches Academy. Students must be New Hampshire residents to apply.

Facts about Charter Schools

Charter Schools are open enrollment with no tuition. A lottery determines who will be admitted if more applications than spaces are available.

• Students at Charter Schools must take the same standardized test as a traditional public school; in some cases, they take more.

• Charter Schools must show tangible results of academic improvement. As a result, they are held to greater accountability.

• Charter Schools are accountable for academic results and fiscal practices to several groups, including the sponsors that grant the charter, the parents who choose to send their children to the school, and the state government that funds them.

• On average, $19,399 per student in New Hampshire is spent annually. NH charter schools receive $9,000 per year per student from the state. There are no local funds transferred to the charter school. Thus, the “sending district” receives the benefit of the local funds, but with one less student to educate.

• The federal government provides grants to Charter Schools for start-up costs. However, this does not include capital funds for facilities.

• Charter School communities work very hard to raise funds through grants and donations to make up the difference in funding.

• When a community provides an additional public option to mainstream public schools, learning is increased for all students. A Charter School often attracts educators who want to try new approaches in the classroom. When proven effective, these new approaches can be brought into the more extensive public school system.

• Because Charter Schools tend to be smaller, making changes and trying new techniques is easy. As a result, there is more innovation in education. A Charter School can act as a “research and development” arm of public education.

• Teachers at most Charter Schools start at a lower salary than teachers at traditional public schools. The goal is that over time, as funding becomes more available, the school can offer merit pay raises to its teachers.

• There are 28 charter schools in New Hampshire, and these public schools serve approximately 2.5% of all public school pupils in New Hampshire.  Discover more details here about our state’s charter schools.

• Parental and community involvement is critical to the success of a Charter School. (See our Donate Time page to see how you can be involved at The Birches Academy.)