Before Virginia Jones starts her car in the morning, she glances enviously at the students filing through the doors at North Kenwood/Oakland Charter School just across the street.
What Jones deems a superior education for her daughter lies just a few feet from her East 46th Street home. But her commute is made longer and hopes shrunk smaller simply because of the luck of the draw.
"It's crazy because I'm outside directing traffic for these people's kids and I can't put my child in this school, all because of some lottery system," said Jones, whose 6-year-old daughter, Marquira, attends Jackie Robinson Elementary School.
Charter schools, which have led the way in the attempts to rejuvenate local education, seldom have attendance zones. Without the zones, residents citywide are eligible to apply.
But when a child's academic future is dictated by a raffle, some wonder if quality education in Chicago is more chance than choice.
Jones' daughter is joined by more than 10,000 students statewide on the waiting list for enrollment in one of Illinois' 34 charter schools. And after two failed attempts, Jones is convinced that there is more to the issue.
"Something's going on," she said, "because I've been here for six years and can't get in, but these high-income people just move in here and have no problem getting in."
But state charter school law was adjusted two years ago so attendance zones could be created to avoid this situation and ensure a greater chance of admission for low-income minorities. Currently, only two schools have zones.
Illinois Network of Charter Schools statistics suggest that low-income minorities benefit the most. Seventy-five percent of Illinois charter school students come from low-income families and 94 percent of Chicago's charter school students are African-American or Latino.
Many attribute the success of charter schools to their independence from many mandates, which allow for longer school days, control over spending, an autonomous curriculum and, ultimately, less bureaucratic red tape.
However, freedom comes at a cost. Charter schools receive no capital funding and about 80 percent of the annual funds granted to other public schools. This leaves little room for expansion in a system that prides itself on small classes and low transfer rates.
For those like Jones who have been unable to overcome the obstacles surrounding charter school enrollment, the window of opportunity for her child's academic betterment is almost shut.
"If my daughter doesn't get in this year," Jones said, "I'll probably move somewhere else so she can go to a good school because this process is just too long and frustrating."
