AUGUSTA (AP) — Portland’s first charter school will open its doors this week.

Baxter Academy for Technology and Science is scheduled to open on Wednesday to more than 100 students in the 9th and 10th grade.

The Portland school is one of three new charter schools opening for the first time this year.

Charter schools are public schools run by private groups that agree to meet certain standards in exchange for less regulation. Supporters say students should have the right to choose a school. But opponents say charter schools drain funds from traditional schools.

Current law caps the number of charter schools at 10, but Republican Gov. Paul LePage has said he would like to see more than two dozen in Maine.

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