- Charter Schools In Washington DC Given A Boost By Education Philanthropist, Jeffrey Epstein [Maya Angelou PCS is mentioned]
- D.C. Schools Outspend Nation Per Student
Charter Schools In Washington DC Given A Boost By Education Philanthropist, Jeffrey Epstein [Maya Angelou PCS is mentioned]
MarketWatch
June 21, 2012
The Jeffrey Epstein VI Foundation has just given substantial financial support to the Maya Angelou Charter Schools located in the inner city of Washington DC.
The funding comes at a time when public education in the nation's capital is still in crisis. According to the Office of State Superintendent of Education, 37% of public high school students read at 3rd grade level or below, 42% are considered proficient in elementary math, 43% in elementary reading, SAT scores are 200 points below the national average and 43% of all public school students are overweight or obese. As a result, privately funded charter schools, have continued to grow and now serve 38% of public school students in DC.
Founded in 1997 by David Domenici and James Forman, Jr., the Maya Angelou Charter Schools are administered by the See Forever Foundation. The foundation started as a program for teens in the juvenile justice system and later evolved into four successfully run schools, named after the Pulitzer author and poet, Maya Angelou. The schools include the Evans Middle School, Evans High School, The Maya Angelou Academy, at the New Beginnings Youth Development Center (the facility for adjudicated deliquent D.C. youth) and The Maya Angelou Young Adult Learning Center which supports older students with some high school credits.
Over the last school year, the Maya Angelou Schools have enrolled more than 600 students. The approach is pragmatic, focusing on essential skills such as reading and math, overcoming special learning needs, or reconnecting and inspiring students who are alienated from the system. "Our goal is to help students reach their potential and prepare for college, career, and a lifetime of success," David Domenici remarked.
The results of the schools have been promising: 73% of graduates enroll in college as compared to 50% of local low- income high school graduates; 87% of alumni persist through the 1st year of college and 60% earn college degrees. In a national study by Mathematica Policy Research, the Evans High School was recognized with the EPIC Silver Gain Award for producing significant gains for students, one of four schools nationally to earn this distinction.
The Jeffrey Epstein VI Foundation which helped fund these schools, was established in 2000 to support science education throughout the United States but has evolved to support inner city and youth based education. "Charter schools, though generally well run, are not the ultimate solution," Jeffrey Epstein commented. "But they can serve as powerful examples of how public schools should be run. Schools should be held to high public standards, but they need to have autonomy to be efficient; with the ability to raise private funds, determine coursework, textbooks and teaching methods."
D.C. Schools Outspend Nation Per Student
The Washington Examiner
By Lisa Gartner
June 21, 2012
D.C. public schools are spending more per student than any state in the nation, writing an $18,667 check for each child, to oust New York as the top spender, according to 2010 census data released Thursday.
Meanwhile, Montgomery County Public Schools outspent all of the 50 largest school districts in the nation except New York City, with a price tag of $15,582 per student.
Top-spending states
Rank: State, Per-pupil cost in '09/'10, Cost (rank) in '08/'09
1: D.C., $18,667, $18,126 (1)
2: New York, $18,618, $15,552 (4)
3: Wyoming, $16,841, $16,408 (2)
4: New Jersey, 15,783, $16,271 (3)
5: Connecticut, $15,274, $15,175 (5)
Top per-pupil spenders among the 50 largest school districts
Rank: District, Per-pupil cost in '09/'10, Cost (rank) in '08/'09
1: New York City, $19,597, $19,146 (1)
2: Montgomery County, $15,582, $15,447 (2)
3: Baltimore, $14,711, $14,379 (3)
4: Milwaukee, $14,038, $13,444 (5)
5: Prince George's County, $14,020, $13,756 (4)
9: Fairfax County, $12,554, $13,210 (6)
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
Prince George's County Public Schools ranked fifth among large districts, at $14,020, while Fairfax County's public schools came in at ninth by spending $12,554.
Pockets run deep in the Washington area, as smaller school districts in Arlington ($17,519), Alexandria ($17,574) and Falls Church ($18,209) spent even more per student than the larger suburbs.
But despite being the lowest performer in most respects, the District's $18,667-per-student cost -- up from $16,408 the prior year and up 39 percent since 2006 -- topped the region as well as the nation in 2010. The District spent the fourth-most among states in 2009, but was No. 1 in 2008.
"We're setting the stage to have rapid improvement," said Brandon Frazier, a spokesman for the D.C. Office of the State Superintendent of Education, which oversees DC Public Schools and the city's charter schools. "We understand this isn't an immediate return, but it's an important investment [we have] made."
It's not uncommon for top-tier and struggling school systems to both be among the biggest spenders.
Inner-city systems like the District's provide interventions for students living in poverty or who don't speak English at home at a greater level than suburban school districts, while systems like Montgomery County's justify their expensive seats with high achievement. For instance, Montgomery has topped the nation for graduation rates among large school districts for four consecutive years, according to rankings by national magazine Education Week.
"We think our citizens are getting a strong return on that investment and we're serving our students really well," said schools spokesman Dana Tofig.
Under Maryland law, school systems are required to increase their spending per student every year, without seeking a waiver. However, the county has been unable to keep up with that law during difficult budget times, and Montgomery schools cut their per-student spending in the two school years following the census data.
The question for the District is whether its sizable sum is being spent efficiently, said Matthew Chingos, a researcher with Brookings Institution's Brown Center on Education Policy.
"In the last couple years, there has been evidence of some improvements out of it, but think of the money they're putting in -- $19,000 -- that's a lot of money, and it makes you think. It raises questions," Chingos said.
Mayor Vincent Gray approved a 2 percent increase in the per-pupil spending formula for fiscal 2013. DC Public Schools declined to comment, referring questions to OSSE.
Frazier emphasized that much of the District's spending goes beyond classroom hours, to teacher development, technology and year-round programs.
"Just as the issues plaguing education in the District did not occur overnight, neither will the solutions," he said.