A charter school is a public school that is self-governing and is organized by parents, teachers and other community members who prefer to provide alternatives to the current public school programs and practices.
The California Department of Education encourages charter school development as a means of supporting progressive educational approaches.
Each charter school is bound by a charter document, written by its developers and approved by a local school board.
Charter schools receive the same amount of money per student from the State of California that other schools in the local school district receive and do not charge tuition.