Number Of The Day

January 4, 2012

26,730

There are 26,730 schoolchildren enrolled in 80 charter schools in New Jersey, a 16.7 percent increase over last year, according to the New Jersey Charter Schools Association. Overall, New Jersey has about 1.35 million children enrolled in public schools, so kids attending charters make up less than 2 percent of the school population.

The New Jersey Charter Schools Association says the growth in charter school attendance was fueled by the opening of eight new charters, in addition to the expansion of 47 existing ones. According to the association, there are about 20,000 children on various waitlists to attend a charter school.