A new state report shows that the number of charter schools operating statewide in 2024 dropped for the first time in 15 years, but charter school enrollment continued to rise.
There were 208 charter schools in operation in 2024 — down from 211 the year before. It marks the end of a streak of significant growth that began in 2011, when the state lifted the cap that had limited the number of charter schools allowed to operate to 100.
But charter school membership increased by about 6% to more than 153,000 students. If the charter system were a school district, it would be the second-largest in the state — surpassing Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools and trailing only Wake County. Charter school membership has grown by around 32.5% since 2019.
Ashley Baquero, the state’s executive director of charter schools, said she expects those trends to continue.
“Schools that are really strong are expanding or growing students and then those that are struggling are either not opening or closing,” Baquero said.
State officials say they’ve seen fewer applications for new schools. They’ve also been cracking down on schools that aren’t meeting expectations. And real estate for charter schools is becoming harder to secure, making it harder for charter schools to clear the state's “Ready to Open” process, which ensures that charters are prepared to open their doors to students.
And while charters have expanded significantly over the last decade, there are still gaps — only 63 of the state's 100 counties with a school district have a charter school.
The report also showed that the charter school student population has become more diverse since 2010, when white and Black students made up 88% of all charter students. That number has fallen to about 72%, as Hispanic, Asian and other groups have increased.
Still, Hispanic students remain underrepresented compared to their public school peers — by about 8 percentage points. Baquero said she hasn’t found much research to explain disparity, but cited a few potential reasons.
“There can be a lot of language barriers, right? If you’re not marketing and providing materials in Spanish for Hispanic families,” Baquero said. “There could be geographic distribution, like whether charter schools are close to Hispanic communities, cultural factors affecting school choice.”
Charter closures
In 2024, four charter schools were terminated. Veritas Community School in Mecklenburg County and Apprentice Academy High School of North Carolina in Union County both voluntarily relinquished their charters.
Ridgeview Charter School in Gaston County and Children’s Village Academy in Lenoir County had their charters not renewed by the state Board of Education.
Another school, Valor Preparatory Academy in Cabarrus County, relinquished its charter and closed at the end of this school year.
Meanwhile, two new operating schools began operating this year. Nine are scheduled to open in the fall of 2025.
Since charter schools first launched in North Carolina in the 1990s, 94 have closed — with 55 of those schools choosing to relinquish their charters. Baquero noted that 23 of those 55 chose to relinquish their charters before ever opening their doors to students. Among all schools that relinquished their charters, the most common reasons were enrollment or facility problems. These schools were open for an average of four years.
Among the 22 charter schools that have had their charters revoked. In those cases, the average school was open for about 4.5 years, and the most common reason for revocation was financial or compliance issues.
Among the 16 charter schools whose renewal requests were denied by the state, the most common reason was academic performance.
