Chartering success?

East Boston's own Excel Academy is one of 53 schools across the country selected Wednesday as National Charter Schools of the Year. The public, tuition-free middle school, located in the Saratoga Street plaza that houses a Brooks Pharmacy, serves 180 students from Eastie and Chelsea.

Charter schools are all the rage these days, and two other Boston charters were also among those named. Excel's school day is nearly eight hours long, with students receiving 100 minutes of math and 100 minutes of English each day.