Charter schools made more gains than losses in state legislatures last year, according to the latest annual ranking of state charter school laws by a Washington-based pro-charter group.
The report released this month by the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools ranks charter laws in 41 states on how well they support quality and growth of charter schools.
By its measure, Minnesota ranks first, while Mississippi’s charter law is judged to be the weakest.
Florida jumped from 11th place in 2009 to second place, due to passage last year of several “quality-control” measures for charter schools.
Massachusetts and New York also moved up in the ratings because their state legislatures voted to lift caps on charter school growth. A total of 24 states, however, continue to restrict charter school expansion, according to the report.
