Charter high schools boost graduation and college rates

A fascinating new study in Florida and Chicago shows that attending a charter high school are more likely to graduate and more likely to go to college.  The study, from EducationNext, studied groups of 8th grade charter school students who attended both charter high schools and traditional district schools when they entered 9th grade.

We find evidence that charter high schools in both locations have substantial positive effects on both high school completion and college attendance. Controlling for key student characteristics (including demographics, prior test scores, and the prior choice to enroll in a charter middle school), students who attend a charter high school are 7 to 15 percentage points more likely to earn a standard diploma than students who attend a traditional public high school. Similarly, those attending a charter high school are 8 to 10 percentage points more likely to attend college.

So, that's quite a finding.