KIPP DC named a winner in the 2012 Race to the Top-District competition
December 11, 2012
The U.S. Department of Education has announced 16 winners of the 2012 Race to the Top-District competition, including KIPP DC. The $10 million grant will support KIPP DC's Capital Teaching Residency (CTR) program. A partnership with E.L. Haynes, CTR provides high-quality training environments for aspiring teachers with the aim to close the achievement gap by increasing the number of highly effective educators in Washington, DC. KIPP DC will utilize the Race to the Top grant to support three specific areas of CTR: teacher training, educational tools and technology, and best practice sharing. Congratulations, KIPP DC! To read the full press release, please click here.
PCSB Releases 2012 Performance Management Framework (PMF) Results and New Parent Guide
November 7, 2012
The DC Public Charter School Board (PCSB), along with Mayor Gray and his education team, released the 2012 results of the Performance Management Framework (PMF), the PCSB's annual tool for assessing and monitoring charter school performance. PSCB announced the key findings at a press conference held Wednesday at Center City Public Charter School, Brightwood Campus. The PCSB also introduced its first-ever Parent Guide to the PMF, an at-a-glance guide to charter school quality that will be available at libraries, recreation centers and other locations throughout the city. For the full press release and to view the list of schools, please click here.
Five-year DC CAS Scores Show Steady Growth, Areas for Improvement
July 26, 2012
District of Columbia (DCPS) students have shown notable growth over the past five years, according to the results of the 2012 District of Columbia Comprehensive Assessment System (DC CAS) released by the Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE). In the 2011-2012 school year, reading and math scores among elementary students in DCPS increased, after a two-year decline. Secondary scores experienced a slight decline. Overall, since 2007, when DCPS was placed under the control of the Executive Office of the Mayor, data shows significant gains in elementary math as well as secondary reading and math throughout the district. DCPS composite scores for this year showed DC CAS growth in math (up 2.8 percentage points from 2011) and science (up 5.3 percentage points) as well as an 0.5 percentage-point increase in math after two-years of decline in that subject. To read a full press release, please click here.
Achievement Prep Community Day
May 5, 2012
Achievement Preparatory Academy (Achievement Prep), a public charter school serving 210 scholars east of the Anacostia River, is among the highest performing public schools in the city, according to 2011 DC Comprehensive Assessment System (DC-CAS) scores. To spark new relationships with families and celebrate the East of the River Community, Achievement Prep is hosting its inaugural Achievement Prep Community Day on Saturday, May 5, 12:00–3:00 p.m. in Oxon Run Park (corner of Wheeler Road and Valley Avenue, SE, Washington, DC 20032). The free event is open to all and will feature free food from Hill Country BBQ, music, games and activities for children including a moon bounce and face painting, free raffle prizes and give-aways, the Children’s Hospital Mobile Unit and many other local social service resources. For more information, please click here.
E.L. Haynes Celebrates "Topping Out" at Kansas Avenue
April 13, 2012
On a sunny Friday afternoon, the E.L. Haynes community celebrated the completion of the steel structure that will become the Kansas Avenue high school campus. The ceremonical beam was signed by students, teachers, school leaders, and E.L. Haynes supporters before being hoisted in the air and secured into place. To see pictures from the Topping Out Ceremony or to review the construction process, please click here. Congratulations, E.L. Haynes!
Charter Board Partners launches new website
February 7, 2012
Charter Board Partners was founded in 2010 to promote and foster strong governance for charter school boards in order to improve student achievement. Their work focuses on creating and sustaining a network of advocates for the charter sector and their new website will serve as a valuable resource for boards and board candidates alike. To learn more about their work in recruiting top talent to join DC charter school boards, please click here.
Introducing Ahnna Smith, Teach for America DC Region's new Executive Director
February 3, 2012
After an eight month search, Teach For America DC Region has succeeded in recruiting a superstar new Executive Director: Ahnna K. Smith will join the TFA team in early February. Ahnna served as a 2004 TFA corps member in Miami where she was voted "Teacher of the Year" by her colleagues. After working for TFA as a recruitment director and in London for Teach First, she was recruited by then-Deputy Mayor Victor Reinoso to join his office to support Michelle Rhee's reform efforts and to build relationships with DC's charter schools. She became an instrumental person in City Hall and remained to serve Mayor Vince Gray, working under Deputy Mayor for Education De'Shawn Wright (TFA New York, 1998). To learn more about Ahnna and to read the full announcement, please click here.
IFF Study, Quality Schools: Every Child, Every School, Every Neighborhood: An analysis of school location and performance in Washington, DC
January 26, 2012
Commissioned by the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Education, the IFF (Illinois Facilities Fund) study provides a supply and demand analysis of quality public school options citywide and by neighborhood cluster. Based on DC-CAS data—both recent test scores and projected growth—the study organizes all public schools (DCPS and charter) into four performance tiers. Schools in the top quartile (Tier 1) are considered "performing;" Tier 4 schools are identified by a combination of low-performance and under-enrollment.
Key findings:
1. DC needs to supply an additional 39,758 Tier 1 seats to serve all public school students; 68% of this need is concentrated in 10 neighborhood clusters, referred to as the "Top Ten."
2. DCPS and the Public Charter School Board should prioritize efforts to increase the numbers of performing seats in the Top Ten.
Recommendations to increase performing capacity in the Top Ten and across the city:
1. Invest in facilities and programs to accelerate performance in Tier 2 schools.
2. Close or turn around Tier 4 DCPS schools; close Tier 4 charter schools.
3. Fill seats in and sustain capacity in Tier 1 schools.
4. Monitor Tier 3 schools.
DC
Public Charter School Board Announces Selection of New Executive Director
December 9, 2011
The DC Public Charter School Board (PCSB) has selected Scott Pearson to serve as the organization’s new Executive Director. Pearson most recently served in the Office of Innovation and Improvement at the U.S. Department of Education, where he oversaw federal charter school programs. He was a co-founder and chair of the board of Leadership Public Schools in San Francisco, a charter management organization operating college-preparatory high schools in the South and East Bay areas. Pearson also had a distinguished career in business at America Online and Bain and Company. He is a long-time resident of the District of Columbia. To read the full announcement, please click here.
Charter School Board Announces List of High Performing Charter Schools; Report cards show schools’ annual performance
December 6, 2011
The DC Public Charter School Board (PCSB) recently announced the results of the Performance Management Framework (PMF), the PCSB’s evaluation tool for assessing and monitoring charter school performance. At a briefing at Achievement Prep Academy—one of the city’s high performing charter schools—the PCSB announced the names of 22 high performing charter school campuses across the city. To read the press release, please click here. To see the full list of schools, please click here.
The Two Year Window
December 1, 2011
The New Republic recently published an article by Jonathan Cohn about new advances in the science of childhood development. The article details the findings of the Bucharest Early Intervention Project in which researchers tracked how children who were removed from Romanian orphanages fared over time in comparison with the children still in the orphanages. The results, as Cohn reports? “Orphans who went to foster homes before their second birthdays often recovered some of their abilities. Those who went to foster homes after that point rarely did.” Cohn goes on to explain that “neglect of very young children does not merely stunt their emotional development. It changes the architecture of their brains.” This article is an excellent example of how to blend research, practice, and policy—exactly what we at CityBridge aspire to do!
Teach Plus is coming to DC!
October 24, 2011
Half of new teachers leave urban classrooms within three years, just as they are beginning to have the strongest impact on student learning. Teach Plus gives effective teachers a reason to stay. Teach Plus' mission is to improve outcomes for urban children by ensuring that a greater proportion of students have access to effective, experienced teachers. The organization is founded on the premise that teachers want to learn and grow in the profession, and want to ensure that their development results in increased learning among their students. An integral part of Teach Plus' work is to build a network of engaged educators who aspire to become leaders in their field. Applications for their DC Teaching Policy Fellowship Program are due November 21. To nominate a teacher or begin your application, click here.
Teachers increasingly use home visits to connect with students’ families
October 9, 2011
This Washington Post article highlights the importance of home visits as a means of establishing trust and building relationships between teachers and families. DC’s Flamboyan Foundation has trained teachers from 47 schools to conduct home visits and the results have been astounding; parents who were once reluctant to enter the school building are becoming active and engaged partners in their child’s education.
LearnZillion launches its new beta site
September 23, 2011
Started at E.L. Haynes Public Charter School to share best practices across classrooms, LearnZillion makes great lesson plans easily accessible online to teachers, students, and parents free of charge. To preview lessons that range from fractions and measurements to statistics and expressions, click here.
What if the Secret to Success is Failure?
September 14, 2011
Paul Tough's recent New York Times article entitled suggests certain character traits have proven to be effective early indicators of academic and life-long success. Tough's piece chronicles two educators’ struggles to implement character development programs in two very different school environments.