Charter schools are attracting terrific, often unconventional teachers, who fulfill many other functions within the schools. Teachers expressed particular satisfaction with their freedom to teach, the school's autonomy, its familial atmosphere, sensible management decisions, dedicated colleagues, and enhanced institutional and personal accountability. Parent and student satisfaction is manifest in a number of ways, including the fact that nearly all charter schools have pupil waiting lists. There is evidence of much parent involvement, and parents say that they feel welcome in charter schools and that the schools are responsive to their concerns. Other reasons for parent satisfaction are related to high student expectations and the schools' coherent curriculum, minimal bureaucracy, dedicated teachers, and family-like atmosphere.
Some school districts profit financially from their charter schools.
This has produced some extraordinary improvements in efficiency and productivity. More than half of all charter schools encounter unexpectedly difficult challenges from the students who attend them, primarily from the large numbers of disadvantaged and at-risk pupils who enroll. Charter schools, in general, are welcoming such youngsters, adapting to their circumstances, and serving them well. For a host of reasons, nearly all charter schools receive less funding than conventional public schools. Yet they are expected to demonstrate better results.