Were established to attract students to attend a school other than their assigned neighborhood school. Not only did these schools offer a distinctive curriculum; many also offered a first-rate education based on innovative approaches to teaching. Given these educational opportunities, many parents were persuaded to choose magnet schools for their children. There are thousands of magnet schools across the United States.
They tend to be more expensive than their traditional public school counterparts to run; however, research indicates they also tend to be more effective. Magnet schools have attracted over 2 million students since their inception. They’ve had a positive influence on desegregation in some school districts, which was an additional goal for the initiation of magnet schools. But in places with deep racial segregation, they haven’t helped with desegregation.