Enrollment soars at virtual charter schools, but critics claim it's killing public schools

When the coronavirus pandemic hit the United States, traditional brick-and-mortar schools were forced to pivot to online learning. Days turned into months and in some cases years with millions of students and their parents left to fend for themselves. When schools reopened, fearful parents, frustrated by their schools’ access to remote learning, started seeking other options, such as virtual charter schools.

Lured in by flashy advertising campaigns with big promises of specialized learning, hundreds of thousands of parents signed their children up, bringing a fringe education option into the mainstream.