K-12 Schools in Rochester

Academy of Health Sciences Charter School

Academy of Health Sciences Charter School provides a learning environment that ensures academic achievement while preparing students for college and career readiness and lives of service in the health sciences.

Discovery Charter School

Discovery Charter School provides a high-quality education in a safe and supportive learning community for students and families, empowers students with diverse talents, delivers rigorous and culturally relevant instruction, and fosters creativity, inquiry, as well as strong character development. Discovery Charter School is an elementary public school (K-6), whose charter was approved by the New York State Education Department in December 2010, and opened its doors in August 2011.

Eugenio Maria de Hostos Charter School

It is the mission of the Eugenio María de Hostos Charter School to create a safe and nurturing community of learners where students earn the Seal of Biliteracy (English and Spanish), learn to advocate for social justice and are prepared to enjoy and access what the world has to offer.

If a child cannot learn the way we teach, then we will learn to teach the way the child can learn.

Exploration Elementary Charter School for Science and Technology

We are a new kind of elementary school, developed with Rochester and our scientifically advanced, interconnected world in mind! As the area’s first science and technology-focused elementary school, Exploration students will be prepared for success in school, college, and life in the 21st century.

The mission of Exploration Elementary Charter School for Science and Technology is to engage students, their families, and the community in the processes of scientific inquiry and the use of innovative technology to develop the social, emotional, and academic tools necessary to thrive in school and in today’s interconnected world.

Genesee Community Charter School

The Genesee Community Charter School - among the highest performing EL Education schools in the nation – is located on the campus of the Rochester Museum & Science Center.

Genesee Community Charter School enrolls approximately 215 students in kindergarten through sixth grade. As a charter school, Genesee Community Charter School is publicly funded and there is no tuition. Enrollment is open to all city of Rochester residents, and a lottery is held in April of each year for incoming kindergarten students and for vacancies as they are available in first through fifth grades.

Genesee Community Charter School’s curriculum focuses on local history and the natural world and—as an EL Education school – students are immersed in three interdisciplinary learning expeditions each year. Classes frequently venture into the community for purposeful and rigorous field studies integral to their ongoing learning experiences. Music, visual arts, dance, and creative movement are integrated into the academic and social life at Genesee Community Charter School. The school is nationally recognized for its implementation of the EL Education model and its approach to arts integration. Since it was founded in 2001, Genesee Community Charter School has been one of the most successful K–6 schools in New York as measured by the New York State Education Department’s School Performance Index.

Renaissance Academy Charter School of the Arts

The mission of the Renaissance Academy Charter School of the Arts is to provide children an enriched and rigorous education through the humanities and arts integration leading to success in college, careers and life.

Rochester Academy Charter School

At RACS, we celebrate the power of choice by providing parents and students with unique life-changing learning experiences. Like public schools, our educational services are tuition-free. Unlike public schools, our approach to learning is different in ways that make a positive difference in our student’s lives.

At RACS, expectations run high. We expect more from students by challenging them with demanding academics including our Science and Technology Entry Program (STEP) run in conjunction with Monroe Community College. We expect more from teachers and hold them accountable for providing students with the motivation, inspiration and support they need to achieve. We expect more from administrators and staff by making sure they do everything possible to give students a safe, secure school environment where learning is always priority one.

Uncommon Schools, Rochester Prep

Since our founding in 2006, our free public schools have served Rochester families with an award-winning instructional model that supports students’ academic and personal growth leading to consistent top performance on state and nationwide exams. As the first K-12 charter schools in Rochester, our students are immersed in college-prep culture from day one. Our teachers infuse joy into every day, creating an active engaged learning environment and preparing every student to succeed in college and beyond. All of our scholars graduate with college acceptances and our alumni are attending top colleges and universities near and far from Carleton College to Syracuse U and succeeding.

We believe that every child deserves an outstanding education, and we are committed to working beyond the walls of our schools to achieve that goal. We partner with teachers and leaders from public school districts in New York and New Jersey to improve classroom instruction. Our books—including Get Better Faster and Driven by Data—and professional development workshops have helped millions of teachers around the world achieve better outcomes for their students.

Our schools are joyful and rigorous, full of love and learning, and fiercely dedicated to closing the achievement gap and changing history.

University Preparatory Charter School for Young Men

For more than 20 years, we have remained dedicated to our founding mission. We are proud to operate 55 schools serving 21,000 students across Boston, Camden, New York City, Newark, Rochester and Troy. By 2022, we will send more than 1,000 young people from low-income communities to college every year.

Urban Choice Charter School

The mission of the Urban Choice Charter School is to provide Rochester students with a safe, supportive, and intellectually challenging educational environment. The central philosophy is that strong student-teacher relationships are essential to student motivation, engagement, and achievement. This philosophy, in combination with authentic efforts at family involvement, and the effective teaching of a rich, rigorous, and engaging curriculum, will enable students to build a strong foundation for college and career readiness, exceed state achievement standards and defy the demographic challenges of poverty.

Vertus Charter School

We believe that every child deserves an outstanding education, and we are committed to working beyond the walls of our schools to achieve that goal. We partner with more than 3,000 teachers and leaders from public school districts in New York and New Jersey to improve classroom instruction. Our books—including Teach Like a Champion and Driven by Data—and professional development workshops have helped millions of teachers around the world achieve better outcomes for their students.

Young Women’s College Prep Charter School of Rochester

YWCP offers young women from the city of Rochester the opportunity to learn in a single-gender environment, free from stereotypes, where a strong focus is placed on preparation for college enrollment and graduation. We support students in their endeavors to achieve excellence in and out of the classroom, helping them to develop the strong voices they will need to be leaders. YWCP believes in educating the whole girl, which encompasses academic achievement, career and college preparation, leadership, and personal and social development.