Children First

8 // FocalPoint | Winter–Spring 2013

What d� s � mean to have a“children fi r� ” philosophy?

At Chicago International Charter School, this question is contemplated on

a daily basis. When CICS leaders look at a given campus, they determine if it

is good enough by asking, “would I enroll my own child or loved one here?”

BY DANIEL ANELLO

According to Beth Purvis, CEO of CICS, the

answer needs to be “yes” every time. As it

stands, all CICS campuses do not yet meet

this standard—there are currently excep-

tions—but the staff and board of CICS

fi rmly believe that with hard work and

single-mindedness around putting children

fi rst, this lofty goal will be realized.

“Children fi rst” poses a deeper philosophy

than just how CICS evaluates its schools.

It delves into the realities of where CICS

chooses to open schools. Ask Beth Purvis

where campuses should be located and

she will tell you, “anywhere the need is

severe enough and the community wants

us.” Contrary to misconceptions of how

charter schools operate, at CICS there is

no discussion of how involved parents

might be, or what overall scores might

look like were CICS to locate a school in

a given community. It has been and

continues to be all about the children.

CICS is proud to be the fi rst high-quality

school in several of Chicago’s neighbor-

hoods that have the greatest need. The

16-campus network currently has schools

in six of the most violent neighborhoods

in Chicago, and one campus in the most

violent neighborhood in Rockford, Ilinois.

Many of these school communities are

ranked among the most impoverished

neighborhoods in Chicago and Rockford

as well. But CICS leadership does not and

will not shy away from the diffi cult work,

regardless of what that might do to net-

work “statistics.” The goal is to keep chil-

dren from becoming statistics, and through

that process, reinvigorate communities.

“Children fi rst” means CICS believes every

child can learn, given the opportunity.

Saying that and believing it are not always

the same. Purvis will tell you, “It is our

obligation to give these children, families,

and communities that opportunity.”

PHOTO BY RAY WHITEHOUSE

the most difficult aspect of running a portfolio model (see Focal Point Vol.5, Num.1, “Freedom within a Framework”*), transitioning school man-agement. In the last two years, CICS has tran-sitioned management at ten of its campuses, impacting the lives of nearly 6,000 students and families in the process.

Change ManagementOne common misconception about these tran-sitions is that the teachers in a building all get replaced. CICS, who has managed as many as fif-teen school management transitions since open-ing in 1997, recognizes that this is not how to improve outcomes at a school. In 2011, 75% of the teaching staff at the five schools undergoing a management change returned. In 2012, about half of the staff came back. “During a transition, it’s important to spend the necessary time determin-ing the complex reasons for academic or cultural struggles. It is important to CICS that teachers

and principals are not held responsible for issues that might arise in the management structure of an individual campus or SMO,” explains Purvis. “In some situations, it’s no one’s fault, it’s simply the case that the missions of the SMO and CICS are no longer aligned, and it’s best to sever the rela-tionships before a crisis arises.”

A Case in PointWhen CICS announced a management change at CICS Washington Park in 2011, Jessica Beasley was the 7th Grade Math teacher at the time. “It wasn’t that management didn’t have good inten-tions,” she points out. “But things were chaotic. The road to get to the end results had too many lanes.” When discussing her initial reaction to the announced transition, Beasley says, “I was very anxious. Would I have a job next year?” She goes on to explain that, “I was confident in my level of commitment to the kids and the school, but would the new SMO see that, I didn’t know.”

She recalls the meeting where CICS and the new SMO first met with parents and staff to explain the transition. “You could see by the body language that [parents and teachers] were unhappy with the change.

The questions asked started out very negative,” she says. Then, “Dr. Purvis made it clear on what would happen, which helped lessen some of the fear,” Beasley explains. Purvis reiterated CICS’ philosophy that children come first, no matter how hard that decision made things in the short-term. “She showed us the data on where the children at the school were performing. We all knew it wasn’t good enough.” One thing in particular resonated with Beasley—“she told us that our kids deserve better and we could do better. I agreed with her.” After hours of discussion, the staff and teachers burst into applause.

A Clear VisionBeasley noted the importance of seeing the new management team in the building almost daily from then on. “I saw they had a clear vision for the school. I was on board at that point, and com-mitted to having a role with the new organization.” Beasley became the Assistant Director the follow-

ing year, and is now the Middle School Director. Notably, when Jessica Beasley asked if the school was good enough

for her children, she responded “yes”. Her son is now a 2nd grader at CICS Washington Park and she will be enrolling her daughter next year.

Theresa Hollins, an active family member whose grandson attends CICS Lloyd Bond, was staunchly opposed to the 2012 SMO transition at her school at the outset. The departure of the campus director, a man who had dedicated two years to improving the lives of the school’s chil-dren, was seen as a potentially devastating casu-alty of a management switch. CICS met reqularly with Hollins, to ask for her feedback and help in reaching out to the broader community regard-ing the changes. The CICS leadership assured her that this was about the children. Fast forward six months and Hollins says, “so far, so good,” regarding her 3rd grade grandson’s class. She is still adjusting to the change, recognizing that it will take time to improve the level of communication and teacher support at the school. She did share, however, that the education she sees her grand-son receiving is “in place.”

Dr. Purvis showed us the data, she told us that our kids deserve better and that we could do better.

This leads to

10 // FocalPoint | Winter–Spring 2013

ChildrenFirst

Top to bottom: Jessica Beasley, Upper School Director of CICS Washington Park, with her son; Shontele Fuller,

CICS Longwood parent, working with her daughter and son in the school bookstore; Beth Purvis reads to a

group of CICS Bucktown students

PHOTO BY TONY ARMOUR PHOTOGRAPHY

PHOTO BY TONY ARMOUR PHOTOGRAPHY

The Impact on Parent and Community EngagementOne of the most challenging aspects of a management transition is maintaining parent and community engagement. Distinctive Schools (DS), who took on management of three schools in 2011 and a fourth in 2012, have made parent engagement a focal point from the moment they arrive. Beth Colodny, whose new title reflects this atten-tiveness (Director of Parent Involvement and Advocacy), remembers vividly how apprehensive parents felt initially.

“Once the parents saw us doing much more for them, they opened up.”

She says that her role is to ensure DS continues to provide more consistent communication and more transparency for the parents and community. Where there weren’t parent groups, the schools now have them, and where there were, the parent groups, “have grown and involvement has gone way up.” Colodny goes on to say how DS is “able to offer parent programs now.” She finishes with something that often gets overlooked in these transitions. After managing the difficult ramp-up period and the initial back-to-school time frame, she recalls how “staff morale got better, and our engagement with families improved, which led to increased involvement.”

*Footnote: Management contracts with SMO partners are made and evaluated on a school-by-school basis. If an SMO partner fails to meet the targets that they develop in collab-oration with CICS management for a particular school, they are given a two- year probationary period to improve out-comes. If the SMO is unable to meet designated benchmarks within that period, CICS has the right to replace them with another management organization at that particular school. SMO contracts allow for both parties to reconsider the part-nership on an annual basis: If the SMO partner and CICS find their missions are no longer aligned, they can choose to part ways for reasons other than performance.

A Higher StandardShontele Fuller, who has been a CICS parent since the network’s founding in 1997, has been through two management changes at CICS Longwood—one in 1999, and again this past school year. In both cases she describes the changes as hav-ing been difficult, but she also recognizes why they were necessary. “It’s a chance to set a higher standard of achievement for the kids,” Ms. Fuller points out. “I am eager to see my children do bet-ter academically, and excited to see a push for the school to do better.” As Fuller looks to her daughter’s college application process, however, she has expressed some concern. “I don’t want [the new leadership] to spend time fixing only the basics and forgetting about the additional sup-ports my daughter needs.”

While CICS and the SMO work closely to make sure her daughter and other children don’t miss a beat due to the transition, Fuller remains optimis-tic when it comes to these additional layers that she feels are required in a great school. “I want [the teachers and staff] to get back that close-knit culture they had,” which she pointed out had come from working together for so many years. As the new school administration has begun to accli-mate, Fuller says she already sees signs of that “familial culture returning.”

When transitions take place, they are never easy. “Children-first” as a philosophy can be a bitter pill to swallow at times. It means making very difficult decisions. It means taking on the agonizing truths of failure, or even moderate success that is hedg-ing toward status quo, and transparently reflecting on mistakes so you can do right by the children. It means putting adults at the bottom of the organi-zational chart and thinking about operations and culture from a children-first perspective. “Doing what's best for kids is already firmly rooted in the hearts and minds of CICS families, teachers, part-ners and staff. For the CICS community, success-fully aligning on this shared philosophy will mean that every day, every decision is based on chil-dren.” //

Committed to Greatness // 11

PHOTO BY TONY ARMOUR PHOTOGRAPHY