Charter School Expansion, Catholic School Enrollment, and the Implications for School Choice

Catholic schools have seen more than a 30 percent decline in enrollment over the past 20 years. While some of the decline in enrollment may have been spurred by secular trends or the clergy sex-abuse scandal, the increase in free schools of choice, principally public charter schools, may explain at least some of this decline. In this paper we estimate the effect of the opening of charter schools in proximity to Catholic schools across the entire U.S. We find that the opening of a nearby charter school has a negative impact on Catholic school enrollment and increases the likelihood that the school will close. We also find suggestive evidence that charter openings induce a decrease in White-peer exposure to Black and Hispanic students in Catholic schools. Findings are especially pronounced in K8 schools, rather than high schools.