Judge Upholds Charter School Law

A legal challenge from every public school in Boone County was denied today, and allows Charter schools to legally operate within the County.

Cole County judge Emily J. Fretwell ruled a 2024 law that allowed charter schools to expand into Boone County was indeed constitutional, siding with defendants including the state of Missouri and Missouri State Board of Education.

Charter schools are independently run public schools that are paid for through public funds. In parts of Boone County, this means they would tap into the same public funding that Columbia Public Schools uses.

The news means that schools like Kansas City-based Frontier Schools will continue to target a 2027 opening for a Columbia-based STEM charter school, and Job Point will likely continue to seek approval to launch a charter school.

Columbia Public Schools has claimed Frontier STEM Academy would take away almost $3 million in public school funding in its first year and take more than $10 million by year five.