I'll stand up and say that I have two kids who have received an excellent education at P.S. 69. It's a big, busy school, and it's not for everyone. But they do an excellent job on behalf of their wide and diverse student body. They are extremely resourceful in attracting grants and special programs, and offer cultural and arts programming that is unparalleled anywhere in the area as far as I have been able to tell. They are large enough to be able to tailor classrooms to different students' paces of learning. And 7-8 years ago, when the city was beginning its tumultuous transition to a new curriculum, the school had the foresight to get out ahead of the changes, and the teachers were much better prepared to implement them than at most schools across the city.
I also know a lot of parents who were quite pleased with P.S. 222, especially its bilingual education program.
In most cases, the kids and parents I know who opted instead to attend the various charter schools in the district were also happy with their choices.
There are always cases where a school or a teacher doesn't come through for a student, but at the elementary school level, I haven't heard of this happening systematically in our area. I'd be interested in hearing if others have a different view.
Bottom line -- every kid is unique, and a charter school may well be the right choice of a particular child. I like the idea of a STEM school for girls, and am sure there would be a lot of interest in it. But we are fortunate that some of our zoned schools in Jackson Heights are excellent, and there is no reason to assume that sending your child to one of them is any kind of compromise.