From the
Washington Times (I know, I know, but they do better local coverage than the Post)
Montgomery County school officials appear poised to approve the county’s first charter school, but want more time before reaching a final decision.
The county’s Board of Education voted Thursday to delay until July 25 a vote on whether to approve Community Montessori Charter School, a proposed pre-kindergarten to third-grade school to be run under county supervision by Kensington nonprofit Crossway Community Inc.
...
The Maryland General Assembly legalized charter schools in 2003, giving local school boards complete authority over whether to accept or deny applications. The schools are founded by private groups, but are publicly funded and staffed by union teachers.
Forty-two charters have since opened across the state, including 33 in Baltimore. But Montgomery officials have long resisted the schools, which are often established to provide unique instruction in underperforming school districts. There are more than 5,000 charter schools in the United States.
(Emphasis mine.)
I'm much cooler on charter schools than I was a few years ago, but Maryland seems to more or less be doing it right: keep the number low, use them as labs rather than substitutes for traditional public schools, and keep the union involved. Plus I'm pro-Montessori enough that I'm happy about this.