School Choice Market Nears 100,000 Students

by Greg Kaza:  Nearly 100,000 Arkansas students attend charter, home or private schools, or are eligible to participate in a public school choice program, according to state Department of Education and non-profit records.

The niche school choice market has grown from 66,627 students (2013) to 97,337 (2019-21). Factors contributing to this market's growth include dissatisfaction with public schools deemed 'failing' in letter-grade surveys, technology that makes distance learning feasible, and religious affiliations.

Charters Largest Group
School choice has advanced since Policy Foundation analysts Allyson Tucker and Donna Watson wrote their landmark 1996 study recommending charters. More than 40,000 students statewide are currently enrolled in charters, a type of public school that is free from certain state regulations.

Education department records show 22,890 students enrolled in open-enrollment charters in the current school year (2020-21). An open-enrollment charter is operated by "a governmental entity, an institution of higher learning or a tax-exempt non-sectarian organization," according to the department.

Another 17,622 students are enrolled in district conversion charters this year. A conversion school "is a public school converted to a public charter school. Conversion schools can only draw students from within the school district's boundaries," the department notes."

Home Schools Are Second Largest Group
Students attending home schools are the second largest group in the Arkansas school choice market. Department of Education records show 26,039 students enrolled in home schools. The number increased this year as more households turned to the practice in response to COVID-19.

Private School Enrollment Declines
Private school rolls declined to 17,843, data from the Arkansas Nonpublic School Accrediting Association, a non-profit, shows. School employees cited COVID-19, noting more households opted to home school this year.

Public School Choice Capped at Three Percent
Another 12,943 students were eligible to participate in public school choice in 2019-20, department records show. The program allows students to transfer to another public school district.
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Greg Kaza is the Executive Director of the Arkansas Policy Foundation. To obtain detailed statistics and article footnotes contact Greg Kaza.

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