NC Coalition for Charter Schools

📢 Big news for NC charter school leaders: our 2026 Preferred Vendors page is live and better than ever!

We've curated a list of 40+ vendors with demonstrated expertise in serving K-12 and charter schools across North Carolina. Whether you're building a new facility, navigating finances, or looking for curriculum and IT solutions, these partners have you covered.

📌 Categories include:
• Architecture, Construction & Design
• Financial & Insurance Services
• Transportation
• Online Learning & Curriculum
• Legal Counsel
• Speech & Behavior Services
• ...and much more!

Many vendors also include testimonials from charter leaders who've worked with them, so you can find the right fit with confidence.

👉 Explore the full list:

Preferred Vendors - 2026 - North Carolina Coalition for Charter Schools Discover trusted partners who help North Carolina charter schools succeed. Explore the Coalition's preferred vendors and their solutions.

🎉 Congratulations to the five newest charter schools joining the NC family this fall!

On Monday, the NC Charter Schools Review Board granted final approval to five schools from the 2026 Ready to Open cohort. These schools are set to welcome students for the very first time in August:

📍 NC Connections Academy – K-12 virtual school, statewide
📍 Warren YES – K-6, Warren County
📍 Carolina Collegiate High School – 9th grade (inaugural year), Durham County
📍 RYZE Charter Academy – K-4, Guilford County
📍 IDYL-Wake – K-6, Wake County

With these additions, North Carolina will have 216 charter schools operating statewide in the 2026-27 school year – continuing to expand high-quality public school options for families across the state.

We’re so proud of these school communities and everyone who worked hard to make this moment possible.

🔗

Congratulations to the five new charters earning opening approval - North Carolina Coalition for Charter Schools Five new NC charter schools on Monday earned approval from the state's Charter Review Board to open in the fall.

🎉 Big news – the NC Coalition for Charter Schools now has 100+ member schools!

We're thrilled to welcome several new members this year, each with a unique mission and community they serve:

Carolina Achieve (Mebane)
GLOW Academy (Wilmington)
Honor Preparatory Academy (Charlotte)
IDYL (Durham)
Telra Institute (Charlotte)
Quality Education Academy (Winston-Salem)

Each of these schools represents what the charter movement is all about: innovative, mission-driven public schools built around the needs of their students.

Read more about our new members →

Coalition welcomes multiple new member schools for 2025-26 - North Carolina Coalition for Charter Schools The Coalition is pleased to welcome multiple new member schools during the 2025-26 school year, bringing membership to 100+ schools!

📊 The numbers are in – and they tell a powerful story for NC charter schools!

BEST NC released their 2026 "Facts & Figures: Education in North Carolina" guide, and the charter school data is worth a look.

The headline? Charter school enrollment in North Carolina increased 129% between 2014–15 and 2024–25 – the highest growth of any education sector, by far. Families are choosing charter schools in record numbers.

The report also breaks down per-pupil expenditures: charter school students received an average of $12,148 in 2024–25, compared to a statewide average of $13,426 – meaning charters continue to do more with less.

Head to our site to see the full charts and find a link to the complete BEST NC report:
👉 https://chartercoalition.org/2026/05/29/new-for-2026-k-12-facts-figures-from-best-nc/

📣 Attention NC Charter Leaders – don't miss this opportunity!
The application deadline for the Yass Prize is Monday, June 1 at 12 PM. If your school is doing innovative, transformational work for students, this award was made for you.

The Yass Prize – often called the "Pulitzer for Education Innovation" – was founded by Janine and Jeff Yass to identify and elevate the next generation of education changemakers. It's built on four principles: Sustainable, Transformational, Outstanding, and Permissionless (STOP).

Since 2021, the Yass Prize has provided grants to education innovators making a real difference in students' lives.

👉 Apply here: https://apply.stopforeducation.org/
👉 Learn more: https://yassprize.org/

Don't wait — June 1 is right around the corner!

Home - The Yass Prize On the Road: The 2026 Yass Prize Roadshow for Opportunity This year’s Roadshow for Opportunity Series was designed not simply as a celebration of finalists and winners, but as an investment in relationships, in shared learning, and in capitalizing on the strengths within the Yass Prize community. ...

🏫 Happy National Charter Schools Week!

Over 160,000 North Carolina families have chosen a public charter school, and this week we celebrate what makes that choice so meaningful.

Coalition executive director Dave Machado highlights some incredible examples in a new op-ed for Education NC.

At Aspire Trade High School in Huntersville -- the first trade-focused public charter in the Charlotte region -- students earn credentials in welding, electrical, HVAC, plumbing, carpentry, culinary, automotive, and more alongside their core academics.

At Triangle Math and Science Academy, students work with the same tools used by professionals in real hospitals and labs through nationally recognized biomedical and engineering pathways.

This is the charter school model doing exactly what it's designed to do: giving educators the freedom to build schools around real student and community needs.
Read the full piece: https://www.ednc.org/perspective-recognizing-national-charter-schools-week/

It's National Charter Schools Week!

NC charter school students are preparing for the future – and also shaping it.

Here's just one example: A student at Northeast Academy for Aerospace and Advanced Technologies in Elizabeth City has already earned his electrical license. He'll begin work the day after graduation earning more than the area median wage.💪

🌟 We're so proud to celebrate the 15 NC charter schools earning Purple Star Awards for 2025-26!

The Purple Star Award, presented by the NC Department of Public Instruction, recognizes schools that demonstrate military-friendly practices and a meaningful commitment to military-connected students and families.

📌 This year’s charter recipients:
• Alpha Academy
• Anderson Creek Academy
• The Academy of Moore County
• Ascend Leadership Academy
• The Math & Science Academy of Apex
• Neuse Charter School
• North Carolina Cyber Academy
• Northeast Academy for Aerospace & Advanced Technologies (NEAAAT)
• The NC Leadership Charter Academy
• Pine Springs Preparatory Academy
• Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy: A Challenge Foundation
• TMSA Charlotte Elementary
• Triangle Math and Science Academy
• Wayne Preparatory Academy
• Wayne Stem Academy

🏆 Extra recognition goes to Alpha Academy and Anderson Creek Academy, which have earned the Purple Star Award every single year since the program launched in 2019 – all 7 years! NEAAAT also earned a legacy plaque for six consecutive years of recognition.

Thank you to these schools for going above and beyond for our military families. 🇺🇸❤️

Congratulations to the 15 charters earning Purple Star Awards - North Carolina Coalition for Charter Schools Fifteen NC charter schools are recipients of the Purple Star Award for 2025-26, recognizing commitment to military families.

A big congratulations to Piedmont Community Charter School for being one of only TWO schools in the country to a win $10,000 grant from Coca-Cola, in partnership with Chick-fil-A Leader Academy!

As the school explained, "The Coca-Cola Sustainability Innovation Challenge encouraged students to develop a vision for a 'world without waste.' From the hundreds of applications received, Piedmont's proposal to construct an Aquaponics System for our school was awarded this grant. This initiative will have a lasting impact on our students!"

Gastonia charter school wins $10k innovation award - North Carolina Coalition for Charter Schools Piedmont Community Charter School in Gastonia is the new recipient of a $10k award through the Coca-Cola Innovation Challenge.