More than 200 families sat in anticipation Friday as they waited to see who would win the lottery to fill 89 available spots at Charter Day School in Leland.

The Roger Bacon Academy’s Charter Day School is a tuition-free and has open enrollment to the public.  The school opened in 2000 and is a premier performance-driven year round school.  It has a reputation for providing students a strong academic foundation.

Charter Day School has received numerous awards, including the designation of being a Top-25 School for Academic Growth and Excellence in the state of North Carolina.

The school had more applications than seats for each class of students again this year.  There were 235 student applications with only 89 spots available, leaving 146 families disappointed.

“We would love to enroll all families that apply,” states Mark Cramer, Superintendent of Charter Day School. “But the fact remains that the law has limited the growth of charter schools, and until that law is changed we have to follow the guidelines for lottery submissions.”

In an effort to serve all families equally, the school admits applicants by public lottery.  They pulled numbers out of an opaque container.

“Charter schools don’t pick and choose who they want to be in their schools,” said Headmaster Jennifer Beamer. “Our mission is to serve all children equally.”

Public school law states: “Charter schools shall not discriminate against any student on the basis of ethnicity, national origin, gender, or disability and shall not limit admission to students on the basis of intellectual ability, disability, race, creed, gender, national origin, religion or ancestry.”

According to Roger Bacon Academy, state lawmakers are proposing to lift the current cap on charter schools.

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