'They have an awful lot of latitude to do what they do, what they want to do, the way they want to do it,' said Dennis Parman, executive director of the Montana Rural Education Association.Ĭriticism around the country ranges from admission practices to test scores. Sue Vinton, R-Lockwood, charter schools would be exempt from Title 20 of Montana law, which establishes curriculum requirements and teacher licensing requirements, among a broad swath of educational policies.įor these reasons and more, charter schools appeal to some parents but are also controversial. Two bills passed during the 2023 Montana Legislative Session and signed by Gianforte establish different frameworks that allow charter schools to operate in Montana. We should love and protect them and give them as many choices as we possibly can.'Ĭharter schools are publicly-funded schools that are part of public school districts but are exempt from certain state and district rules and regulations. 'We need to remember all of these students are Montanans. 'It really should be looked at as a complement to our public offerings, not as competition,' said Schreiber. 'The areas that have really been, I would say, the most proactive with parents and people interested in doing this have been the Flathead, the Bozeman area, Missoula and Billings,' said Trish Schreiber, a volunteer with Community Choice Charter Schools for Montana, a group that's been pushing the state to join the charter school movement for year. Those laws will take effect July 1.Īlready pro-charter school groups are eyeing parts of the state to set up the alternative public school model, especially in Montana's largest cities and their surrounding areas.

Greg Gianforte signed into law a pair of bills paving the way for charter schools to come to Montana. Montana was one of five states in the country without a charter school law on the books, but that recently changed as Gov. BILLINGS - With a pen stroke from the governor, the word is out-Montana will be open for charter schools.

Billings pro alternative