Give the Kids a Chance

Demand for charter schools is up again: 73,000 kids applied for seats this year, up 7 percent from the 68,000 who applied last year, according to a study this week from the NYC Charter School Center.

Sadly, the children are competing for just 25,000 available seats in these alternative public schools. (Total applications were far higher, as many families applied to several schools in hopes of getting into just one.)

The demand is partly driven by dissatisfaction with the regular public schools. This week’s Quinnipiac Poll shows that 36 percent of city voters are unhappy with their local school. That’s less than the 48 percent who were fine with it — but that likely includes plenty of people who don’t have kids.

And, overall, voters are not satisfied with the quality of the schools, by 48 percent to 38 percent.

That may be why only 21 percent of voters say Mayor de Blasio “should retain complete control of the public schools”; 68 percent think control should be shared with other elected leaders.

The mayor, notably, has used his power to try to crush charters — needlessly denying them space, lobbying the Legislature to refuse them fair funding and so on.

All of which supports state Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan’s opposition to renewing de Blasio’s control of the system unless the city’s charter sector is given a fair chance to keep growing.

Someone in New York has to stand up for giving kids the chance at a quality education.