Meeting of the Board of Regents | January 2008

THE STATE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT / THE UNIVERSITY OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK / ALBANY, NY 12234

 

TO:
FROM:	Johanna Duncan-Poitier
SUBJECT:	Charter School Proposed First Renewal Charter for Bronx Charter School for Excellence
DATE:	January 4, 2008
STRATEGIC GOAL:	Goals 1 and 2
AUTHORIZATION(S):

 

SUMMARY

 

Issue for Decision

 

Should the Regents approve the staff’s recommendations concerning the proposed first renewal to charter for Bronx Charter School for Excellence (New York City)? 

 

Reason(s) for Consideration

 

              Required by State statute, Education Law §2852.

 

Proposed Handling

 

This question will come before the EMSC Committee in January 2008 for action.  It will then come before the full Board for final action in January 2008.

 

Procedural History

 

The New York Charter Schools Act of 1998 requires the Board of Regents to review, in accordance with the standards set forth in Education Law §2852(2), proposed charters, renewal charters and revisions to charters and renewal charters that have been approved and submitted by other charter entities.  The Board of Regents may either approve and issue a charter, renewal charter and/or revision as proposed by the charter entity, or return the same to the charter entity for reconsideration with written comments and recommendations. 

Background Information

 

We received a request from the Board of Trustees of the State University of New York (“SUNY”) to renew the initial charter of Bronx Charter School for Excellence (BCSE or “the School”).    The initial charter was granted by the Board of Regents on April 29, 2003.  SUNY has requested that the charter be renewed and its provisional charter be extended only through July 31, 2008.  Staff recommend that the request be returned.

 

Recommendation

 

              VOTED: That the Board of Regents return the proposed first renewal charter of the Bronx Charter School for Excellence to the Board of Trustees of the State University of New York for reconsideration and with the following comments and recommendations:  That the proposed first renewal charter be resubmitted to the Regents for consideration after a public hearing concerning the renewal of the school is held and any comments raised at this hearing have been considered. 

 

Reason for Recommendation

 

The New York City Department of Education has scheduled a public hearing concerning the renewal of this School for a date after the proposed first renewal charter will come before the Regents for consideration.  As this hearing has not occurred, comments from the community have not been considered and the school may not be approved at this time.

 

Timetable for Implementation

 

The Regents action for Bronx Charter School for Excellence is effective immediately.

 

New York State Education Department

 

Summary of Charter School Renewal Information

 

Summary of Applicant Information

 

 

 

 

Address:   1960 Benedict Avenue, Bronx, NY 10462

 

Board of Trustees President:  Joyce Frost

 

Requested Renewal Period: April 30, 2008 – July 31, 2008

 

District of Location: New York City Community School District 11, Bronx

 

Charter Entity:  SUNY Board of Trustees

 

Institutional Partner(s): N/A

 

Management Partner(s): N/A

 

Grades Served per Year:    K - 4                                               

 

Projected Enrollment per Year: 250

 

 

Renewal Application Highlights

 

 

Evidence of Educational Soundness/ Attainment of Educational Objectives

 

• The student achievement results for Bronx Charter School for Excellence (“the School”) are shown in the table below.
• The School’s Performance Index (PI) for the 2006-07 school year was 143 in ELA, which is below the State standard.
• The School did not meet Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) in ELA. Although the School did not meet AYP, the Accountability Status was “Good Standing” for the 2006-07 school year.
• The School performed below its cohort in Community School District 11 on the ELA exam.
• The School did not meet its goal of 75 percent of third through fifth graders enrolled in their second year performing at or above Level 3 on the State ELA exam.
• The School did not attain its goal of outperforming PS 106X.  Sixty-nine percent of third grade students at PS 106X performed at or above grade level compared to 48 percent in the School.
• The School administers the ECLAS-2 and ITBS.  Results have indicated that kindergarten and 1st grade students are achieving most of the reading goals.  The second and third grade students were not as successful.  The School asserts that it has identified the problems and developed intervention strategies for those grades.
• The School’s Performance Index (PI) for the 2006-07 school year was 176 in mathematics, which exceeds the State standard.
• The School met its Annual Measurable Objective in mathematics for the 2006-07 school year.
• On the State mathematics exam, the School performed slightly below its cohort in Community School District 11, where 82 percent of students performed at or above grade level compared to 80 percent in the School.
• The School did not meet its goal to outperform PS 106X on the mathematics exam.  Eighty-three percent of students at PS 106X performed at or above grade level.
• The School instituted a Saturday Academy for kindergarten through second grade students who have been identified as having academic weaknesses.
• The School has hired a Reading and Learning Specialist to identify and develop interventions for students not performing at grade level.
• Teachers have participated in professional development activities for designing and creating a family literacy program that will take place during the Saturday Academy and at other times.
• The School acknowledged that its mathematics results on interim assessments were not where they should be in Kindergarten.  To improve results, the School asserts that it will develop a stronger math program and implement the appropriate interventions.

 

 

Grades 3 State ELA Assessments

Percent of Students at Levels 1 - 4

 

Year of Test	Grade 3
	1	2	3	4
2006-07	2.3	50.0	45.4	2.3

 

 

 

 

 

 

Grades 3 State Math Assessments

Percent of Students at Levels 1 - 4

 

Year of Test	Grade 3
	1	2	3	4
2006-07	2.3	18.2	54.5	25.0

 

 

Evidence of Fiscal Soundness/Projected Fiscal Impact

• See tables below.  The proposed first renewal charter will end in July 2008, so the first table below addresses the 2007-08 school year only.

 

 

Projected

Fiscal Impact of the

Bronx Charter School for Excellence

2007-08

School Year	Number of Students	Projected Payment*	Projected Impact
2007-08	250	$2,449,412	0.0132

* Assumes a 3 percent annual increase in the District’s budget from the base of $20.12 billion in 2007-2008; and a 4.5 percent annual increase in the average expense per pupil per year from the 2007-2008 rate of $11,023.

 

 

Bronx
Charter School
for Excellence

Change in Net Assets 2004-05 Through 2006-07*

 

Year	Change in Net Assets
2004-05	-$329,221
2005-06	$1,342,404

*Source: Audited Financial Statements provided as a part of each Annual Report.

 

 

Evidence of Parent and Student Satisfaction and Community Support

• There are a total of 187 parents with children attending the School, 153 or 76 percent responded to the survey.
• Over 95 percent of parents expressed overall satisfaction with the quality of education at BCSE.  That can be compared with the previous year’s results in which 75 percent of parents express overall satisfaction with the School.  Note: the percentages are based on the total number of parents at the School, not just those completing the satisfaction survey.
• A hearing concerning the renewal of the School pursuant to Education Law Section 2857(1) has been scheduled for the winter of 2008.