Jim Epstein on the Slow and Glorious Death of America’s Worst School System

Camden, New Jersey’s public
school system can’t be saved—but it is on track to
disappear. Every year, more students flee the city’s dangerous
and dilapidated schools, which spend a staggering $27,500 per
pupil, for privately-run public charters that do a much better job
at keeping them safe and preparing them for the workforce. In New
Jersey, charters siphon money away from the traditional school
system, which is one of their best features. Within the next
decade, writes Jim Epstein, the Camden school district is on course
to enter a death spiral, sending the city the way of New Orleans,
which has almost completely replaced its traditional schools with
charters.

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