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

Charter Renewal - Vote on Hill View Montessori Charter School

This month, the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (Board) vote on the charter renewal application of Hill View Montessori Charter School (HVMCS).

Hill View Montessori Charter School

HVMCS, a Commonwealth charter school, is located in Haverhill. The school opened in 2004. HVMCS is chartered to serve kindergarten through grade 8 with a maximum enrollment of 296. The school currently serves 244 students in kindergarten through grade 6 and expects to reach its maximum grade span and enrollment in 2010-2011.

The school's mission statement reads: "The mission of HVMCS is to provide a grade K-8 public education that promotes academic excellence using the Montessori philosophy. In partnership with teachers and parents, children will attain high levels of academic, personal, and social achievement and so prepared, become constructive contributors to our community."

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 on 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 superintendent of the Haverhill Public Schools, the district sending students to HVMCS, was invited to submit written comment to the Department regarding the renewal of the school's charter. No written comment was received from the superintendent.

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 the Board renew the charter for HVMCS.

Areas of Charter School Accountability

I. Faithfulness to Charter

• HVMCS is a public Montessori school based on Montessori philosophy and methods, with a curriculum that is aligned with the Massachusetts curriculum frameworks. The school meets the needs of a diverse group of students, including those with disabilities.

II. Academic Success

• The new leadership team, hired in 2007-08, has implemented significant changes in the use of formative assessment data, teacher recruitment, hiring, supervision and evaluation, and alignment of curriculum with state standards.
• HVMCS made Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) in English language arts (ELA) and mathematics in the aggregate and for subgroups in 2007 but not in 2008.
• The school has no status under NCLB.

III. Organizational Viability

• The school is fiscally sound and stable.
• The school is in the process of purchasing a building for occupancy in 2009-10.
• The school is governed by an eleven member board of trustees. The board provides careful oversight of the school leader. Appropriate channels of communication and collaboration have been established between the board and school leadership.
• The school plans to add grade 7 in 2009-10 and grade 8 in 2010-11.

IV. Dissemination

• In 2006 and 2007, an HVMCS kindergarten teacher conducted a Saturday seminar in conjunction with Northern Essex Community College Early Childhood program regarding the Montessori method of educating children.
• The Haverhill Superintendent of Schools, a Haverhill School Committee member, and
• an HVMCS founder co-authored an article about building respectful relationships between charter and district schools for the May/June 2004 issue of MASCD Perspectives. In addition, a best practices paper called In Service of Children: How Charter and District Schools Can Work Together was written and presented at the Massachusetts Charter Public School Association conference.
• In 2008, staff from six Massachusetts public Montessori schools, charter and district, held a day-long conference to share best practices.

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