12 States Join Move To Pass Charter Laws

By Mark Walsh

In Massachusetts, as lawmakers and policy analysts debate revisions to a new charter-school law, parents are voting with their pens. Applications have far outpaced the available slots at the 17 charter schools scheduled to open in the fall.

At the City on a Hill charter school in Boston, which will aim to instill its students with a spirit of public service, 140 applicants entered a lottery for the school's first 60 openings. All those prospective students had to attend a two-hour model town meeting just to qualify for the lottery.

Students and parents are not alone in their interest. Nearly 400 teachers have applied for the...