GothamSchools — daily independent reporting on NYC public schools

Finally, a conversation into which we can really sink our teeth!

And then you have to start by talking about unions. Organize, don’t organize, it doesn’t matter, just give me a high quality school.

I recommend you take this conversation in the following direction: (1) VISION (2) COHERENCE

Many, not all, charters have done those two things really, really well. Once everyone in a school community agrees on these, then there is another frontier that has not always been a strength of the charter movement (but I know is something on which Harlem Link and Renaissance have worked very hard) and that is (3) INVESTMENT. And then finally you can address (4) QUALITY. With regard to investment, how involved are teachers, parents and school community members in general in the running of the school? How well do they understand what’s going on?

It’s a slam-dunk yes that unions can be partners with “management” (whatever that is) in reform…but if everyone is fighting over vision then you’re not going to get beyond antagonism and question marks with that or any other partnership.

I’d like Stacey and Marc to talk about the elephant in the room – bad charters that should get shut down but aren’t.

I know Stacey and Renaissance.  Renaissance is one of the exceptional charters.  They have a real PA/PTA, work together with their parents, respect their students and parents and are very active in their community.  But not all charters are good charters.

Waiting for Superman stated only 1 out of 5 charters are successful.  Let’s talk about the 4 out of 5 which aren’t successful and their devastating impact on families and students.  Specifically, Ross Global Academy Charter School – the worst school in NYC.  Below is a blog from Mariama Sanoh, a RGA parent.  Stacey & Marc, let’s please have a transcontinental conversation about this.

“We’re still waiting for Superman here in Charterland”

Magicians often use smoke to distract their audience and achieve illusion. The result leaves audiences not only captivated but also mystified. In the film “Waiting for Superman,” charters are held out as the potential saviors of our public school system, despite the fact that nationally, they do no better and often worse than district public schools. (See this study, for example.)
Moreover, because they float outside the normal governance system and are privately managed, terrible charter schools sometimes are allowed to continue, despite poor performance. Too often, their wealthy supporters use their money and their influence to evade accountability. My family’s experience with Ross Global Academy (RGA) charter school is indicative of the problems that often hide behind the smoke and mirrors in Charterland.
Charter schools have been in existence in New York State for over a decade. They appear to offer what every parent wants for their child, which is a private school education at no additional cost. Small class sizes, sciences, arts, and enriched activities are what have drawn countless parents to charters, and me to Ross Global Academy charter school, for my three children.
Ross Global was founded by Courtney Ross in 2006. Ms. Ross is the wealthy widow of the Steve Ross, former head of Time Warner. In Forbes she was recently profiled as “ a role model for the charter school business.” On the school’s board sit many powerful and influential people. The walls of the school are covered with paintings and glossy nature photos, and the children are served gourmet meals with organic vegetables. They take music, dance and Chinese, and start the day with either yoga or t’ai chi. Michael Duffy, the former head of charter schools is quoted in the Forbes article as saying about Courtney Ross, “What she has done is remarkable.”
Yet the reality is quite different. There have been numerous problems with this school, chronicled in magazines and newspapers. NY magazine ran a profile, describing Ms. Ross’ imperious and impulsive leadership style (said one ex-employee, “It was as if Donald Trump were a school principal.” The NY Sun reported on a scandal linked to test tampering.
Even worse, the school has had 20 percent student attrition rate for each of the first three years of its operation. During 2009-2010, the year my children first enrolled, the attrition rate soared even higher. As the NY Post reported, “Village school students take charter flight”, 91 out of 410 students had left RGA by February of 2010, because of bullying and the counseling out of special education students.
There has also been extremely high turnover of teachers, according to the NY state school report cards — 82% and 75% during the first two years of operation. RGA is currently on its 7th principal in four years! Other teachers and top administrators have vanished, including the assistant principals from the middle and lower schools. Last June, my daughter was on her sixth English teacher of the year.
The teacher turnover rate at charters is very high, both nationally and in NYC. Why should teachers leave in such high numbers if the charters create such ideal environments for teaching and learning?
Last year, our former Principal, Julie Johnson, assured parents that despite the massive turnover of school staff, our children were receiving strong academic support, ensuring that they were on track to succeed on the state exams. We realized only after the release of Ross Global’s scores this summer this could not be further from the truth. RGA performed way below average .. My daughter’s 6th grade class performed horrifically. Only 9% of her class scored at grade level in ELA (the state average is 81%) and only 11% at grade level in math ( the state average is 61%).
Though the grades on the school progress reports are not fully reliable, the lowest score of all was received by Ross Global Charter School. It also received an “F” for environment, based on teacher and parent surveys. I can vouch for the accuracy of those surveys.
I still have not received my children’s individual scores, but due to the dismal scores for the 6th grade, I felt I had no choice but to remove my daughter from RGA’s middle school. I have since placed her in a district public school.
According to the charter lobby and authorizers, there are supposed to be multiple levels of oversight and accountability for charter schools. According to the SUNY charter institute, “When one considers the legislatively mandated oversight of each charter school by its own board of trustees, its charter authorizer, and the New York State Board of Regents…. it becomes clear that accountability is more than a goal for charter schools, it is a non-negotiable requirement. “
Yet where are these multiple levels of oversight when it comes to Ross Global? The school was authorized by NYC Department of Education, and the State Education Department is also supposed to oversee its operation and ensure its performance. Where is their accountability in this fiasco?
Many school leaders and other charter officials will tell parents that if they don’t like the school, they should leave. It is far from easy for parents to simply uproot their children from their schools. I still have two of my children attending the RGA lower school because I believe in choice. I have a special needs child, and I hope that RGA makes the effort to not only to retain my child but educate him. If charters are truly PUBLIC schools, they need to serve ALL students, including the special needs student population.
This is also why I am working with NY Charter Parents Association, an independent organization that supports the improvement and reform of charter schools, because we recognize that involved parents help make GREAT schools. We want to ensure that all charter schools are delivering on their promises to parents.
According to the recent school grades, twice the percentage of charters got failing grades last year than district public schools (8% compared to 4%). Not only the school grades, but also the recent election results show that not all is right in Charterland. The hedge fund moguls, the daily papers, and Education Reform Now and its associated lobbyists all tried to silence the dissenting voice of Senator Bill Perkins, who has been working for more accountable charter schools.
On September 14, 2010, the people of Harlem spoke up, and Senator Perkins won in a landslide, showing that our children and communities cannot be bought. I hope this is a warning to DOE, the charter lobbyists, their funders, and the authorizers, to remember this: it is our children you are supposed to serve.

First off, I would like to thank Aaron Listhaust, Chief Academic Officer for NYC Charters, for referring GothamSchools to me. Thank you, Mona Davids, for posting your concerns about “bad charter schools”. What do you do about about a new charter school that is run by young, inexperienced administration who claim to support their teachers but do not? You also mentioned about your special needs child. I was in a new ‘arts-infused’ school in the Bronx where the guidance counselor visited the classroom on a daily basis. He saw that the needs of numerous students in the class were not being met and that we were doing a “disservice” to them by keeping them mainstreamed in a regular ed. classroom setting. After approacing administration about the issue, nothing was done and fingers were being pointed at the classroom teacher. How can we educate students in the proper context if student needs are not appropriately met? Mona, you also mentioned how there was a constant turnover of teachers in the school where your children attend. Thank you for mentioning that because if these “bad” charter schools continue to run poorly, where teachers are being overworked and unsupported, there will continue to be a high turnover of staff, which is unfortunate for parents and students. I am not by any means putting charter schools down. I know there are some highly effective and great charters out there. But, as with everything, it all begins at the top. With a great administration comes a great staff, who not only love their jobs, but produce highly effective lessons for their students, thus resulting in high test scores and rankings of the schools. However, the same is true with poor leaders. The rest trickles down to every aspect of the school, thus resulting in what is known as a “bad charter school”. Mona you hit all of your points right on the nail. For future parents considering putting your child into a charter school, I highly recommend doing your research on the school first. I would also advise to shy away from the idea of your child attending a brand new school. There are a lot of procedures that go into founding a new school. Unless the administration has had prior administration experience, it might be a good idea to get involved with a more established school.

Hey “KitchenSink” err…Steve…from your school environment score looks like the might be reason for your teachers to unionize. It’s not surprising your stance on working with unions when you cant work with your own staff.