A Year in Review
As we celebrate 20 years, here's our progress. In school year 2016-17, 65 nonprofits operate 118 schools that educate students living in every ward in the city, up from three schools in 1996. Since 2011, charter enrollment has grown in parallel to higher enrollment at traditional public schools, and today, 44 percent of DC students attend a public charter school.
We've also seen the following trends in our public charter schools.
- Public charter schools serve a student body that is equally or at times more disadvantaged, while outperforming traditional public schools.
- Proficiency for public charter schools has increased steadily over the last ten years and consistently exceeds city averages across virtually all subgroups.
- We are committed to rigorous oversight, leading to closure or improvement of low-performing schools and expansion of high-performing schools. Since 2011, we have closed 20 lowperforming schools and expanded 31 of the highest-performing schools.
- Our oversight has led to record-high attendance rates along with large reductions in suspensions and expulsions.
Snapshots of our public charter schools' accomplishments.
E.L. Haynes PCS
E.L. Haynes is thrilled to share that two of its students in the Class of 2016 received prestigious Posse Foundation scholarships. Founded in 1989, the Posse Foundation identifies public high school students with extraordinary academic and leadership potential whom traditional college selection processes may overlook. Posse partners with colleges and universities to award selected scholars four-year, full-tuition leadership scholarships. E.L. Haynes’ Posse scholars, chosen from more than 1,600 nominees from the DC-region, attend Lafayette College in Pennsylvania and Sewanee: The University of the South in Tennessee.
This school year, Thurgood Marshall Academy and Howard University School of Law partnered up to create Howard Law Academy. This new program provides 10th graders the opportunity to travel to Howard University School of Law’s campus for workshops led by law students, dissect the amendments and apply their learning to everyday situations.
In 2016, YALC launched Seeds For Success, a partnership with Department of Public Works, Department of Employee Services, and Washington Parks and People. The program consisted of weeks of job training in the classroom and hands-on experience, in which students learned the basics of landscaping and other skills. The 9-month program culminated in a paid internship, which turned into full-time jobs for several students. YALC now boasts 13 students with the paid internships and 4 full-time employees at the Department of Public Works!
In October, DC Prep officials and supporters – joined by Preppies, families, alumni, Board Members, and community/business leaders – officially broke ground on a permanent new home for the Anacostia Elementary Campus (AEC) in Ward 8 at a fun-filled neighborhood block party. Through the generosity of The RFI Family Foundation, DC Prep’s Anacostia Elementary – The Ruth & Norman Rales Campus will open in time for the upcoming 2017-18 school year in a newly-renovated building at 1409 V Street, SE – formerly Our Lady of Perpetual Help, a 100-year-old historic landmark in the community. DC Prep is a network of public charter schools, and this will be their fifth campus.
Congratulations to DC International School for being authorized as an International Baccalaureate World School after less than two years in operation.
In September 2016, Breakthrough Montessori opened its doors in Ward 4. This year, Breakthrough serves 91 students ages 3 and 4 with a high-fidelity Montessori model, including early morning and extended day programs offered at no cost to families. Breakthrough further contributed to the growth of public Montessori with both a teacher residency program that will increase the number of trained Montessori teachers in the District and through piloting assessment tools for developmental education.
Congratulations to Jade Snell (7th grade) and Mekah Key (7th grade) who have won the OSSE LEA Institute Series "It Takes a City" Art Competition. Their work has been displayed among other winning artworks printed in the program for the OSSE "It Takes a City: DC Does it Best" Conference and viewed by educators all over the city! Additionally, congratulations to Autumn Rizbrook (7th grade), Naima Danson (5th grade), and Heaven Deloach (4th grade) who have received financial aid to cover 100% of the cost of taking (1) technical dance class a week at Joy of Motion Dance Center.
Center City’s ESL After the Bell program, which provides targeted academic support to English Language Learners in an after-school program, continues to receive external recognition for its success. On Nov 29th and 30th, teachers and leaders from throughout Minnesota visited Center City to learn about their ESL programming with support from the McKnight Foundation and the Urban Education Institute. Our visitors got to observe instruction, hear from teachers and students, and learn about our ESL programming from our campus leaders and central office staff. Our ESL staff were invited to present on their ESL Program to school leaders from throughout New York City at the New York City Charter School Center.
Congratulations to Sarah Tupper for winning the Most Outstanding Teacher of the Year Award at the STARS Tribute 2016 Awards Ceremony presented by the DC Association of Chartered Public Schools.
While DC Bilingual PCS has always had an evolving food and wellness program, this year their new Coordinator, Lola Bloom, has expanded the program to reach beyond school hours and impact their students’ families. With community cooking demonstrations, the addition of chickens to our garden area and more. Other schools throughout the area - - even Loudoun County, Virginia -- have called upon Ms. Bloom to discuss her expansion and success in elevating their program.
At the Carlos Rosario School graduation held in June 2016 the school celebrated the accomplishments of 341 graduates who had earned high school diplomas, became citizens, became fluent in English, earned career training certifications, and entered into family-sustaining wage jobs. Carlos Rosario PCS also raised and awarded $138,000 in scholarship funds to help students going on to college and vocational education programs.
Partnerships are the cornerstone of how public charter schools continue to innovate and provide more resources and services to families and students across the city. On October 15, Briya PCS, Bridges PCS, Mary's Center and close to 1,600 District residents celebrated the opening of the Fort Totten campus. Through the partnership with Mary's Center, students and the community will have access to medical and dental clinics, as well as various support services; additionally, the partnership between Briya PCS and Bridges PCS provides early intervention, early childhood, elementary and adult education programs to students.
Two Rivers is a School That Works! This year, Edutopia dedicated a page of their website to a case study on Two Rivers. The page is called "Creating Problem Solvers" and features instructional videos and articles by staff. To learn more about how Two Rivers teaches and students solve real world problems, visit their website.
100 percent seniors at Cesar Chavez PCS - Capitol Hill High School and Cesar Chavez PCS - Parkside High School were accepted into college, and received approximately $3 million in scholarship dollars from last year.
Kudos to Mr. Giani Clarkson! He was recently featured in the Afro – Washington Area article “D.C. Educator Uses Ford Theatre Fellowship to Teach History.” Now in his second year at MS2, Mr. Clarkson teaches 6th grade Speech, Communications and Debating, and 8th grade U.S. History and Social Studies. Mr. Clarkson has participated in the Ford Theatre’s Fellowship Program for three years.
Early Childhood Academy PCS (ECA) will implement a year-round schooling model beginning SY 2017-18. With the support of an OSSE SOAR grant awarded to the school in 2016, ECA has planned a school calendar that includes a continuous cycle of school programming from August 1 through June 30. Additional free educational opportunities for students will be provided during the three-week intersession periods between each quarter. The school is excited about the new calendar and expect it to support the increased growth and achievement of ECA students.
Early Childhood Academy PCS (ECA) will implement a year-round schooling model beginning SY 2017-18. With the support of an OSSE SOAR grant awarded to the school in 2016, ECA has planned a school calendar that includes a continuous cycle of school programming from August 1 through June 30. Additional free educational opportunities for students will be provided during the three-week intersession periods between each quarter. The school is excited about the new calendar and expect it to support the increased growth and achievement of ECA students.
The complete Year in Review is available to download.
