Commonwealth Charter Academy

Commonwealth Charter Academy
Address
1 Innovation Way Harrisburg , Pennsylvania 17110 United States
Information
School type	Public charter cyber school
Founded	August 11, 2003[1]
Faculty	1170 teachers (2024)
Teaching staff	1170
Grades	K–12 (2013)
Enrollment	20,355 pupils (2024)
Language	English
Website	https://ccaeducate.me/

Commonwealth Charter Academy (previously named Commonwealth Connections Academy) is a large, public, cyber charter school.[2] The school serves all school-aged children in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania regardless of where the child lives. The Academy's headquarters is located in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

History

When the School was originally approved it served Kindergarten through 8th grade pupils all across Pennsylvania.[3]

As of 2013, it was one of sixteen public cyber charters schools operating in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.[4]

As of 2016, the School operated seven additional branches, called Family Service Centers, across the Commonwealth: Andreas, Allentown, Harrisburg, Center City, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Cranberry, Scranton, and Williamsport.[5]

In 2016-17, there were 9,200 students enrolled.[6] By 2023, enrollment was 22,000 pupils in grades kindergarten through 12th, making it the largest public school in the United States by enrollment.[7] The Capital Area Intermediate Unit IU15 provides the school with a wide variety of services like special education for disabled students and hearing, speech and visual disability services and professional development for staff and faculty.

Spending

In 2015-16, the school spent $3.2 million and in 2016-17 $4.4 million in taxpayer dollars on advertising, the most of all of Pennsylvania’s cyber charter schools, through sponsorships, ads in print, TV, radio, Internet and outdoor marketing.[6]

In 2025, it was reported that Commonwealth Charter Academy spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on cars, dining, and entertainment, with little transparency. [8] Commonwealth Charter Academy responded to this report in a letter to the Pennsylvania General Assembly calling out several discrepancies. [9]

References

1. PDE, ED Names and Addresses - School information, 2014
2. Pennsylvania Department of Education (2014). "EdNA - Charter School". Archived from the original on April 7, 2014. Retrieved October 21, 2014.
3. Stan Rapp, COMMONWEALTH CONNECTIONS ACADEMY CHARTER SCHOOL Cyber-Charter School Application, October 1, 2002
4. Pennsylvania Department of Education, PA ED Directory - Charter Schools, 2013
5. Commonwealth Charter Academy (July 2016). "CCA Family Service Centers".
6. Stephanie Hacke and Mary Niederberger (August 29, 2017). "The Charter Effect: Pa. charter schools spend millions of public dollars in advertising to attract students". PublicSource. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
7. Pennsylvania Department of Education (October 15, 2018). "Commonwealth Connections Academy Charter School Performance report fast facts".
8. Hanna, Maddie (January 27, 2025). "Pa.'s largest cyber charter spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on cars, dining, and entertainment, a new report says". PublicSource. Retrieved January 29, 2025.
9. Commonwealth Charter Academy (January 30, 2025). "CCA Letter to General Assembly" (PDF). Commonwealth Charter Academy.

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