- Ward 8 parents, teachers, challenge D.C. school closure plan
- Charter school board approves adult education pilot [Booker T. Washington PCS mentioned]
- D.C. forecasts charter school shortfall of $20.5M
Ward 8 parents, teachers, challenge D.C. school closure plan
The Washington Post
By Emma Brown
November 28, 2012
A standing-room only crowd of parents, teachers and activists gathered Tuesday evening at Savoy Elementary School in Southeast Washington to critique and challenge Chancellor Kaya Henderson’s plan to close 20 under-enrolled schools.
Activists who came expecting to rally to save schools at a town-hall style forum were instead asked to offer feedback in small groups, each of which had a facilitator taking notes. (Some of the notes are posted online.)
A representative from each table then reported out to the whole group at the end of the evening.
Empower DC organizer Daniel del Pielago called it a “divide and conquer” strategy meant to dilute public protest. School system spokeswoman Melissa Salmanowitz said the setup was designed to encourage constructive input from all participants.
“The purpose of these meetings is to have active and productive conversations, and this is the best way to get that,” she said.
Three City Council members attended the meeting: David Catania (I-At-Large), Muriel Bowser (D-Ward 4) and Marion Barry (D-Ward 8), the only member to speak publicly.
Barry more or less endorsed the chancellor’s closure plan, saying Ferebee-Hope Elementary should stay open, but other schools must be shuttered. Malcolm X Elementary, he said, should be developed as housing, retail or office space.
Echoing statements he made last week during a council hearing on the school closures, Barry offered effusive praise for Henderson.
“A breath of fresh air," he said of the chancellor. (“Whatever,” a skeptic in the audience said loudly.)
Henderson walked around the room listening in on — and sometimes joining — the conversations. Many parents and teachers raised concerns about how DCPS plans to ensure safe and smooth transitions for students moving from one school to another.
Some sought details about how money saved through closures would be reinvested in schools, and others wanted assurance that consolidating schools would not result in larger class sizes.
Parents and teachers from Ferebee-Hope argued that their school, with its swimming pool and host of before- and after-school activities, should be allowed to remain open. Perhaps its extra space — the school is using 54 percent of its capacity — could be used for adult education, suggested Pho Palmer, who was elected in November as an advisory neighborhood commissioner.
Several teachers from Malcolm X Elementary pointed out that the school’s staff was just reconstituted in June. Already there have been improvements, they said, and with more time they’d show more progress.
If the school must be closed, said preschool teacher Jennifer Snodgrass, then perhaps its staff could move with the students to Turner Elementary and operate as a distinct school-within-a-school. That would minimize transitions for students who already lack stability in their lives, she said.
At the very least, “we ask that DCPS not turn our school over to a charter school,” Snodgrass said to applause. “We have plenty of charter schools in Ward 8, and we don’t need any more.”
The community meeting was the first of four scheduled over the next week. The chancellor said she would try to respond to the questions and suggestions that arise out of the meetings.
Charter school board approves adult education pilot [Booker T. Washington PCS mentioned]
The Washington Informer
By Dorothy Rowley
November 28, 2012
During a recent gathering of the D.C. Public Charter School Board (PCSB), officials approved a pilot for the school system's adult education curriculum that will measure effectiveness by tracking student achievement and graduates' ability to obtain employment.
The pilot, which was given the thumbs up at the board's Nov. 20 meeting, will be fused into the 2012-13 academic year to gauge performance among adult education programs.
"Previously, the schools accepted targets they agreed to meet," said charter schools spokeswoman Audrey Williams. "However, the framework is going to be looking at things in a different way."
The adult-oriented program at Booker T. Washington (BTW) Public Charter School for Technical Arts in Northwest, for instance, enrolls more than 100 students and has thrived since it opened in 1999. As a result, the program, which offers a construction trade under the school's Virtual Enterprise program, could also serve as a model for the pilot.
Currently operating in conjunction with local contractors, unions and government placement programs, BTW provides unemployed and underemployed District residents an opportunity to develop and gain education, employment and entrepreneurial skills.
As part of the participants' studies they come up with a business idea, and then write a business plan. In addition, students who plan to go into business for themselves perform administrative, human resource, finance and marketing tasks their companies might use in transactions.
While at least three applications were submitted this year to the public charter system for adult learning centers, just one – Community College Preparatory Academy, will offer about 150 seats when it opens next year – met the board's conditional approval. The school could open either in Ward 5, 7 or 8.
District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) spokeswoman Melissa Salmonowitz said that generally speaking, the adult education [alternative] schools have seen an increase in enrollment.
"We are aligning the Continuing Training and Education offerings to meet needs in the D.C. metro area so that our adult students will have the skills necessary for the workplace," she said. "Graduation rates are also strong across [these] schools."
Alex Donahue, is a deputy director for the nonprofit Northwest-based 21st Century School Fund, which advocates for local school districts on a national level. Donahue, who has also been a principal with Roosevelt Senior High School's adult education program, said that overall, DCPS is trying to make sure it has a way to assess the effectiveness of programs being funded with public dollars.
"Those mechanisms to assess providers and programs were not in place in past decades," Donahue said. "The only numbers they had, were how many adult students graduated."
He added that the concern then focused on whether after graduation, students were fully equipped to enter the job market.
"And that was not answered," said Donahue. "So it's been kind of an empty landscape – an area that's missing infrastructure and policy, and now they're trying to develop these tools."
Mary Filardo, 21st Century executive director, added that it was a good move on the PCSB's part to launch the pilot. She said however, that her organization will be keeping a close watch.
"Whether or not they come up with the right measures," Filardo said, "we will absolutely be looking at how effective these programs are in providing our adult students with what they need, and if they want to go on to further education or employment."
D.C. forecasts charter school shortfall of $20.5M
The Washington Examiner
By Alan Blinder
November 27, 2012
The District is facing a potential budget shortfall of more than $20 million in its public charter schools, city officials said Tuesday.
"It's due entirely to enrollment going up higher than projected," said Eric Goulet, Mayor Vincent Gray's budget director, told lawmakers. "We projected in the budget an increase in enrollment. Enrollment has actually surprised us and the experts."
Although an audit of enrollment figures has not been completed, education officials projected in October that charter school enrollment had climbed by 11 percent to 35,019 students. The District has budgeted $542 million for charter schools for the current fiscal year.
Mayor Vincent Gray said the threatened shortfall, which Goulet said stood at $20.5 million, was not a pressing concern.
"I don't think it's bad news at all because what it says is public education is growing," Gray said.
City law requires that the District balance its budget each fiscal year, and the District said it would continue to monitor the "spending pressure" and adjust its budget accordingly. The fiscal year concludes Sept. 30.
In the most recent fiscal cycle, Gray used millions of dollars in surprise revenue to close budget gaps.
Goulet said the District had acted last week to find funding for a special election the city will hold next year. Had the city not responded, Goulet said, the special election would have triggered an $832,000 shortfall.