To kick off our countdown until the 2022 Power Players in Education list is published on October 3rd, we asked James Merriman, CEO of NYC Charter School Center and an acclaimed expert on charter school policy, to explain the key differences between public charter schools and traditional schools operated by the Department of Education. James also gives us a rundown of some of the benefits that public charter schools can offer students, especially those from low-income households or communities, and he helps make sense of the logjam in Albany regarding the issuance of new charters.