Inc. Even a causal observer could see they were doomed. Though their application had been recommended for approval by school district staff, the charter approval process took place in the immediate aftermath of the Impact Academy debacle. School Board members had poured over all seven charter applications with an unforgiving eye - and their findings did nothing to help the applicants. In part, this rivalry is due to the independence the charter system enjoys. Though they reap the financial and institutional benefits of the school system, they are not subject to any of its rules or restrictions.
Charters have almost total autonomy over curricula, schedules, rules and classroom environments.
Theoretically, this freedom allows charters to provide innovative and specialized education to children failing in traditional classrooms. For parents frustrated by standard curricula, charters offer an opportunity to try a different approach without shouldering the burden of private school tuition. Duval County School Board member Linda Sparks has received numerous complaints from parents of charter school kids alleging everything from schools without textbooks to unqualified students being promoted to charters that don't hold school on Fridays. Charters are nonetheless public schools, subsisting on public school dollars. Because there has been little evidence that charters are making academic strides, public schools feel they are being destabilized by a dangerous experiment.