charter schools

North Carolina faces estimates of nearly $10 billion in school facilities needs over the next five years. Since 2000, school choice saved taxpayers over $20 million a year in annual capital expenses. Over the last six years, the yearly capital savings totaled nearly $125 million.

For many years, charter-school research has almost exclusively focused on the issue of academic performance. While this issue deserves attention, research indicates that parents choose charter schools based, not on one factor, but on a number of factors related to the schools' social and academic environments.

RALEIGH – Smaller school and class sizes, innovative curricula, and better discipline are leading more North Carolina parents to choose charter schools for their children. That’s a key finding in…

Unfortunately for North Carolina’s students, most of the adult debate over schools has focused on where to find the money to build the schools to accommodate its rapidly growing student population. Last year several NC counties passed bonded indebtedness of nearly $1.5 billion and presently counties and the state are discussing more bonds totaling an additional $3.6 billion.

RALEIGH – North Carolina can avoid large, expensive school buildings while working to improve student performance. That’s the key finding in a new John Locke Foundation Spotlight report. Click…

RALEIGH – The Wake County Public School System has missed the mark in developing its $1.056 billion school facilities spending plan. That’s the conclusion of a new John Locke Foundation…

The most critical challenge facing Wake County Public Schools is to find the most responsive, cost-efficient, and timely way to provide seats for a growing student population. In this regard, the school system’s proposed $1.056 billion school facilities spending plan falls short.

As the law is currently written, the education lottery will do little to fund the most critical needs of North Carolina’s students. Too much of the revenue will be used for unproven class-size reduction efforts and pre-kindergarten programs. Too little of the lottery revenue will be given to school districts and charter schools that have critical school facilities needs. The General Assembly can maximize the educational benefit of the lottery revenue by distributing more funds for capital expenditures to high-growth school districts and to charter schools.

RALEIGH – North Carolina’s education lottery would set aside too much revenue for unproven educational programs, a new John Locke Foundation report argues. A better formula could lead to…

North Carolina recently filed a lawsuit going after private restraints of trade. But if the state really wants to reduce unfair trade practices and help consumers, it should eliminate or modify its own anti-competitive policies. The certificate of need law, occupational licensing, and other state-imposed restraints of trade hurt consumers and the economic freedom of North Carolinians.