The most common response of the surrounding district has been to extend kindergarten to all day. Our conclusion is that this is occurring only rarely. On the whole, parent involvement is much higher at charter schools than at traditional schools. The act of removing their child from a traditional school and finding the right charter school tends to occur among parents who are engaged in their child's education. Moreover, few charter schools provide transportation, so most parents are at the school twice a day, dropping off and picking up their child.
Some schools go further and require a certain number of hours each month from a parent.
The percentage of minorities in the study-area charter schools is higher than in both the state as a whole and the traditional public school districts in which the charter schools are located. For-profit management companies are playing an increasing role in the charter school movement. It is likely that in a few years the single, independent charter school will be an exception. Recently, some individual charter school administrators have established their own management companies. Few charter schools have the facilities or funds to provide food service for their students.