charter school

American  

[chahr-ter skool] / ˈtʃɑr tər ˌskul /

noun

charter schools plural

1. an autonomous public school created by a contract between a sponsor, as a local school district or corporation, and an organizer, as a group of teachers or a community group, often with a curriculum or focus that is not traditional.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• charter schools
  plural

Etymology

Origin of charter school

First recorded in 1800–10; current use dates from 1985–90

Example Sentences

Southeast Academy in Norwalk is a public charter school offering a high school education with a military and law enforcement focus to a diverse and coeducational student body.

From Los Angeles Times • May 22, 2026

Rivas also has worked in the district’s charter school office and focused on education research while earning her master’s and doctorate.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 30, 2026

In response, districts including Malakoff ISD in Texas and at least one charter school in Arizona canceled scheduled Lifetouch photos, with some officials announcing they would keep pictures “in-house for the rest of the year.”

From Salon • Feb. 15, 2026

The top-scoring school was a Success Academy charter school in the Bronx, where the student-body poverty rate is 90% and 94% of students scored proficient in third-grade reading in 2024.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 3, 2026

Luma had gotten Bien into a nearby charter school that focused on immigrants and refugees.

From "Outcasts United: An American Town, a Refugee Team, and One Woman's Quest to Make a Difference" by Warren St. John