In Minnesota charter schools are tuition free independent public schools that are open to, and welcome all students not matter ability or need, and are governed and operated jointly by license
d teachers, parents and community members.
In 1991, Minnesota launched an initative designed to unleash education from the conventions that limited educational achievement, choice and innovation. The initiative created "public charter schools" - independent public schools focused on improving academic achievement and creating new, different and innovative learning environments; teaching methodologies; assessments; accountability systems; and professional development opportunities for teachers.
Today, forty states and the District of Columbia and several foreign countries are part of the charter school movement. In the United States alone there are over 3,700 schools that enroll over one million young people.