Books or Guards? Charter School Security Costs

Little is known about the costs charter schools incur to foster security--a vexing phenomenon when one considers policymakers' and parents' seemingly high and growing want for school safety. Using data from the National Center for Education Statistics and Texas, we reveal how much charter schools spend on security, how they put these resources to use, and the extent to which spending differs between charter and traditional public schools. Our findings contribute to a sparse but important literature on how charters allocate resources generally, while also disaggregating an important, yet little understood, component of school spending. (Contains 11 tables and 4 notes.)