Starting/Investing in a (Charter) School?

[Mat Garcia]

I've seen a lot of charter schools start up in South Florida in the last decade. I've even seen schools that used to be owned by churches become charter schools. Does anybody know about this business or have any experience in it?

My understanding of human nature tells me that most of these schools are there primarily for the monetary profitability (which is not to say they can't be good schools, but I bet that's not the primary reason they exist). Now, I'm actually very interested in education and have played with the thought of starting up a small school for years. But I've thought of this as an almost charitable business that would be fine if it broke even AFTER I've built up and stabilized wealth through other sources.

But all these charter schools have got me thinking- Could I actually start one up with the primary intention of actually providing quality education AND be profitable at the same time?

[Don Konipol]

Quote from @Mat Garcia:

I've seen a lot of charter schools start up in South Florida in the last decade. I've even seen schools that used to be owned by churches become charter schools. Does anybody know about this business or have any experience in it?

My understanding of human nature tells me that most of these schools are there primarily for the monetary profitability (which is not to say they can't be good schools, but I bet that's not the primary reason they exist). Now, I'm actually very interested in education and have played with the thought of starting up a small school for years. But I've thought of this as an almost charitable business that would be fine if it broke even AFTER I've built up and stabilized wealth through other sources.

But all these charter schools have got me thinking- Could I actually start one up with the primary intention of actually providing quality education AND be profitable at the same time?

I’ve probably financed 6 or 7 charter schools in years past.  I’ve also been a landlord for 3 more, although I ultimately sold the property to the charter school in each case. 

While they could be profitable, the ones I was involved with weren’t primarily motivated by profitability.  They were started by religious, community and educational leaders who recognized that the public school system was short changing their community, and a private school system could provide a much better learning environment.  Most Church and related organizations have found that it works best to break the ties between the school and the church as soon a the school is able to stand on its own.