Charter School Funding: Did Initial Pandemic Relief Advance Equity in the City? - Executive Summary and Major Findings

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Sarah

The report analyzes how initial emergency COVID relief funds affected equity in charter-school funding across 18 U.S. cities during FY20. It compares funding received by traditional public schools (TPS) and charter schools, using federal and state data, and addresses whether relief widened or narrowed the preexisting charter funding gap and whether FY20 relief was distributed equitably relative to student poverty. Findings show charter schools received higher per-pupil COVID relief, which only modestly closed the gap and outcomes changed when PPP dollars were excluded.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages21

Reading Time53 min

AccessFree to download

Executive Summary

Major Findings

# Charter School Funding: Did Initial Pandemic ReliefAdvance Equity in the City? Alison H.JohnsonJosh B.McGee Patrick J.WolfSchool Choice Demonstration Project Department of Education ReformJay F.MayUniversity of Arkansas 201 Graduate Education BuildingLarry D.MaloneyFayetteville,AR72701December 2023( # Charter School Funding:Did Initial Pandemic Relief Advance Equity in the City? Alison H.Johnson Josh B.McGee Patrick J.Wolf Jay F.May Larry D.Maloney December 2023 School Choice Demonstration Project Department of Education ReformUniversity of Arkansas 201 Graduate Education Building Fayetteville,AR 72701 As Arkansas'flagship institution,theUniversity of Arkansas provides aninternationally competitive educationin more than 200 academic programs.Founded in 1871,the U of A contributesmore than $2.2 billion to Arkansas'economy through the teaching of newknowledge and skills,entrepreneurshipandjobdevelopment,discoverythroughresearch and creative activity whilealso providing training for professionaldisciplines.The Carnegie Foundationclassifies the U of A among the top 3%of U.S.colleges and universities with the highest level of research activity.U.S.News &World Report ranks the U of A among the toppublic universities in the nation.See how the Uof A works to build a better world at ArkansasResearch News. The College of Education and Health Professions established the Department of Education Reform in 2005.The department's mission is to advance education andeconomic development by focusing on the improvement of academic achievement inelementary and secondary schools.It conducts research and demonstration projects in fiveprimary areas of reform:teacher quality,leadership,policy,accountability,and school choice. The SchoolChoice Demonstration Project(SCDP),based within the Department of EducationReform,is aneducation research initiative devoted to the non-partisan study of the effects ofschool choice policy and is staffed by leading school choice researchers and scholars.Led byDr.Patrick J.Wolf,Distinguished Professor of Education Reform and Endowed 21st CenturyChair in School Choice,SCDP's national team of researchers,institutional research partnersand staff are devoted to the rigorous evaluation of school choice programs and other schoolimprovement efforts across the country.The SCDP is committed to raising and advancingthe public's understanding of the strengths and limitations of school choice policies andprograms by conducting comprehensive research on what happens to students,families,schools,and communities when more parents are allowed to choose their child's school. ## Executive Summary In this report,we extend our analysis of school funding during FY20 from our 2023 report,"CharterSchool Funding:Little Progress Toward Equity in the City."In that report,we found that,on average,charter schools receive about 30 percent($7,147)less funding per pupil compared to traditionalpublic schools(TPS).That analysis excluded COVID relief funding.Here we compare the initialemergency COVID relief funds received by TPS and charter schools in 18 US Cities:Atlanta,Georgia;Boston,Massachusetts;Camden,New Jersey;Chicago,llinois;Denver,Colorado;Detroit,Michigan;Houston,Texas;Indianapolis,Indiana;Little Rock,Arkansas;Memphis,Tennessee;New Orleans,Louisiana;New York City,New York;Oakland,California;Phoenix,Arizona;San Antonio,Texas;Tulsa,Oklahoma;and Washington,DC.We use data from federal and state sources to address the followingresearch questions:(1)did emergency COVID relief funds allocated to publicly-funded schools inFY20 widen or narrow the preexisting charter school funding gap?and(2)was initial COVID relieffunding(allocated for FY20)distributed equitably relative to student poverty? ## Major Findings ·On average across 18 cities in FY20,charterschools received 53 percent($451)moreCOVID relief per pupil($1,302)compared toTPS($851;see Figure ES1). ·This charter school advantage in terms ofCOVID r

FAQs

What research questions does the report address about FY20 emergency COVID relief?

It asks whether FY20 emergency COVID relief widened or narrowed the preexisting charter school funding gap and whether initial COVID relief was distributed equitably relative to student poverty.

How did COVID relief per pupil differ between charter schools and traditional public schools across the 18 cities?

On average in FY20, charter schools received more COVID relief per pupil than TPS across the 18-city sample.

Did COVID relief fully close the preexisting TPS–charter funding gap?

No. The charter advantage in COVID relief helped only marginally close the gap, and excluding PPP dollars would have widened it for TPS.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Sarah