October 14, 1998, Washington, DC – Did you know that kindergartners at the Healthy Start Academy in North Carolina scored in the 99^th percentile for reading on the Iowa Basic Skills Test while almost all of the students qualify for the federal free lunch program? Or that in Colorado, 70% of Jefferson Academy students are reading at or above the ‘proficient‘ reading level and 57% at the ‘proficient’ writing level. This beats the district’s scores of 62% (reading) and 37% (writing).

These are only a few of the charter school success stories across the nation released today by the Center for Education Reform (CER) as part of a national assessment surveying charter school achievement since the first charter opened its doors in 1992.

The effect these new schools have had is overwhelming. While the satisfaction of parents and teachers at charter schools has always been high, this is the first documented evidence published to date that demonstrates early evidence of academic achievement.

"Our research indicates that success among charter schools is occurring at a much higher rate than the public or policymakers ever thought," noted CER President, Jeanne Allen. "This mere handful of examples is indicative of what we find happening nationwide."

The Center has also researched the number of charter closings, and will soon release a report documenting that overall, only 2% of all charter schools to date have failed.