The provincial government's decision was made to appease lobby groups that feared the public education system had become a monopoly and no longer was responding to public expectations. School board trustees believed this change would introduce further levels of accountability for public school boards. They argued that parents needed more choice for their children, and they fully expected a charter school option would lead to a major rush by single-interest groups to start their own schools. Alberta's minister of education was so convinced of this that he suggested a cap of 15 charter schools for the first year. The cap has yet to be reached.
Alternative programming has a positive impact on student achievement, our top priority.
Our community, much like populations throughout the United States, is extremely diverse, and public education should reflect that diversity. This comes down to the fundamental belief that to serve all children, we need to meet their unique needs. When I became superintendent of the Edmonton Public Schools in 1995, we already offered our students some programs of choice. This same year the provincial government introduced the changes in funding and passed a bill that increased the government funding of private schools, making them eligible to receive 60 percent of what is given to public schools. We were, for the first time, in a position where we would compete with charter and private schools for our enrollment and our funding.