charter school growth

During the 2016-17 school year, 286,809 students enrolled in Florida’s charter schools, according to data from the Florida Department of Education.

That’s an increase of more than 16,600 students from the previous school year.

However, this represents the slowest growth since 2008, both in the sheer number of students and the speed at which it occurred.

From 2010 to 2014, the number of students enrolled in charter schools grew by an average of 13.7 percent a year.  But in 2015 and 2016, the percentage of new charter school students dropped to the single digits. State data show just 6.2 percent growth this past school year.

Charter school closures appear to have outstripped new schools. The number of charter schools operating in the state dropped to 648 in the 2016-17 school year.

Overall, several districts saw increased enrollment in charter schools.

Miami-Dade charter schools grew by 4,584 students to 63,618; Broward also saw a jump in its enrollment to 46,173 students, an addition of 2,376 students; Duval reported an increase of 973 students for a total enrollment of 13,334; Hillsborough saw a boost in the number of students by 1,403 to an enrollment of 18,103; and Orange’s enrollment increased by 1,141 to 13,754.

By contrast, a few districts saw dips in enrollment. Alachua’s enrollment dropped by 722 students to 1,075. Pinellas’ enrollment also declined by 1,003 students to 5,898, as four charters shut down.

A full breakdown of charter enrollment from the 2015-16 school year is available in this spreadsheet. Data from the 2016-17 school year can be found in this spreadsheet.

For several years, the debate over charter schools was defined by scarcity.

*2014-15 figures are preliminary.

In the wake of the Great Recession, enrollment in Florida’s public schools was barely growing, so more the rapid growth of charters pushed enrollment numbers in district schools downward. Recently, that has started to change. Will the debate over charter schools change, too?

More people are moving to the state, and while charters are still growing faster than district schools in some places, both are seeing enrollment rise. As Florida Today has reported, the trend is expected to continue in Brevard County next school year.

Of the projected increase, 733 students are expected to enter into district schools, while 798 students are expected to enroll in charters.

The number of students in charter schools has increased significantly over the past 15 years. In 2000, the district reported 1,050 students in charter schools. For the 2015-16 school year, it is anticipated that 5,078 students will enroll in charters.