5. HOW ARE CHARTER SCHOOLS MANAGED?
Charter schools can be self managed or managed by an external organization. In 2022-23, most charter schools were self-managed.
MANAGEMENT ORG TYPE BY STATE
Note: Data comes from 2022-23 and depicts the management organization types present in the state at that time. This map does not depict all the management types permitted under state law, only those operating in 2022-23. Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kentucky, and Vermont did not have any charter schools in the 2022-23 school year.
A little more than half of charter schools (57%) are freestanding, meaning they manage school operations themselves. The remaining 43% of charter schools contract with external organizations for management-related services. These management organizations help schools with a variety of tasks and operations, including but not limited to staffing, curriculum, services for students with disabilities, facilities, and back-office support, just like a district school may contract a third-party for these same services. Management structures and the relationships these external partners have with their schools vary considerably. In some cases, the management organizations provide limited services; in other cases, they may provide nearly all management-related services and directly hire educational staff. The National Alliance considers an organization to be a management organization if it: (1) manages at least three schools, (2) serves a minimum of 300 students, and (3) is a business entity separate from the schools it manages. Our rationale for setting the threshold at three and not two schools is, “to avoid mistakenly classifying an entity that serves two campuses within the same school, as a management organization”. The two types of management organizations are charter management organizations (CMOs) and education management organizations (EMOs). CMOs manage 32% of charter schools nationwide, while EMOs manage 11% of charter schools.
TABLE 5.1: CHARTER MANAGEMENT ORGANIZATION SHARE
CMOs are nonprofit organizations. Schools working with these organizations often appear as unified networks with similar missions, educational models, and curriculum. However, this is not always the case, as some CMOs manage schools with more diverse models and curricula.
EMOs are management organizations with a for-profit tax status, although it is incorrect to label the public schools that contract with them as “for-profit.” One organization, Academica, manages 22% of these schools, making it the largest EMO operator by a significant margin.
Overall, CMOs tend to be smaller organizations than EMOs. Proportionally more CMOs operate five or fewer schools (61%) than EMOs that operate five or fewer schools (50%). Very large organizations are more prevalent among EMOs. Approximately 13% of EMOs manage 26 or more charter schools, whereas only 5% of CMOs operate 26 or more charter schools. EMOs manage 34% of virtual charter schools and 54% of virtual school students attend these schools.
TABLE 5.2: COUNTS OF MANAGEMENT ORGANIZATIONS BY NUMBER OF SCHOOLS THEY MANAGE
| Management Type | 3 to 5 Schools and Campuses | 6 to 15 Schools and Campuses | 16 to 25 Schools and Campuses | 26+ Schools and Campuses |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CMO | 175 | 85 | 15 | 16 |
| EMO | 22 | 14 | 6 | 7 |
| Grand Total | 197 | 99 | 21 | 23 |
A further note on EMOs: Both charter schools and district schools contract with for-profit educational service providers and EMOs for a wide range of services. A new charter school governing board that wants to partner with an EMO for a new school applies to an authorizer for a charter. If the authorizer approves the application, the board enters into a contract with the EMO to manage or provide other services for the school. Many EMOs serve as vendors for specific management-related services, such as back-office support, hosting web platforms, or staffing assistance. The charter school governing board may end their contract with the EMO at any time and still retain the charter. In other words, the school itself is not a company.
Eight of the 47 places (including states, territories, and D.C.) with charter school laws partially or fully prohibit charter school governing boards from partnering with EMOs in any capacity: California, Maine, Mississippi, Missouri, New York, Rhode Island, Tennessee, and Washington. EMOs are also prohibited from receiving federal Charter Schools Program funds.
Across all locale types, freestanding charter schools are by far the most common, followed by CMO-managed schools, and finally by EMO-managed schools. Towns and rural areas held the smallest share of schools for both CMO- and EMO- managed charter schools. CMOs and EMOs continue to operate mainly in urban and suburban communities respectively, with neither serving significantly more than 15% of rural or town schools.
TABLE 5.3: LOCALE BY MANAGEMENT TYPE SCHOOL SHARE
The majority of CMO-managed and freestanding charter schools operate in urban areas, while EMO-managed schools serve suburban and urban communities more or less equally.
TABLE 5.4: MANAGEMENT TYPE BY LOCALE SCHOOL SHARE
The top 10 largest CMOs manage schools that enroll 11% of students, and the top 10 largest EMOs manage schools that enroll 14% of students. Overall, these 20 organizations support schools that enroll 25% of all charter school students nationwide. A total of 298 CMOs and 54 EMOs served charter schools in 2022-23. The top 10 EMOs listed below account for 84% of all charter students enrolled at schools managed by EMOs. For CMOs, that number is 32%.
As of the 2022-23 school year, KIPP is the largest CMO in the United States, and Academica is the largest EMO. KIPP as an organization supports schools that enroll more than 116,000 students across 21 states. Academica serves more than 112,000 students across 9 states.
TABLE 5.5: TOP 10 CMOS BY ENROLLMENT, 2022-23
TABLE 5.6: TOP 10 EMOS BY ENROLLMENT, 2022-23
CMOs support schools that enroll the highest share of Black and Hispanic students across management types, as well as the highest proportion of students of color overall. Black students make up 29% of the student population managed by CMOs, and Hispanic students make up 46% of students in CMO managed schools.
TABLE 5.7: STUDENT DEMOGRAPHICS BY MANAGEMENT TYPE
Like individual schools, CMO and EMO networks can also subcontract with CMOs and EMOs. EMOs like Academica, which provides a range of services to schools, work with both individual schools and CMO networks. Examples of these CMO networks include Somerset Academy, Mater Academy, Pinecrest Academy, and Doral Academy. Other examples of this type of relationship include the CMO BASIS Charter Schools which contracts with the EMO BASIS Ed. Constellation Schools is a CMO that contracts with the EMO Accel, who also manages several other individual schools. American Charter Schools Foundation and Kaizen Education Foundation are both CMOs who contract with the EMO, The Leona Group.
| Management Organization | Organization Type | Schools and Campuses |
|---|---|---|
| Academica | EMO | 201 |
| Somerset Academy | CMO | 73 |
| Mater Academy | CMO | 43 |
| Pinecrest Academy | CMO | 27 |
| Doral Academy | CMO | 16 |
| BASIS Ed | EMO | 37 |
| BASIS Charter Schools | CMO | 37 |
| Accel | EMO | 66 |
| Constellation Schools | CMO | 16 |
| The Leona Group | EMO | 49 |
| American Charter Schools Foundation | CMO | 10 |
| Kaizen Education Foundation | CMO | 17 |
