Shelby County Schools offers educational and employment opportunities without regard to race, color, religion, sex, creed, age, disability, national origin, or genetic information. THE OFFICE OF THE SUPERINTENDENT 160 S. Hollywood Street • Memphis, TN 38112 • (901) 416-5444 • Fax (901) 416-6374 • www.scsk12.org June 1, 2016 It is with great excitement that Shelby County Schools releases its first annual Charter Schools Report. Given the burgeoning charter schools sector in Shelby County, we recognize the need to ensure that our families and the public at large have a better understanding of the opportunities and challenges facing our charter schools and community as a whole. To that end, I want to be very clear with stakeholders about the purpose and spirit of this report. My hope is that this report will give our parents and families clear information on the performance of our charter schools along a number of important dimensions so that they can make more informed choices about the education of their children. Along with our annual report released in November 2015, I believe the Charter Schools Report will help further underscore my administration's commitment to transparency and public accountability as it relates to the quality of education in Shelby County. The spirit of this report reflects both the Board’s and administration's belief that all of our charter schools are, in fact and in belief, Shelby County schools and that some of the historic challenges between the District and its charter sector can be overcome through improved relationships and a shared commitment to informing our community. As evidence of this, I want to take this opportunity to commend our Board on its recently passed "District/Charter/Multi-Operator Compact for Quality Schools," which illustrates our pledge to deepen the District's relationship with our charter sector. We believe this path of collaboration is in the best interest of our school district and best serves all students and families in Shelby County I hope you find this report informative and valuable. Moreover, I hope you will take the time to give us feedback on how the report can be improved in the future so that we can model the kind of continuous improvement ethic that we want all of our educators and students to demonstrate. Sincerely, Dorsey E. Hopson, II Dorsey E. Hopson, II Superintendent
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Shelby County Schools offers educational and employment opportunities without regard to race, color, religion, sex, creed, age, disability, national origin, or genetic information.
ExecutiveSummaryOverthepastdecade,thechartersectorinShelbyCountyhasgrownrapidlyintermsofthenumberofschools and studentsenrolled. In the2015-16 school year,45District-authorized charter schoolsareslatedtoserve12,200students–morethan10percentofallchildrenenrolledinShelbyCountySchools(SCS). Given the increasinglyprominent role that these schoolsplay inoureducation landscape, it isincumbentuponSCSasacharterauthorizertoensurethatallschools,includingcharters,meetrigorousstandardsandofferShelbyCountyfamilieshigh-qualityeducationaloptions.This report is intended to serveprimarilyasan information resource forparents, students,educatorsandothercommunitystakeholdersregardingSCScharterschoolperformanceandtrends.(ThisreportdoesnotincludeperformancedataforcharterschoolsintheAchievementSchoolDistrict(ASD),asthisisaseparatecharterauthorizerfromSCS).ThesectionsthatfollowprovideinformationonSCScharterschool academic performance, enrollment trends and student behavior. When comparing chartersectorperformance to thatof traditionalSCSschools in theseareas,eachsectordemonstratesbrightspotsaswellasareasfor improvement. However,akeyfinding isthatcharterperformancevariesbyschool,andthereareanumberofwaysthattheDistrictcan improve itspracticesasanauthorizertoensureallschoolsmeetaspecificthresholdofquality.
Subsequently, this report also identifies opportunities for improvement in the collective efforts ofDistrict and charter leaders to support SCS’ Destination 2025 strategic plan. Adopted by the ShelbyCounty Board of Education in January 2015, the plan establishes ambitious goals for SCS students,namely thatby2025,80percentof seniorsgraduatecollege-or career-ready,90percentof studentsgraduate on time, and 100 percent of college- or career-ready graduates enroll in post-secondaryopportunities.Thepresenceofeffectivecharterschoolsassistsusinprovidingmorehighqualityschooloptionsforfamilies,whichisacriticalpartofSCS’Destination2025.Inordertoimprovecollaborationwith charter schools as it relates to student outcomes, SCS recommends the following changes inpracticeandpolicy:
• Enact a charter compact that outlines shared commitments ofDistrict and charter leadership, aswellascorrespondingresponsibilitiestomeetthesecommitments.
• Establish a common school performance framework that provides community stakeholders withstandardstudentoutcomesdataforallSCScharterandtraditionalschools.
• Implementanoperationsscorecard thatassessescharterperformance in termsofnon-academicoperations,suchasfiscalresponsibilityandcompliancewithapplicablestateandfederallaws.
AcademicPerformanceIntermsofoverallschoolquality,SCS’chartersectorincludessevenschoolsthatearnedRewardstatusin2015becausetheyareamongthetop5percentofschoolsinTennesseeforstudentgrowth.TheseschoolsareKIPPMemphisAcademyMiddle,MemphisBusinessAcademy(MBA)Elementary,MiddleandHigh,PowerCenterMiddleandHigh,andSTARAcademy.Theycomprised20percentofallSCSRewardschoolsand18percentofallcharterschoolsin2014-15.Conversely,threecharterschoolsarecurrentlyin Priority status because they are among the bottom5 percent of schools in Tennessee for studentproficiency. They are Southern Avenue Middle, Omni Prep Lower and Omni Prep Middle; a fourthschool,CityUniversityBoysPrepwasonthePriorityListin2014butwasoneoftwoSCSschoolstoexitthelistin2015forstrongimprovement.Theseschoolscompriseroughly10percentofboththechartersectorandallSCSPriorityschools.
As a sector, SCS charters have had fairly stable proficiency over the past three years albeit lessimprovement thanSCSasawhole. Theexamsuccess rates1belowshowcharter sectorperformancecomparedtoSCSat-largebygradeband.SuccessratesforschoolsintheK-8gradebandshowthatthechartersectorhas lostgroundcomparedtoSCSat-largerecently. Asof2015,thecharterK-8successrateis37.8percentcomparedto40.0percentforallK-8SCSschools.However,charter6–12andhighschools in the secondary grade band have consistently outperformed SCS as a whole. The chartersecondaryexamsuccess ratehasbeen five tosevenpointshigher than forSCSat-largeover thepastthreeyears.
Yetachievementoutcomesvarybyindividualcharterschoolastheydoforindividualtraditionalschools.ThefollowinggraphsshowsuccessratesforallK-8andsecondarychartersthathadachievementdatain2015comparedtotheDistrictasawholeandtoothertraditionalschoolsinthesamegeographicregionaseachcharter.2WhereasDistrictsuccessratesreflectthecollectiveperformanceofallSCSschoolsinagiven grade band, regional success rates are intended to reflect the performance of charters and
IntheK-8gradeband,11outof24schools(46percent)hadhighersuccessratesthantheDistrictratein2015, and 15 (63 percent) had higher rates than other schools in their region. Two schools—PowerCenter Middle and MBA Elementary—had proficiency rates exceeding 60 percent and are close toreachingthetop25percentinachievementinTennessee.(In2015,thethresholdforthetop25percentwasaproficiencyrateof65percentforK-8schools.)
Amongsecondarycharterschools,sixoutof12(50percent)metorexceededtheDistrictsuccessrate3in2015,andsixhadhigher success rates thanother secondaryschools in their region. Oneschool—PowerCenterHigh—achievedasuccessrateexceeding60percentand isclosetoreachingthetop25percentinachievementinTennessee.
Foreachoftheentry-levelEOCsubjectsbelow,thechartersectorhashadhigherproficiencyratesthanSCSat-large for thepast threeyears. However, thecharter sectordeclined ineachof these subjectsbetween2014and2015whiletheDistrictasawholeimproved.
In2014-15,halfofSCS’secondarycharterschoolshadfour-yearstudentcohortseligibleforgraduation.All six of these schoolsmet or exceeded the district-wide graduation rate in 2015, and four schoolsachieved graduation rates of 90 percent or higher, meaning they are already achieving one of theultimategoalsofDestination2025.Thus,someofoursecondarycharterschoolsaredeliveringashigh-qualityoptionsinthisregardandcanbeinvaluableinhelpingSCSat-largeidentifystrategies,resourcesandsupportsthatcanimprovegraduationoutcomesforstudentsthroughouttheDistrict.
Insummary,therearenotablebrightspots inSCS’chartersectorperformance,specifically intermsofstronghighschool(EOC)performanceandgraduationoutcomes.Yetasthecharterstudentpopulationgrows in Shelby County, the Districtmust improve its authorization structures to ensure that all SCSchartersarecontinuously improvingandprovidingcommunitieswithhigh-quality schooloptionsonaconsistentbasis.
ShelbyCountyCharterSchools:2016AnnualReport
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StudentEnrollmentOverthepastfiveyears,thenumberofstudentsenrolledinSCScharterschoolshasmorethandoubled,ashasenrollmentincharterschoolsinthestate-runAchievementSchoolDistrict(ASD).Shouldcurrenttrends continue, one in five SCS students could be attending charter schools by 2020 with totalenrollment exceeding 20,000. During the 2015-16 school year, more than 12,000 students haveenrolledin45SCScharters,andanother7,400haveenrolledin22ASDcharters intheMemphisarea.SCShasauthorizedanadditional10schoolstoopeninsubsequentyears.
Asagroup,SCSchartershavealowerstudentattritionratethantraditionalDistrictschools.In2014-15,only15percentofcharterstudentswithdrewduringtheyearcomparedtonearly21percentofstudentsintraditionalschools. Elevencharters(28percentofthesector)hadattritionratesbelow10percent,signifyingparticularlystrongretentionoutcomesforstudents.Conversely,sevencharters(18percent)hadattritionratesexceeding25percent,meaningat leastoneinfourstudents leftbeforecompletingtheschoolyear.Whilethereisroomtoimproveforcharterswiththehighestattritionrates,thesectoras a whole demonstrates stronger stability and retention outcomes with students than commonlyexpected.
ShelbyCountyCharterSchools:2016AnnualReport
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AlthoughcharterschoolsnowservefamiliesandcommunitiesthroughouttheDistrict,theyarecurrentlyenrolling a smaller percentage of students with limited English proficiency (LEP) and students withdisabilities(SWD)thantraditionalschools. In2014-15,12.4percentofstudentsenrolledintraditionalschoolshaddisabilitiescomparedto8.9percentofcharterstudents. TraditionalschoolsalsoenrolledLEPstudentsataratethreetimeshigherthanthatofcharters.However,bothsectorsenrolledasimilarpercentageofstudentswhoareeconomicallydisadvantaged.
ShelbyCountyCharterSchools:2016AnnualReport
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Aswithotherstudenttrendsinthisreport,LEPandSWDenrollmentvarybyschoolandregion.IntheK-8 charter sector, only four of 27 charter schools (15 percent)met or exceeded the district-wide LEPenrollment rate. Eleven charters (41 percent) were within at least two points of the regional LEPenrollment rate, which ranged from 0.2 percent to 37.4 percent. This large range reflects thegeographicnatureofmanyLEPpopulationsinShelbyCounty.GiventhatLEPstudentsaremoreheavilyconcentratedinafewregions,thismayhelpexplainsomedisparitiesinenrollmentbetweencharterandtraditionalsectors.
Atthesecondary(K-12)level,onlytwopercentofallstudentswereclassifiedashavinglimitedEnglishproficiency in 2014-15; therefore, differences in enrollment rates were not as pronounced betweencharterandtraditionalschoolsorbetweenregions. Thetwoschoolswith thehighestLEPenrollmentwere Memphis Business Academy High and Memphis School of Excellence, where 2.5 percent ofstudentshadlimitedEnglishproficiency.
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When comparing enrollment rates for students with disabilities, 11 of 27 K-8 charter schools (41percent)metorexceededtheregionalrateand/orthedistrictratein2014-15.Attheotherendofthespectrum, seven charter schools enrolled students with disabilities at less than half the district rateduringthe2014-15schoolyear.ThesearethesevenschoolswiththelowestSWDenrollmentratesonthechartthatfollows,andtheirratesrangefrom3.1to5.9percent.
At the secondary level, four charter schools (33 percent)met or exceeded regional SWD enrollmentratesin2014-15.Onlytwoschools(17percent)exceededthedistrictenrollmentrateinthisgradeband.
StudentBehaviorMaintaining low suspension and expulsion rates is key to students’ academic success in terms ofmaximizinginstructionaltimeandensuringalargernumberofstudentshaveaconsistentpathtohighschoolgraduation.Thechartersector’ssuccessinthisareashouldserveasanexemplarfortheDistrictat-large and offers an opportunity for further collaboration. Yet as with traditional SCS schools,suspensionandexpulsionoutcomesvarybyindividualschool.
ThefollowinggraphsshowsuspensionratesforallK-8andsecondarycharterschoolsduringthe2014-15 school year as compared to regional anddistrict-wide rates. In theK-8 gradeband, 15out of 26schools (58percent)had lowersuspensionratesthantheDistrictrate in2014-15and19(73percent)hadlowerratesthanotherschoolsintheirregion.Fourschools—PowerCenterMiddle,DuBoisMiddleSchoolofLeadership&PublicPolicy,MAHSMiddleandCirclesofSuccess—hadsuspension ratesof0percent in 2014-15. Four other schools—Grizzlies Prep, Omni Prep Middle, Veritas Prep and KIPPCollegiateMiddle—hadsuspensionratesexceeding25percent.
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Overall,thechartersuspensionrateforsecondaryschoolsisnearlytenpointslowerthanintraditionalsecondary schools and only one school—DuBois High School of Arts & Technology—exceeded theDistrict rate in2014-15. All secondaryschoolshad lowersuspensionratesthanotherschools in theirregion. While these trends are consistent with strong academic performance, the District will alsoreview the data to ensure that schools are meeting state reporting requirements and notunderreporting suspension incidents. SCSmay also explore other behaviormeasures in the future toprovidemorecontextforthesetrends.
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ImprovingAuthorizationPoliciesandPracticesToattainthestudentoutcomesthatwillcatapultSCS’chartersectorintothetop25percentforstudentachievement in Tennessee and truly expand high-quality options for students, the Office of CharterSchoolshasidentifiedspecificopportunitiesforimprovingourauthorizerpoliciesandpractices.Theserecommendations have been affirmed by the National Association of Charter School Authorizers(NACSA)duringanevaluationofShelbyCounty’sauthorizerpracticesinthefallof2015.
InpartnershipwithSCScharterleaders,theBoardrecentlyapprovedaframeworkthatoutlinesguidingprinciplesandsharedcommitmentsfortheDistrictanditscharteroperators.Thisframeworkwilldrivethe process for creating a compact between SCS leadership and charter schoolswith the purpose ofimprovingstudentoutcomesandthequalityofcollaborationbetweenorganizationalentities.
The framework then identifies three major areas for shared commitment that charter and Districtleaderswillarticulate intheeventualcompact including:1)accountability,transparencyandaccesstoresources;2)strategicpartnerships;and3)accesstohigh-qualityschooloptions.ThejointcollaborationonandapprovaloftheframeworkisacriticalstepinimprovingcollaborationandpartnershipbetweenSCSauthorizerandcharterleaders.
Throughtheleadershipofacommitteeofcharterpartnersanddistrictprincipals,SCSisintheprocessofdevelopingacommonSchoolPerformanceFramework(SPF)toimprovecommunityknowledgeofallofour school options. SCSwill share standard school performance data for the purposes of promotingcontinuousimprovementinallschools,providingfamilieswithaccuratedataoneducationalqualitytoinformtheirschoolchoices,andholdingallschoolsaccountablefordeliveringstrongstudentoutcomes.Although thisSPF is still indraft form (andmaychangeaswegathermore input), theproposeddatacomponentsandweightingsareasfollows:
• Academic Performance (40 percent) – Academic performance is calculated with studentproficiency rates for reading/language arts, math and science for all students and for eachsubgroup(suchasELLandeconomicallydisadvantagedstudents)atagivenschool.Weproposethatthismeasurebeweightedmostheavilygivenitsimportancetostudentoutcomes.
• AcademicGrowth(30percent)–AcademicgrowthiscalculatedwithTVAASgrowthlevelsforallstudentsaswellasyear-to-yearchangeinproficiencyratesforreading/languagearts,mathandscienceforallstudentsandforeachsubgroupatagivenschool.Weproposethatthismeasurehave the second highest weighting given SCS’ persistent need to accelerate studentachievementandtohonorschoolsthathavemadesubstantialgrowthdespitelowproficiency.
• College and Career Readiness (20 percent) – College and career readiness includes“gatekeeper” indicators of long-term student success (e.g., 3rd grade reading proficiency),successmeasures for students in advanced courses such as dual enrollment, AP and IB, andmeasuresofallstudents’performanceoncollegereadinessassessmentssuchasEXPLORE,PLANandACT.ThiscomponentincludesdirectconnectionstoSCS’Destination2025goals.
• School Climate (10 percent) – School climate includes measures for students, staff andqualitativesurveydata.Studentdataincludesattendance,truancyandpersistenceratesforallstudents and subgroups at a given school. Staff data includes attendance, retention anddismissalratesaswellasthepercentageofeffectiveteachers. Thiscomponentacknowledgestheimportanceofnon-academicfactorsinprovidingfamilieswithhigh-qualityschooloptions.
As the SPF is currently proposed, schools will receive a score of 1 – 5 on each of the four SPFcomponentsthatarethenweightedandaveragedintoafinalSPFscorewithLevel1beingthe lowestandLevel5beingthehighest.AnexamplescorebasedonthedraftSPFisprovidedbelow:
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RECOMMENDATION3:IMPLEMENTANOPERATIONSSCORECARD
In addition to establishing consistent measures of academic quality in the School PerformanceFramework,SCShascollaboratedwithitscharterpartnerstocreateanOperationsScoreCard(OSC)thatassessestheseschools’performanceregardingnon-academicexpectations.Becausecharterschoolsaregrantedsignificantautonomyoverschoolbudgets,operationsandstudentsupports,itiscriticalthattheDistrict enforce clear expectations of fiscal management, safety and compliance that are scoredconsistentlyacrossschools.TheOperationsScoreCardisbeingimplementedforthefirsttimeduringthe2015-16schoolyear,andafullversionofthecurrentOSCisavailableinanappendixofthisreport.Highlightsareasfollows:
• TheOSCincludes15domainsofnon-academicperformancewithindicatorsthatareratedonascale of 1 – 5. Level 1 signifies the lowest level of performance and/or significant issues ofnoncompliance,whileLevel5signifiesexceptionalperformancethatexceedsrequirements.
• In addition to thesedomains, theOSC includesa checklistof compliancemeasures. Charters
thatcompleteagivencompliancemeasurewillreceiveascoreof5whilechartersthatdonotcomplete the measure will receive a score of 1. Examples include providing students withdisabilities with individual education plans (IEPs) as required by law and contributing to theTennesseeConsolidatedRetirementSystem(TCRS)onbehalfofemployeeseachmonth.
Once implementation is complete in2015-16, theOperations ScoreCardwill illustratewhere charterschools are excelling and where they need additional support for non-academic operations, fiscalmanagement, and applicable federal, state and District policies connected to specific metrics ofperformance. School OSC results will serve to highlight charters that are consistently managingoperationswell and to respondappropriately in the interestofprotecting SCSand its studentswhenchartersareatriskfornon-compliance.
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ShelbyCountyCharterSchools:2016AnnualReport
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TheRoadtoDestination2025Given their growing role in our educational landscape, SCS charter schools’ success is integral toexpandinghigh-qualityschooloptionsthatwillhelpimprovecollege-andcareer-readinessoutcomesforstudents in the long run. By: 1) committing to a compact between charter and District leaders; 2)establishingacommonSchoolPerformanceFramework;and3)implementinganOperationsScoreCard,we believe we can accelerate the SCS charter sector’s performance toward these foremost studentoutcomes. Each of these strategic approaches is critical to promoting continuous improvement incharter as well as traditional SCS schools, holding all schools accountable for performance, andcommunicating school quality in a clear, consistent manner to Shelby County families and othereducationstakeholders.
To thatend,SCSwould like to recognize thosecharter schools thathaveproducedsignificantgrowthandachievementoutcomesforstudents in2015andoutperformedcomparableschools intheDistrictandtheirregion,signifyingtheirsuccesstodateashigh-qualityoptions:
CharterSchool 2015RewardList
ImprovedProficiencyfrom2014to2015
Proficiencyis5+Points>District
Proficiencyis5+Points>Region
Level4/5TVAASin2015
MBAElementary ! ! ! ! !
MBAMiddle ! ! ! !
MBAHigh ! ! ! ! !
MemphisSchoolofExcellence
! ! ! !
PowerCenterMiddle ! ! ! !
PowerCenterHigh ! ! ! ! !
Soulsville ! ! ! !
StarAcademy ! ! ! ! !
CharterSchools2015-16
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Elementary Schools Arrow Academy of Excellence 645 Semmes, 207-1891 Grades K-2 Aurora Collegiate Academy 3804 Given, 249-4615 Grades K-3 Circles of Success Learning Academy 867 S. Parkway East, 322-7978 Grades K-5 Du Bois Elementary School of Arts & Technology 817 Brownlee Road, 277-0472 Grades K-5 Du Bois Elementary School of Entrepreneurship 4475 S. Germantown Rd., 277-0472 Grades K-4 Granville T. Woods Academy of Innovation 3824 Austin Peay Hwy., 596-2139 Grades K-8 KIPP Memphis Collegiate Elementary 230 Henry St., 791-9391 Grade K-2 Leadership Preparatory Charter School 4190 Elliston Rd., 378-3917 Grades K-1 Memphis Business Academy Elementary 2450 Frayser Blvd, 353-1475 Grades K-5 Memphis College Prep 278 Greenlaw, 620-6475 Grades K-4 Moving Ahead Learning Academy 229 S. Danny Thomas Blvd., 528-2337 Grades K-3
Power Center Academy Elementary 6120 Winchester Rd., 612-0766 Grades K-1 Promise Academy 1346 Bryan, 324-4456 Grades K-5 Southern Ave. Elementary 2221 Democrat Road, 743-7335 Grades K-5 STAR Academy 3240 James Road, 387-5050 Grades K-5 Vision Prep 260 Joubert Grades K-1 775-1018 Middle & High Schools City University School Girls Prep & Boys Prep 1475 East Shelby Drive, 775-2219 Grades 6-8 City University School of Liberal Arts 1475 East Shelby Drive, 775-2219 Grades 9-12 City University School of Independence 1475 East Shelby Drive, 775-2219 Grade 9 Du Bois Middle/Arts & Technology 817 Brownlee Road, 652-9747 Grades 6-8 Du Bois Middle/Leadership & Public Policy 4475 S. Germantown Rd., 901-751-7122 Grades 5-8 Du Bois High/Arts & Technology 817 Brownlee Road, 277-0472 Grade 9
Du Bois High/Leadership & Public Policy 4475 S. Germantown Rd., 901-751-7122 Grade 9 Freedom Preparatory Academy 5132 Jonetta St., 259-5959 Grades 6-8 964 Fields Road 259-5959 Grades 9-10 Grizzlies Prep (All Boys) 168 Jefferson, 474-0955 Grade 6-8 KIPP Memphis Collegiate Middle School 230 Henry Street, 791-9390 Grades 6-8 KIPP Memphis Academy Middle School 2110 Howell, 791-9793 Grade 5-7 KIPP Memphis Collegiate High School 2110 Howell, 791-9792 Grades, 9-12 Memphis Academy for Health Sciences Middle 3608 Hawkins Mill Rd., 213-4123 Grades 6-8 Memphis Academy for Health Sciences High 3925 Chelsea Ave. Ext., 382-1441 Grades 9-12 Memphis Academy of Science and Engineering 1254 Jefferson Avenue, 333-1580 Grades 6-12 Memphis Business Academy Middle 3306 Overton Crossing, 357-2711 Grades 6-8
CharterSchools2015-16
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Memphis Business Academy High 3306 Overton Crossing, 357-8680 Grades 9-12 Memphis Goodwill Excel Center Adults ONLY (age 18 years or older) Memphis Rise Academy 1230 Covington Pike, 303-9590 Grade 6 Memphis School of Excellence 4450 S. Mendenhall, 367-7814 Grades 6-12 New Consortium of Law and Business 62 North Main, 214-5298 Grade 6-12 Power Center Academy Middle 6120 Winchester Rd., 333-6874 Grades 6-8 Power Center Academy High School 5396 Mendenhall Square Mall., 310-1331 Grade 9-12 The Soulsville Charter School 1115 College Street,, 261-6366 Grades 6-12 Veritas College Prep 690 Mississippi, 526-1900 Grades 5-8
A. PurposeAsasystemofschoolscomprisedoftraditional,Charter,iZone,optional,IB,virtual,etc.publicschools,ShelbyCountySchoolsismakinggainswithariseinthegraduationrate,anupwardtrajectoryinproficiencyratesinsometraditionallylowperformingschools,andamorecoordinatedefforttoenlistcommunity-wideeffortstobecomeaworld-classschooldistrict.However,thereisurgencyinourcommunitythatisprevalentnationwide.Giventhemonumentalchangesincurriculum,assessmentandaccountabilitysystemsprecipitatedbylowacademicachievement,persistentachievementgaps,stymiedgraduationrates,andalowpercentageofsecondarystudentsgraduatingcareerand/orcollegeready,thisparadigmshiftmandatessignificantchangesinthewayteachersplan,thewayteachersteach,thewaystudentsdemonstratetheirlearning,thewayleaderslead,andthewayschooldistrictsoperate.AsthelargestschooldistrictintheStateofTennesseeandoneofthe25largestschooldistrictsinthenation,operatingaschooldistrictwhereyoungpeopleages16-24representthelargestsegmentofourcommunitywhoareunemployed,notnecessarilybychoice,butcircumstance,we,aseducatorsandthecommunity-at-large,arechargedwiththeresponsibilitytoimprovethewaysweworktogetherandinfluenceeachother.Itistheresponsibilityofalleducators,inpartnershipwiththeentireShelbyCountycommunity,tocommittoensuringthatallstudentsareequippedwiththenecessaryskillstoexperiencesuccess.Therefore,purposefulproactivecollaborationisimperativesoastoensurethatallchildrenarewellservedineveryschoolinthecounty.
B. SharedValues/GuidingPrinciplesInordertoaccomplishthis,alleducators,parents,studentsandtheentireShelbyCountycommunitybelievethat:
C. SharedCommitments/EffortsAllpartiescommittocollaborativelyaddressthefollowing:1. SupportingAccountability,Transparency,andAdequateandAppropriateAccesstoServicesand
o Continuingsharedservices(e.g.federalandstateoversightandcompliancemonitoring,charterschooloffice,useofpersonneltoadministerservices)
o Expandingsharedservices(e.g.transportation,procurement)inareasidentifiedasappropriateandsignificantlycostefficientforallschools(e.g.Charters,traditional)
o Locatingtypesofschools(e.g.Charters,traditional,optional,iZones,non-publiccharterschools)withdemonstratedhigh-performancewithintheDistrictingeographicareasofneedwithintheframeworkofastrategicplan
o Servingtheentireexistingstudentpopulationinthesurroundingcommunityofafacility
o Creatingaclearandobjectivemethod/processforcapitalimprovementsandmaintenancetoensureallschooldistrictfacilitiesusedfortheeducationofstudentsthatareadequatelyandappropriatelymaintained
o Creatingmechanismstoensuretransparencyaroundstudentenrollmentdemographics,recruitmentandretention
o Supporttoensureeffectiveprovisionofservicestoadiversestudentpopulation(e.g.SPED,ELL)
o Reciprocalsharingofbestpracticesinacademics,operationsandprofessionaldevelopmentforthepurposeofraisingstudentachievementacrossthedistrict
o Supportinmeetingestablishedaccountabilityexpectations(e.g.studentachievement,compliance,fiscalmanagement,operationaleffectiveness)
o Collaborationonlegislativeprioritiesbeneficialtoallstudents/schoolsregardlessofgovernancestructure
o Innovativepartnershipstorecruit,cultivate,develop,support,andretainhighlyeffectiveteachers,schoolleadersandotherpersonnel
o Formalandinformalmethodsofsharinginprofessionaldevelopmentforteachers,schoolleadersandotherpersonnel
o Creationofstrategicwaystoleverageresources(e.g.facilities,services)tostrategicallylocatetypesofschools(e.g.Charters,traditional,optional,iZones,non-publiccharterschools)
o Pursuitofmutuallybeneficialjointfundingopportunities(e.g.public/privategrantsandphilanthropicresources)