Charter Schools and Students with Disabilities: Admissions Equity

Many states are now offering parents a choice in where their child attends school, typically offering charter schools as the alternative to public schools. With charter school enrollment on the rise, questions have begun to arise regarding the acceptance rates of students with disabilities, specifically, how do students with disabilities fare in the process of being admitted to charter schools? This research examines the admissions policies of charter schools, the admission rates for students with disabilities, as well as the legality and equity of this topic. Previous research has found that charter schools typically do not accept as many students with disabilities due to increased difficulties in providing education for these students. This topic is of the utmost importance due to the ever-growing number of charter schools, charter school enrollment, and students with disabilities. This topic was researched through a literature review of existing research on the topics of charter schools, charter school admissions, and the education of students with disabilities in charter schools. This research found that many charter schools do not accept students with disabilities proportionally as they are enrolled in public schools; however, this practice is legal in most states. This research adds to previous findings on this topic by suggesting strategies for how charter schools could improve their admissions and education process in order to make education equitable for students with disabilities.