District/School Administration Administration
The Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education

Charter Renewal - Initial Discussion for Barnstable Horace Mann Charter School

This month, the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (Board) will have an initial discussion of the charter renewal application of Barnstable Horace Mann Charter School (BHMCS). The Board will vote on this renewal at its meeting on February 24, 2009.

Barnstable Horace Mann Charter School

In 1999, BHMCS was created by the conversion of a traditional grade five district school to a Horace Mann charter school. At the beginning of the 2003-04 school year, BHMCS relocated and expanded to include both fifth and sixth grades. The school is chartered to serve all children eligible for entrance into the fifth and sixth grades within the seven villages of the Town of Barnstable: Barnstable, Centerville, Cotuit, Hyannis, Marstons Mills, Osterville, and West Barnstable. In 2008-09, BHMCS serves 847 students in grades five and six and has a maximum enrollment of 1,000 students.

The district of Barnstable, due to budget reductions, is currently developing plans for restructuring of the district, including conversations with BHMCS about the possibility of reconfiguring the school's grade span. BHMCS may be requesting the Board's approval, in the spring, of an amendment to reflect this change.

The school's mission statement reads: "The mission at BHMCS is to inspire all students, faculty, parents, and community members to achieve excellence by creating a school environment that provides a high quality education. We utilize rigorous standards and assessments, provide innovative and creative instruction, and engage parents and the community to prepare students for lifelong learning."

Basis of Recommendations Regarding the Renewal of Charters

The charter school regulations state that "[t]he decision by the Board to renew a charter shall be based upon the presentation of affirmative evidence regarding the success of the school's academic program; the viability of the school as an organization; and the faithfulness of the school to the terms of its charter" 603 CMR 1.12. Consistent with the regulations, recommendations regarding renewal are based upon the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education's (Department) evaluation of the school's performance in these areas. In its review, the Department has considered both the school's absolute performance at the time of the application for renewal and the progress the school has made during the first four years of its charter.

The accountability process for charter schools recognizes that in exchange for increased freedom, a school must demonstrate results within the term of its five-year charter or risk non-renewal. The summary document that follows this memorandum compiles the school's record for the term of this charter.

Recommendation for Renewal

Based on the evidence gathered in the attached Summary of Review and as further summarized below, I recommend that the Board renew the charter for BHMCS.

Areas of Charter School Accountability

I. Faithfulness to Charter

• BHMCS implements a collaborative leadership and governance structure that contains many of the elements outlined in its charter.
• As outlined in its original charter, the school's educational program is based upon school-wide, standards-based, thematic instruction.

II. Academic Success

• BHMCS has a curriculum that is documented for all content areas and grade levels and is aligned with the Massachusetts curriculum frameworks.
• The school incorporates the use of technology in its educational program and has invested in a range of technology hardware, training, and support.
• The school provides an atmosphere of mutual respect, orderliness, and receptive attitudes at all levels.
• Students benefit from the school's collaborative educational environment in which information about students is shared among staff, and special education teachers share a close relationship with paraprofessional staff.
• BHMCS uses a range of assessments to monitor student understanding of content and provide additional support.
• The school's performance on MCAS examinations has been strong throughout the term of its charter, with a composite performance index of 90.7 in English language arts (ELA) and 82.7 in mathematics in 2008.
• NCLB status is Improvement Year 1 for subgroups in mathematics and No Status for ELA.

III. Organizational Viability

• The board has been consistently described by site visitors as having a clear understanding of their role in oversight of the school.
• The school uses a model of distributive leadership that incorporates staff input into decisions and the development of the school's programs.
• BHMCS has extremely low teacher turnover; most teachers are veterans with many years of experience.
• BHMCS is currently a fiscally viable organization.
• Site visitors and the renewal inspection team have consistently reported that stakeholders are highly satisfied with the school.

IV. Dissemination

• Various staff members have shared the BHMCS model of improving education with other Barnstable Public Schools.
• The director of technology provides technology training to teachers throughout the state.
• The school has linked with the town of Barnstable's "No Place for Hate" initiative and shares goals of increasing tolerance and appreciation of diversity.

If you have any questions or require additional information, please contact Jeff Wulfson, Associate Commissioner, at 781 338-6500; or Mary Street, Director of Charter Schools, at 781 338-3200; or me.

   Summary of Review