Charter schools across the nation have different educational philosophies, curriculums and other additional programs that set them apart from traditional public schools.  Many charter schools are known for small class sizes and highly valued parent involvement.  At the same time, charter schools must meet all district and state health, safety and various other requirements, and charter school students must meet or beat the standardized test scores of district public schools as written in the contract with the resident school district.  Funding to establish these non-profit public schools comes from private foundations, federal grants, corporate and personal donations.  Once the school is in session, it receives a percentage of state public school tuition for each student enrolled.  The charter school movement does not raise taxes, yet maintains the highest overall accountability in order to bring more educational choices to all families in our communities.