A new wave of proposed charter schools is making its case to Alabama communities.
Over the next two weeks, five charter school operators are holding public forums as they seek approval to open schools in 2027–28. The hearings mark the latest phase of continued growth in Alabama’s charter sector, which now includes 18 schools operating 25 campuses and enrolling 8,800 students statewide, with more schools already approved to open in 2026 and 2027.
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The first of those five forums was held Thursday night in Dothan, where Time Leadership Academy hopes to open at the start of the 2027–28 school year. More than 50 people packed the Calvary Baptist Church Fellowship Hall and heard from not only founder Nate Patterson, but also nearly 20 supporters about the need for the charter school.
Patterson told the community that while the local school district is working tirelessly, there are students who are not being served well in the public school system. He believes the Academy can help change that.
“Our mission is preparing students in grades K–8 to be confident leaders and change makers through a rigorous, student centered learning environment,” he said.
Remaining forums
The remaining forums are scheduled as follows:
- Xtreme Academy – April 21, 5:30 p.m. Birmingham
- Pathways in Education – April 22, 5:30 p.m. Tuscaloosa
- Florecer – April 28, 5:30 p.m. Birmingham
- C.A. Fredd, Jr., Career and Tech Academy – April 30, 5:30 p.m. Tuscaloosa
The forums are part of a lengthy application process intended to help operators demonstrate public support and give opponents a chance to be heard.
The application process is nearly complete for these five schools, according to Logan Searcy, the Executive Director for the Alabama Public Charter School Commission.
“We are evaluating them, and we will give a report to the applicant, as we will to our commissioners, and then our commissioners will consider that vote on May 4,” she said.
If approved, the schools would join a charter sector that has continued to grow since Alabama lawmakers authorized charter schools in 2015. Even so, charter schools still enroll only a small share of Alabama’s roughly 720,000 students statewide.
At least two new charter schools will open in the 2026–27 school year, and two more are set to open at the start of the 2027–28 school year.
More on charter schools
Charter schools are tuition-free public schools that are given autonomy and flexibility from some regulations in exchange for accountability for the goals they set. Searcy told Alabama Daily News that most of the charter school operators have asked for flexibility in either staffing or school design.
That flexibility can take different forms. A school might propose a longer school day or school year, Saturday classes, or additional time devoted to music, the arts or academics.
A charter school could also plan to hire teachers who have not yet obtained certification in Alabama, though those teachers, like other employees, are subject to background checks, Searcy said.
In exchange for that autonomy, however, charter operators must spell out exactly what they plan to do and how they will be held accountable for results. They are also subject to the same state and federal monitoring requirements as traditional public schools.
Everything a charter operator hopes and expects to do is laid out in the application.
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EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by Trisha Powell Crain and originally published by Alabama Daily News.
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