November 29, 2010
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Articles of Interest...
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Funding Opportunity:
The Arts in Education Model Development and Dissemination (AEMDD)
For the full article click here
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Funding Opportunity:
Grants for the Integration of Schools and Mental Health Systems program
For the full article click here
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Contact Us
Ohio Alliance for Public Charter Schools
33 N. Third Street,
Suite 600
Office: (614) 744-2266
Fax: (614) 744-2255
www.oapcs.org
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Notes from CEO Bill Sims
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Annual Ohio State Charter School Conference
A huge thank you to all who attended this year’s state charter school conference, sponsors, exhibitors, workshop presenters and speakers. Each year this annual community event grows, and as it expands the opportunity for community networking and sharing grows with it, in this case dramatically as attendance was up 60% from 2009. Anticipating the annual growth we moved the event from the Crown Plaza North to the Hyatt Regency at the Columbus Convention Center. I’m happy to report that we will be there once again next year (mark your calendars now), November 7-8, 2011.
The “State of the State” address at the conference is now on the OAPCS web site for those who have asked or for those who may be interested. A personal thank you to Peter Groff, President of the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, for his participation and keynote address and to Ann Higdon (ISUS), Stacey Mathews (Cincinnati College Prep), Marty Porter (TSA) and Debroah Mays (Cleveland Arts and Social Sciences Academy) for their “Quartet Keynote” on day two.
Post-Election Fallout
Much of my thinking about post-election fallout for charter schools is in the “State of the State,” but let me just say a couple of things for this edition of Insight Online. First, the governor-elect supports school choice and the Ohio voucher program. Hopefully with the new administration will come opportunities to repair some aspects of Ohio charter school law and the sometimes vague administrative rules that have governed portions of the law, e.g., requiring districts to give community schools first option on unused public school facilities.
Second is the reality of our current state budget circumstances. We have suggested to the governor-elect’s policy advisors that the current budget circumstances should be viewed as an opportunity to close the funding gap between district students and charter school students, and that a piece of the facilities funding pie for charters is long overdue; and, resolution to these two major issues for community charter schools can be achieved without significant impacts on the state budget.
However, the budget landscape is austere. The state faces what most agree to be an $8 billion hole in a $53 billion state budget. Just to flat fund K-12 education in the state requires filling an $800 million dollar hole left from elapsed stimulus money from the last budget cycle. As things unfold, the Ohio Alliance will keep its members up to speed on all of the latest developments related to the upcoming executive budget and be assured that the Ohio Alliance will be advocating vigorously on behalf of our community’s priorities.
– Bill Sims
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Record Numbers Set for the 2010 State Conference
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“We’re thrilled to announce that this year’s state conference grew in attendance by almost 60% over last year. This is a trend we have seen over the past three years and it speaks to the notion that this type of conference is sorely needed by the charter school community in Ohio,” stated Bill Sims, President and CEO of the Ohio Alliance for Public Charter Schools. This year’s conference premier sponsor was Imagine Schools and Concept Schools stepped up as our gold-level sponsor.
The third annual conference kick off keynote address was given by Peter Groff, the newly appointed President/CEO of the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. His challenge to charter school teachers, board members, school leaders and parents was to continue the quality trend in Ohio. He was optimistic about the challenges that Ohio Charter Schools have overcome and the future ahead of them.
New this year was a “Quartet Keynote” hosted by Marty Porter (Toledo School for the Arts), Debroah Mays (Cleveland Arts and Social Sciences Academy), Stacey Mathews (Cincinnati College Preparatory School) and Ann Higdon (Improved Solutions for Urban Systems). Bill Sims gave his traditional “State of the State” address. Please click here for the full address.
A highlight of the conference every year is the presentation of awards. This year’s Teacher of the year was Marcie O’Hanlon from Noble Academy in Cleveland. School Leader of the Year honors went to Ray Lambert of Ohio Connections Academy. The Charter School Innovation of the year award went to The Arts and College Preparatory Academy for their work with the Columbus Museum of Art. The Alliance’s annual Distinguished Service Award went to Sally Perz, longtime school-choice advocate, state legislator and early sponsor of Ohio’s charter school law.
Over one hundred student performers from Romig Road Community School, under the direction of Audrea Pettaway, entertained attendees over the two days. Other conference highlights included a networking cocktail reception sponsored by Connections Academy on Thursday afternoon and the school awards celebration sponsored by American Federation for Children.
The new downtown location at the Hyatt Regency was another refreshing change for attendees of the conference. “It’s nice when groups can go out and enjoy all the Columbus has to offer after a full day of sessions,” stated Crystal Craig, business manager at OAPCS. “We are pleased to be able to offer this as a perk of the 2010 conference.”
Attendees enjoyed choosing from over seventy breakout sessions as well as browsing resources from over fifty vendors (up from forty nine breakout sessions and thirty one vendors in 2009). “The interest and support for this conference is overwhelming,” commented Becky Leija, conference coordinator. “Our plan is to continue to grow this event into one of the largest charter school conferences in the country, and with this kind of momentum we are confident that we are on the right track!”
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Ohio Alliance hosts national conference promoting collaboration
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Over 200 policy makers, funders, and education reform leaders, representing 21 states, congregated in Columbus on September 27-28th to celebrate innovative practices between charter and traditional public schools at the Best Cooperative Practices between Charter and Traditional Public Schools National Conference. This invitation-only national conference collected and exhibited best practices from across the country with the hopes of inspiring school improvement through collaboration.
In order to build on this initiative, nationally, the Alliance joined forces with the Denver Public Schools, the Massachusetts Charter Public School Association, the Cleveland Metropolitan School District, the Arizona Charter School Association and the New Mexico Coalition for Charter Schools.
Conference partners: the Ohio Alliance; the Ohio Grantmakers Forum; the KnowledgeWorks Foundation; the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation and KidsOhio.org, with support from The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, understand that building and capitalizing on these relationships does not happen overnight. Through the demonstration of genuine examples of charter-district cooperation the conference made an important case for collaboration, not confrontation, in advancing our nation’s educational effectiveness.
Conference highlights included United States Secretary of Education Arne Duncan’s welcoming remarks to conference attendees, stressing the importance of collaboration. Other welcoming remarks were given by Deborah Delisle, Ohio Superintendent of Public Instruction, George Espy, President, Ohio Grantmakers Forum, and Bill Sims, President, OAPCS. Christine Fowler Mack (Cleveland Public Schools), Tony Roberts (Georgia Charter Schools Association) and Dr. Noemi Donoso (Denver Public Schools) delivered keynote addresses on the importance of collaboration for school improvement. Rounding out the general session, Adam Porsch of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation gave a special presentation on a District/Charter Collaboration Compact that is emerging in cities across the United States where traditional districts in cities are forming collaborative compacts with charter schools in their domains. Additionally, a panel discussion was held addressing the obstacles to district/charter collaborations and how best to overcome them.
Twenty-five best practices were showcased during the conference to demonstrate current collaboration and positive outcomes. Among the practices presented were:
· A charter school and district collaboration where students learn about and manage alternative energy sources that provide economic savings to the entire district
· District endeavors to convert vacant buildings to schools or campuses hosting both charter and traditional schools
· School leaders and teachers from charter and traditional schools working together to manage, analyze, and use data effectively
· A district school that worked with a charter to allow incoming students from the charter to continue their involvement in a language immersion program
· Teacher induction programs that have new charter and traditional teachers working side-by-side to learn and share twenty-first century instructional practices
With the success of the conference, it is OAPCS's sincere hope that the collaboration conversation continues with the Alliance leading a national endeavor to catalogue these cooperative practices. The Alliance will endeavor to continue the initiative by creating an internet repository of collaborative practices and by hosting similar conferences bi-annually to keep the spirit, effectiveness and momentum of such collaboration going. A compilation of the best practices showcased at the conference has been published and made available to conference participants and OAPCS members.
If you are an OAPCS member and would like a copy of the Proceedings Publication 2010, please email Amy Black, National Conference Manager at ablack@oapcs.org with your name, email address, organization and title. If you would like more information about the conference, please visit www.oapcs.org/national-conference or contact Amy Black, National Conference Manager at 614-744-2266, ext. 226 or ablack@oapcs.org.
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2010 Ohio Charter School Academic Performance Award Winners
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OAPCS was honored to present Ohio Charter School Academic Achievement Awards at our recent State conference. A growing number of Ohio charter schools are Aspiring to Greatness – as evidenced by the increases in the number of schools recognized in each award category. In 2010, 13 Ohio charter schools received an Excellence Award for maintaining an Excellent Rating for two or more years (up from 5 schools in 2009), and 18 schools received a Constant Quality Award for maintaining an Excellent or Effective Award for at least three consecutive years (up from 7 schools in 2009). In addition, 38 schools received School Improvement Awards, for increasing at least two academic designations in the past two years. Congratulations to all our award winners!
2010 Excellence Awards: schools that have achieved an EXCELLENT rating for at least 2 consecutive years
1. Citizens’ Academy (Cleveland)
2. Constellation: Old Brooklyn Community Elementary (Cleveland)
3. Constellation: Old Brooklyn Middle School (Cleveland)
4. Constellation: Outreach Academy for Students with Disabilities (Cleveland)
5. Horizon Science Academy Columbus High School (Columbus)
6. King Academy Community School (Cincinnati)
7. Menlo Park Academy (Cleveland)
8. Noble Academy Cleveland (Excellent with Distinction) (Cleveland)
9. T.C.P. (Technical College Preparatory) World Academy (Cincinnati)
10. The Autism Model School (Toledo)
11. The Intergenerational School (Cleveland)
12. Toledo School for the Arts (Toledo)
13. Wickliffe Progressive Community School (Upper Arlington)
2010 Constant Quality Awards: schools that have achieved an EXCLLENT or EFFECTIVE rating for at least 3 consecutive years
1. Arts and College Preparatory Academy (Columbus)
2. Cincinnati College Preparatory Academy (Cincinnati)
3. Citizens’ Academy (Cleveland)
4. Cleveland Entrepreneurship Preparatory School (Cleveland)
5. Constellation: Old Brooklyn Community Elementary (Cleveland)
6. Constellation: Old Brooklyn Middle School (Cleveland)
7. Constellation: Puritas Community Elementary (Cleveland)
8. Horizon Science Academy Cleveland High School (Cleveland)
9. Horizon Science Academy Columbus High School (Columbus)
10. King Academy Community School (Cincinnati)
11. Menlo Park Academy (Cleveland)
12. Oakstone Community School (Columbus)
13. Pathway School of Discovery (Dayton)
14. T.C.P (Technical College Preparatory) World Academy (Cincinnati)
15. The Autism Model School (Toledo)
16. The Intergenerational School (Cleveland)
17. Toledo School for the Arts (Toledo)
18. Wickliffe Progressive Community School (Upper Arlington)
2010 School Improvement Awards: schools that have increased at least 2 designations in the past two years
1. Academic Acceleration Academy (Columbus)
2. Academy of Columbus (Columbus)
3. Alliance Academy of Cincinnati (Cincinnati)
4. City Day Community School (Dayton)
5. Clay Avenue Community School (Toledo)
6. Cleveland Arts & Social Sciences (Cleveland)
7. Columbus Arts and Technology Academy (Columbus)
8. Columbus Preparatory Academy (Columbus)
9. Constellation: Elyria Community Elementary (Elyria)
10. Constellation: Mansfield Community Elementary (Mansfield)
11. Elite Academy of the Arts (Cleveland)
12. FCI Academy (Columbus)
13. FOCUS Learning Academy of Southeastern Columbus (Columbus)
14. Foundation Academy (Mansfield)
15. Harvard Avenue Community School (Cleveland)
16. Hope Academy East Campus (Cleveland)
17. Lancaster Digital Academy (Lancaster)
18. Lancaster Fairfield Community School (Lancaster)
19. Life Skills Center Akron (Akron)
20. Life Skills Center of Hamilton County (Cincinnati)
21. Life Skills Center Southeast Columbus (Columbus)
22. Life Skills Center of Summit County (Akron)
23. Life Skills of Trumbull County (Warren)
24. Life Skills Center of Youngstown (Youngstown)
25. Marcus Garvey Academy (Cleveland)
26. The Maritime Academy Toledo (Toledo)
27. Millennium Community (Columbus)
28. Mound Street IT Careers Academy (Dayton)
29. New Choices Community School (Dayton)
30. New Day Academy Boarding & Day School (Euclid)
31. Northland Preparatory and Fitness Academy (Columbus)
32. Ohio Connections Academy (Statewide: first eSchool to reach Excellent)
33. Premier Academy of Ohio (Columbus)
34. Summit Academy Akron Middle School (Akron)
35. Summit Academy Alternative Learners Middletown (Middletown)
36. Summit Academy Secondary School Akron (Akron)
37. Wildwood Environmental Academy (Toledo)
38. Youngstown Community School (Youngstown)
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Value Added Superstars!
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Thirty community schools increase an academic designation due to exemplary student growth
Congratulations to the following thirty Ohio Community Schools! These schools were rewarded for achieving Above Expected Growth for two consecutive years based on the 2009-2010 results. Demonstration of outstanding student gains boosted Noble Academy Cleveland to an Excellent with Distinction rating, ten charter schools to an Excellent rating, and ten charter schools to an Effective rating. Not a single charter school was lowered an academic designation for scoring Below Expected Growth for three consecutive years.
Arts Academy, The (Effective)
Central Academy of Ohio (Effective)
Cleveland Arts and Social Sciences Academy (Effective)
Columbus Arts & Technology Academy (Continuous Improvement)
Columbus Humanities, Arts and Technology Academy (Academic Watch)
Columbus Preparatory Academy (Excellent)
Constellation Schools: Elyria Community Elementary (Excellent)
Constellation Schools: Lorain Community Middle (Effective)
Constellation Schools: Old Brooklyn Community Middle (Excellent)
Constellation Schools: Westpark Community Middle (Effective)
Crittenton Community School (Academic Watch)
FCI Academy (Excellent)
Foundation Academy (Continuous Improvement)
Goal Digital Academy (Academic Watch)
Hope Academy Brown St Campus (Effective)
Hope Academy Lincoln Park (Effective)
Hope Academy Northcoast (Continuous Improvement)
King Academy Community School (Excellent)
Mansfield Preparatory Academy (Continuous Improvement)
Middletown Fitness & Prep Acad (Effective)
Midnimo Cross Cultural Community School (Academic Watch)
Noble Academy-Cleveland (Excellent with Distinction)
Noble Academy-Columbus (Excellent)
Ohio Connections Academy, Inc (Excellent)
Phoenix Village Academy Primary 2 (Excellent)
Richard Allen Academy (Effective)
Summit Academy-Middletown (Continuous Improvement)
Wildwood Environmental Academy (Excellent)
Youngstown Community School (Excellent)
Zenith Academy (Effective)
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OAPCS Membership News
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Attention Authorizers! Free Membership in the Ohio Alliance?
For authorizer/sponsors whose schools are all members of the Ohio Alliance for Public Charter Schools, your membership is FREE! If you are currently a member, you will receive a certificate for your renewal in the upcoming year. Please contact our offices to be notified of how many of your schools are currently members of OAPCS and how many of are still ready to join. We look forward to hearing from each of you shortly.
OAPCS is now on Twitter, be sure to follow us to receive the latest news and updates!
Horizon Science Academy-Dayton works with the Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra
The Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra Woodwind quintet performed for Horizon students on Monday, October 25th, 2010. These musicians introduced each of their instruments, answered questions, and played classical and contemporary music for everyone. This lively and entertaining assembly allowed students to learn about the bassoon, flute, clarinet, oboe, and French horn. The Orchestra’s music was both inspiration and uplifting to our school. How can your school work with the community like Horizon Science is doing? Make everyone opportunity a learning opportunity.
Parent Membership Program – Be A Brick
The Ohio Alliance for Public Charter Schools (OAPCS) firmly believes that quality performance is the key to the healthy growth and sustainability of the community charter school movement in Ohio.
Quality performance cannot be achieved without parental engagement. Parents deserve to be able to choose the best school for their child, and they need to be involved, informed and active with organization that can help with school choice. So it stands to reason that we want charter-school parents to be knowledgeable and engaged on matters that relate to their children’s schools. So parents: “Be a Brick.” If every parent becomes a “brick,” we can build strong walls that stand firmly for charter schools.
OAPCS is now offering a Parent Membership program that allows individuals to join our organization. Benefits of being an individual member:
• An association of quality values
• Legislative “Updates” and “Alerts”
• Bi-monthly newsletter
• Content-rich website
• Parent Networking/Newsletter
• Discount on products at all Staples Stores
• E-mail bulletins
• Access to OAPCS Community Boards
Please contact Jennifer Brzoski-Wall at jbrzoski@oapcs.org or at (614) 744-2266 ext. 205 to become a Parent Member or for any other membership questions.
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Assessment Updates
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Test Administration in 2011
The OAA test administration in 2011 will begin on April 25. In 2011, Easter is on April 24 and many districts have scheduled, or are considering scheduling, spring break the week of April 25. Spring break during the week of April 25 will mean the district has the week of May 2 for the initial administration and the week of May 9 for make-up testing only.
Districts cannot use the week of May 9 for initial administration. To meet the results deadline in June, the scorable materials need to be picked up during the “rolling” pickup period: May 6, May 9 and May 10. If this does not happen, the return of test results in June would be jeopardized.
Please consider scheduling spring break the week before Easter. If time off is required after Easter, perhaps the Monday following Easter also could be included in the spring break. This still would allow districts time to administer tests the week of April 25.
Reminder – Suspension of Ohio Achievement Assessments (OAA) in Writing and Social Studies
The development and administration of the OAA grades 4 and 7 writing assessments and the grades 5 and 8 social studies assessments will continue to be suspended for the school year 2010-2011 due to budget cuts. The OAA-Alternate Assessment for Students with Disabilities in the areas of writing and social studies also will continue to be suspended for the school year 2010-2011. At this time, we do not know if these tests will be returned to the assessment program. Development and administration of assessments for these subjects is dependent upon funding available in the next state biennial budget.
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Ohio Charter School Teachers: Resources Available for Your Classroom!
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Need classroom materials to teach and support your students this year (lab equipment, calculators, novels, etc.) Sign up for a free teacher account on DonorsChoose.org to begin requesting these resources now!
How do I participate?
1. First, log in to your teacher account on www.donorschoose.org/DonorsChoose.org (if you don't have one, any public school teacher can sign up at www.donorschoose.org/teacher).
2. Once you're logged in, submit a request for the classroom materials you need (microscopes, math manipulatives, models, notebooks – you name it!).
Note: Teachers are especially encouraged to submit projects this summer, as many DonorsChoose.org funders are eager to support requests in the late summer and early fall.
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Apple in Education
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Apple offers special education pricing on Apple computers, software and select third party products to College Students, or Teachers, Administrators and Staff of all grade levels. Call 1-800-MY-APPLE for more information and to register your school and start saving today.
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Customized Insurance Package for OAPCS Members
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OAPCS members have access to an exclusive program for their schools’ insurance needs. CharterSafe is the first insurance program designed specifically for charter schools by school leaders and school insurance experts. CharterSafe was created as a direct response to schools’ needs of finding insurance options that provided the correct coverage at group reduced rates.
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Midwest Auto Auction, Inc.
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Midwest Auto Auction has been contracted to liquidate all of the surplus property of the Detroit Public Schools, as well as several Charter Schools in the Detroit Metropolitan area. As you are probably aware, the DPS is closing another 30 (+) Schools this year and we have also been contracted to close three Charter Schools with several others pending. This surplus property includes every kind of item that would normally be found in any school and needless to say, the list of items that will be sold is lengthy.
For more information they can view our website at www.midwestauctionsales.com or send us an Email at auctions@midwestautoauction.com.
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