B: PART 1: AND EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1. Complete Table 3A, providing the school?s ge?eral information. . Explorations Charter School 1997 Street-Ad'dr-ess: 3 City/Zipc?aeei 71 Spencer Street Winsted, CT 06098 ?ame (Bf-Boar'ci-President: - pregame;- f?r {jijf fl: Ginni Block 203305-2645 I Signature of Board President: 11/19/2014 Name of Charter Director: Jill Johnson 860-738?9070 Dat?zf. Signatwifre of Charter-School Director: 11/20/2014 2. Provide a concise summary of the school?s unique model, student population, performance, and future goals. Provide evidence to substantiate the school?s impact and explain why the State Board of Education (SEE) should renew the school?s charter. Explorations Charter School opened in 1997 as one of the original 36 charter schools created by the Connecticut General Assembly in an effort to improve public education. The school?s founder, Mary Ann Buchanan, was looking to provide students in a rural area an opportunity to succeed in a different educational environment. Over the past years, the school location and size has changed dramatically. Early on, the school was housed in the cramped basement of a former bank and had a population of around 40 students, with six teachers, one administrator, one nurse/administrator, and one custodian. The school is now chartered for 86 students, served by the following: two administrators (an Executive Director/Principal and Vice Principal who also teach one class), nine regular education teachers (all certified), one registered nurse, one administrative aide, one custodian, two special education teachers, and two special education tutors. Classrooms are set up to hold a maximum ofabout 15 students, which keeps in line with the school?s goal of having smaller, more individualized instruction. Explorations serves grades 9 to 12, with grade 9 added beginning in the 2012?13 school year. Explorations is a regional charter school, and as a result draws from upwards of fifteen towns. During the 2014~2015 school year we are providing education to students from: Avon, Bantam, Barkhamsted, Collinsville, Canaan, Canton, East Hartland, Enfield, Goshen, Granby, Lakeville, Morris, Newington, New Hartford, Plymouth, Thomaston, Torrington, and Winchester. The majority of students at Explorations are from lorrington and Winchester respectively, but districts like Canton are beginning to send more students. The population of the students is primarily white, as last year the minority population accounted for about 9.6% of the total population. in October of 2014, the minority population was 18.1%. Despite the rather homogenous racial profile, the students do have a great deal of social variation, as we see a variety in the student?s economic and educational backgrounds. While the school does accept many students who are strong academically and have solid family structures, Explorations is known for taking many at risk students (classified as having significant attendance, academic, and/or behavioral problems in their current school). Additionally, not all students choose to stay at Explorations and students at the school show a good deal of mobility. Many students here fit into the "high risk? category, having a history of truancy, behavior difficulties, and (as seen this more year) mental health needs. Other times, we have students who stay for only a few weeks or withdrawal clue to other circumstances outside of school. Last school year, for example, students left Explorations because they were moving out of state, they returned to their home district, and one student left due to pregnancy. Looking at the 2013~14 graduation numbers, 35% of the seniors attended Explorations for three years; the rest of the graduating class transferred to the school during either junior or senior year. While the mobility has been a huge detriment to the school, it has very recently led to the current school improvement plan, which will focus on graduation rates. Explorations usually has a graduation rate in the upper eighties (100% in 2008 and 86.2% in 2009). However, the state has now identified Explorations as a "focus school? because graduation rates dropped based on the cohort model from the 2011 class. What is most troubling is that the cohort numbers does not take into account the following: 1) students who registered at the school and who spent less than a few weeks at Explorations (and afterward never registered at another scbool), 2) special education students who needed an extra year to graduate, and 3) students who arrived at the school with a significant void in terms of credits. in a prior discussion with a state official, it was acknowledged that Explorations is a unique case, but nevertheless the school must show both students growth and the measures the staff will take to work proactively to improve student experience. We have started looking at the difference between academics, attendance, and behavior before students came to Explorations (compared to their prior academic record) and what type of aid and services we can further add to students and aarents. The school is beginning an initiative within the school to develop criteria to monitor student mobility and achievement in the next few months. Currently, the school?s programs fOi remediation and enrichment change on an almost yearly basis. Teachers are equipped to offer both honors and remedial courses (with a focus on English and Math) based on collected data and observation of students. for example, during the 2010-11 school year, an honnrs humanities course was offered for students and was co-taught by an English and Social Studies teacher after a high majority of the students were identified as having the ability to succeed in a more rigorous course. During the 2011?12 school year, the course was replaced by remedial courses in English due to a high population of special education students and students with writing and reading comprehension difficulties. The honors Humanities course was nffered again during the 201344 school year. A benefit to having smaller class sizes is the ability to alter courses to fit student need. ln addition, Explorations follows a non?traditional schedule. Academic classes are held Monday to Thursday, and fridays are left to three specific rotations: adventure education, job site, and ?specials.? For adventure education, students fulfill their PE credit by doing such activities as hiking, ca noeing, caving, rock climbing, and cross country skiing. Duringjob site, students participate in community outreach volunteer work at local soup kitchens and senior centers, as well as the Thomaston Opera House and White Memorial in Litchfield. On ?specials? rotations, students may take music lessons, participate in yoga, improvisational problem solving, fencing, self~defense, crocheting, animal socialization, or obtain extra help in specific academic areas. The schedule is a great appeal to the students, and it offers an experience different from most high schools. Through our unique, small-school environment we are able to work with all students on a more individualized basis. In many cases we are a second or third chance at high school for students that have been unsuccessful at other local schools. At the same time, we are able to successfully meet the needs of students for whom Explorations is their first choice. We receive many referrals from Special Education Directors based on our success in working with Special Education Students and the small class sizes that we offer. 3. Request any material revisions to the school?s charter, if applicable. Material charter revisions are defined as those changes that fundamentally affect a school?s mission, organizational structure, or educational program, including, but not limited to: - Fundamental change affecting the school?s mission shifting the educational model to serve exclusively over~age, under?credited students); (Adding 9th Grade) a Relocation of the school to a different city; Contracting with or discontinuing a relationship with a charter management organization - Renaming of the school; and/or Changing grade configurations expanding from PK-8 to Plez). 4. Complete Table 4A, summarizing the school?s demographics, enrollment; and three~year growth pro?ections. Demographic data should reflect the school?s 203.445 student population. Table Charter Sci-?reel Ema liment and {remegraphic information sass-a . . I jffji Year: er: 1 2 3 a 2010-11 1 29 20 31 80 2011-12 7 20 30 23 74 2012-13 13 1s 13 26 73 201344 I 15 21 25 22 83 2014115 . 12 26 20 31 89 553mm . Year311]?? 201516 2016-17 15 22 24 30 91 2017-13 15 22 25 29 91 2914-15 Student Deni_egraphic_information: Majority sending city/district: Torrington Torrington 30.3% Percentage of students qualifying for free or reduced price meals: . .I Percentage of specialeducation students: I I . 48.3% Percentage of students with limited English proficiency: - 0% Percentage of Asian students: I I "i 0% Percentage of Black students: I- 5.6% Percentage of Hispanic students: 4.5% Percentage of Caucasian students: 89.9% 5? If applicable, provide a rationale for the proposed expansion outlined in Yable 4A. We began the 2014-2015 school year with three more students than we are chartered for, allowing for attrition of students prior to the October count. We found that having the extra students did not negatively impact our ability to deliver services. Therefere, in our renewal we are proposing an increase of 3 seats (from 86 to 89) for 2015?2016 and an increase of 2 seats (from 86 te 91) for 2016?2017 and subsequent years. We currently have 14 students on our walting list, and will likely not have the openings this year to accommodate them. The increase in seats will allew us to assist mere families by providing them a viable choice for their students, while not impacting the small class sizes that we feel are so vital to our students success. PART 2: SCHOOL 6. Campiete Tabie 6A, summarizing the school?s record of student achievement. Table 6A: Schoei 9erformance {381:3 Aikefage daily Student 91.9% 92.5% 88.0% 90.9% . 5569681686662: 8836616611367. .56; . - 20.3% 39.5% 29.1% 8664.66: 0fin?schog'i8959873530815"cabs-rt gradua?ien rate (if agp'iigabie): 52.9% 57.1% 65.6% 64.3% Haiti-ing'mwer rate 76.5% 57.1% n/a n/a n/a 1 District Perfe?fmanice index .- 68.9 67.8 71.7 i I I n/a n/a n/a m8. host'district?sei. 63.9 60.8 67.7 i I . I . IRe?dEn-g-Smj n/a n/a n/a .. . . REad-ing 66516158361 08:: 63.4 68.4 70.1 I - Wri?ing SPizi n/a n/a n/a I Writing host 615105":th 79.5 79.3 81.0 Black/African American n/a n/a n/a Slack/Africa: Am. hast district n/a n/a {1/3 II I Hispanic/Latino I n/a n/a n/a HISpanic/Latino host district n/a n/a n/a ELL n/a n/a n/a ELL host district n/a n/a n/a ESL n/a n/a n/a FRL host district 54.6 59.2 56.0 Special edacation 594: n/a n/a n/a Special education host district [3193: n/a n/a n/a Suppressed t0 protect student confidentiaiity. 7. Discuss the schooi?s academic achievement. Summarize the schooi?s performance from absolute, comparative, and growth perspectives. Address progress toward closing achievement gaps. Provide data evidencing performance and progress during the 2013-14 schooi year. Given the transition in state standardized assessments, the applicant shouid provide aiternate data that speak to 2013-14 student performance and progress. As a school, we have seen an improvement in student performance on state testing during the three year period from 2011to 2013, with a drop in 2014. (Figure 1). This is the resuit of revisions to the curriculum and extra test prep we have built into our schedule. However, despite the fact that more students are reaching the proficient benchmark, we are working to improve the number of students reaching Goal orAdvonced. i??igure 1 - Percent of 2013 CAPT 46.2%] 11.5% 50% 20% 59% 24% 46.7% 26.7% 50%/ 3.8% 61.9% 14.3% 82%/ 12% 53.3%] 26.0 lt is understandabie with our typical population that many students are arriving here sometimes significantly beiow grade levei. A sample of last year?s benchmark (figure 2) Common Core Aligned Assessment assigned a score based on specific grade level standards. Looking at the freshmen ciass, which is often indicative of how new students perform at Explorations, shows great deficiencies. lt?s aiso important to note that our size for any given year may be considered statisticaily insignificant. For instance, if the size of our soohomore class is 16 students (as it was in 2013-2014) then each student represents 6.25%. Again, it is important to keep this in mind when you are looking at the charted data presented. Figure 2 Explorations Freshmen Student Scores on CCSS benchmark Tests (September 2013) Grade 9 34.5% 0% Proficient is 66%. Note: Percentages are ciass averages on the assessment the percent of students at proficient or above. The results of this benchmark is normal? students often arrive beiow grade level and we will need to strengthen the curricuium to push students to the Goal levei, to ready students for necessary 21St century skills, to prepare them to be college and career ready, and to prepare students for Smarter Balanced and other standardized assessments. The iow initial level of our students has often resuited from to the fact that Explorations is a schooi that was founded for students who struggie in traditionai academic settings, and who may have significant social deficiencies. furthermore, our special education population is very high (Figure 3). Figure 3 - Special Education Students at Explorations (updated 11/81/11:) Percentage of Exploratons 31% 11% 42% Special Education Students in 2013 Percentage of Exploratons 34.8% 13.9% 48.7% Special Education Students in 2014 Steps taken to work toward closing the achievement gap 0 Use of STAR 360 and other data Tools: Moving forward, we are hoping to utilize more meaningful data to inform curriculum decisions in the classroom. We are transitioning this year from the use of Study island (an online, common core aligned benchmark test) to STAR 360. The STAR program allows students to take a computer adaptive test that will quickly assess their skills in both Math and English. Using the results from the test, we can see what standards students are having difficulties understanding. From there, we can offer support to target these areas in individualized, small group, and classroom settings. - Data Binders: We have created our own Connecticut Core Standards aligned numeracy and literacy assessments to test diagnose areas in need of growth. As students complete the assessments, we create a detailed report of their results (see sample assessment report below). The assessments start testing at a level equal to grade, and from the assessments we have been able to re?teach and reinforce identified weak areas. Student data binders have been created to detail the results and make plans for remediation or more intensive instruction. The data is also shared with classroom teachers for their use as they create lesson plans and plan for differentiated instruction. These binders are made for all students, notiust special education students, and because of this, we are able to meet the individual needs of all students. V. 0 Digital Library: Teachers have recently been given access to the SBAC {Digital Library and will be receiving additional training on its use and benefits to their classroom. 0 SBAC interim Assessments: We are anxiously awaiting the release of the SBAC Interim Assessments to be used by teachers in the classroom. Being able to give students immediate results and make them part of their learning plan goes hand in hand with the individualization of instruction that is part of Explorations philosophy. Sample Student Report from Bard Binders Student Assessment Report: Numeracy Sample Student: Grade E1 Content Area Grade Level Avg Comments Addition Difficulty with consistency with adding 46 digit numbers Reading Comprehension: Reading comprehension questions far all novels and short stories. Appropriate strategies for reading camprehension (underline, read questions, eliminate answers). CAPT Coach and Ladders to Success (Reading and Writing) Use of Secondary Salutians lesson plans for novels (Common Core aligned assessments and tasks). Writing Mechanics: CAPT Coach Writing Mechanics CAPT Coach and Ladders to Success (Writing) Grammar Mini-Lessons (covering Capitaiization, Mechanics, and Punctuation). SMART Board editing (as a class) with student essays, writing prompts, and sample CAPT responses. Use of school wide literacy assessments to measure fundamental skills. Note: CAPT Coach resources have been used as a diagnostic tool and to build fundamental skills that will be tested on the Smarter Balanced assessment. During the 2011~2012 school year we began using Study island, a web-based intervention and instructional program where students can work at their own pace and teachers guide students through the program. We used this program again in 2012-2013 and 2013-14 to assess students both in the beginning of the year and periodically throughout the school year. We used this program to set learning goais for the students and work with them on their individual needs. This program made the process of goal setting with the students and tracking their results far less labor intensive than the program we had previously used. This program was used in the areas of Math and Reading and Writing. Students, as well as the teacher, were able to track competencies in the various sub?sections of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and then see their progress when they took the next level of the benchmark weeks later. However, use of the program often used up all ofour computers and took a significant amount of time. We have recently transitioned to use 360 to measure the same data in a more streamlined approach, we are looking to use this benchmark testing to provide data in more domains and we are pleased that this new program can be used on iPads, taking advantage of increased technology in the building. We are confident that the new program will provide valuable data for staff and students. While the scores on the CAPT were below our benchmark, we are realistic that the results may vary widely from year to year. it has been recognized that the CAPT results with our small population does not give an accurate picture of our yearly progress. Nevertheless, we continue to find better approaches to bridging the gaps in education that the maiority of our students may have when they come to Explorations. We will continue to find areas to add remedial time, including in the general education classroom and on our Friday rotations. Our Goal for this year is to have 60% of students meet or exceed a Proficient Level 3 on the Science 15% of retestiug juniors will show improvement. Once Smarter Balanced benchmarks have been set, we will incorporate that into our Goals/Objectives. 8. Describe the school?s academic program and efforts to align to the Common Core State Standards and next~generation assessments, Sescribe efforts to support special education students, high?risk students, and English language learners (Eth). Identify areas for growth and improvement in the school?s academic program. Discuss areas of concern and plans to address identified deficiencies, if any. Explorations Charter School hosts a unique student population and unique issues. Our population, which is currently maxed out at 86, allows for us to function in a more personal environment. Class sizes are smaller, and teachers have traditionally created their curriculums independent of each other. The freedom teachers have is a blessing in many ways - we can adapt curriculum as needed to fit our population and] allow the class to dictate the pace of learning. However, with such a small sample size the traditional methods used in bigger schools (Le. common formative assessments, etc.) do not fit our unique setting. The school currently consists of the following teachers: three English teachers who teach 10 classes, three Math teachers teaching 8 classes, one Science teaching 5 classes, two Social Science teachers teaching 8 classes, one Art teacher teaching 5 classes, one dual certified teacher teaching 4 Spanish classes and 1 health class, and two Special Education teachers working with a caseload of 45 students. Many teachers are focused on their individual curriculums, and we are now starting to look at how each of the curricula fits together as a whole. lndividually, and small group meetings, teachers are starting to talk more about how to align curriculums; however, moving forward we will continue to stress this as a school~wide focus (see below). Strengthening the curriculum as a unified whole, and therefore establishing a culture built on respect and rigor, would align all teachers under the same umbrella ofthinking. As Larry Ainsworth describes in "Rigorous Curriculum Design,? appropriate curriculum planning must contain intentional inclusion of and alignment between all necessary components within that curriculum? and should comprise formal and informal assessments, engaging learning thinking skills, 21St century life skills, data analysis, and so on.? (Ainsworth, 7) ln doing so, the staff could create positive changes in our curriculum and promote student achievement and growth, while making our school culture healthier. Over the past few years, we have also undergone training through the Education Connection to improve teacher proficiency with collecting and interpreting student performance data. ln an effort to support our special education and high-risk students,.we have used the following strategies since our last renewal. - Employing Two Special Education Teachers and Two Special Education "futors - Explorations had in the past employed one special education teacher to handle the entire special education caseload. Starting in 2012-13, we hired a second special education teacher to better service the high number of students in the school. With a smaller caseload, each of the special education teachers and tutors are better able to serve the needs of our students. For example, for the we offer a remedial math lab for students identified as having iVlath deficiencies and a co~taught English class to aid students a less restrictive environment. 0 Weekly Staff Meeting Advisory Contacts - Teachers at Explorations fill out a weekly update, that provides a snapshot of academic and behavioral performance for every student in the school (see below). At the meeting, we discuss students and in particular focus on at risk students who may be in need of an intervention. The entire staff has an opportunity to share any strategies that are working and to brainstorm ways to improve student performance. Additionally, each teacher is assigned a group of students in their advisory (up to 10 students). As advisers, the teachers contact parents at least twice a month to give updates on how their child is doing at Explorations. This level of contact helps to inform parents about their child?s progress and gives parents a chance to ask any questions they may have. Sample weekly update entry: English History Special Education Student A 53 in US. missing a Almost done with college term current event and paper has been doing amazing study guide for with the pacing calendar and test creating his own chunking method Doing the reading, contributing to class discussions. Needs to make sure that he proves that by always handing in his written assignments. Interventions check~plannen follow up with Special Ed. will follow up with teacher Special Ed. Dept. none We do believe there are a few areas for growth and improvement in the school?s academic program. We are working on the following areas: Completion of Curriculum Maps and Lesson Plans using Understanding by Design Beginning in August 2014, the school has started to put together curriculum maps and lesson plans using Previously, teachers used a variety of formats, and we wanted to have a uniform way of presenting our courses. Teachers are currently working with help from administration to create the maps (see attached samples) and as they do so they will share the maps via Google Docs with the rest ofthe staff. Vertical and Horizontal Curriculum Alignment - A goal of Explorations is to improve vertical and interdisciplinary alignment. For example, when a unit on ?The Crucible? is being taught, students should have prior knowledge or be simultaneously exposure to early American history, especially basic tenets of Puritan society. We also hope to promote more common language shared between the classes. All teachers are responsible for teaching writing, but we may not necessarily share common terms or teach similar strategies. With our students, writing and reading are areas that can always use a bolster. Teachers will take their completed curriculum maps and will compare them independently and in small groups. Revisions will occur in each curriculum maps to build on fundamental ideas with an ultimate end goal in mind. implementation of both the CCS and 21St Century Skills will be a focus during alignment. Teachers sharing a discipline (lVlath, English, and i-listory) will work to align the core subjects in a similar fashion, and will collaborate to revise curriculum maps and lesson plans to support rigorous classroom practices. Following the vertical alignment of curriculum, groups will be formed according to classes (freshmen, sophomore, etc.) to look at horizontal /interdisciplinary alignment beginning in the summer of 2015. The main focus of these meetings would be 1) to align pacing of units to similar ideas where possible and 2) to create grade level assessments that would measure similar skills, based on a common language and terms (reading and writing focus), in different core subiects and with different tasks. Additionally, there are a few areas of concern we have to address specific deficiencies: Continued differentiation for higher performing students A great deal of our planning is geared toward bringing students up to a level of proficiency through remediation, various strategies, etc. However, moving forward we need to ensure that our courses offer an appropriate level of challenge for our students. Evolution of curriculum to include more technologyf This year, Explorations became a full Google school and as such we need to make sure we are taking advantages of what this has to offer. Students are currently using Google Docs to share work with their teachers, who in turn can comment on items in real time. Scheduled upgrades to our wireless infrastructure will also allow Explorations to use a bring your own device model, where students have the opportunity to bring and use their own technology in the classroom. When planning, we need to continue to push the use of let century skills and technology in our everyday classes. 10 .-I II - STEM credits how to offer more opportunities Being a small school with limited funding and space, we are looking forward to the future to figure out how to offer the appropriate amount of STEM credits. This may necessitate hiring another science teacher, as well as changing the structure of our Fridays to include opportunities for students to take more STEM credits. 9. Discuss the school?s culture and climate attendance, student behavior, college?going culture, professional culture). Identify areas for growth and improvement in the school?s climate, Discuss areas of concern and plans to address identified deficiencies, if any. Explorations makes a significant impact in students' lives. The programs offered, from job program to adventure education, provide opportunities not seen in other schools (even though there is room for improvement). Many students come to Explorations seeking a second chance, and the small class size and individual attention does a great deal set students up for success. The school does take in many high risk students, who are sometimes academically and socially behind their home district peers. Many students that come to Explorations are disenfranchised by their current school, some begin their time with us feeling like ?all schools are the same?. We quickly work (along with returning students) to welcome new students into the Explorations community. Throughout the year we work with students on some of the issues that posed a challenge to them in their home school district. Whether it?s attendance, behavior or academic, we are able to provide support to students in a small environment where their individual needs can be met. Because we draw from such geographically diverse areas, it?s difficult to truly form a school community outside of the 7:35 - 1:50 time frame. Through our Governance Council and parent meetings we hope to continue to bring students and their together to form a true school community. In the 2013-2014 school year, the average attendance at a parent meeting was 10 parents. During the first two meetings of the 2014-2015 school year we had 25 and 19 families represented. We are planning that with increased positive communication that these numbers will continue to rise and our community will grow. We have identified a few areas that will specifically target the student population, the staff, and overall school. The goal of this plan is to revamp the curriculum to create more student focused engagement, to create a strong learning community for students and staff, and to infuse the school with a more growth oriented, team centered focus on mutual respect and strong school traditions. It is ambitious, and there would naturally be bumps along the way, but we do believe it includes steps Explorations must take. In the evaluation plan, the major tenet is that administrators will improve and provide opportunities for increased communication with all stakeholders, staff, and students. Actions Involved Stakeholders Resources Needed] Additional Information Rationale - Continue the School Governance Council (administrators, teachers, parents, community members, and students) to analyze issues within the school and work towards solutions. - Administrator - Select teachers - Parents - Community Members Students - The council would look at survey data, anecdotal evidence, school handbook and policies, and identified school needs. The main goal here is that all stakeholders can work together to create a school that feels like it is shared by everyone and not owned by any one group. ll taevise school mission statement with a renewed focus on student learning and to school goals and accurately relate to school life. Create a strong Theory of Action to make the vision for the school and strategy complete. - Governance CouncH ?Teachers Administrators By changing the culture of the school to include PLCS, new advisory model, etc. The mission should be changed to incorporate this new thinking to all stakeholders. -The current mission is vague and lacks measurable goals. The mission should be changed to adapt to the existing culture of the schooi. The mission should then be made a mote integral part of school life and culture the existence of the mission should be something we commoniy work towards. With a stronger mission in mind, goals can be established to live up to the mission. - Revise the advisory program to incorporate new school focus. a Administrators - Teachers - Student Leaders Currently, each staff is assigned advisory students. However, the only true duties are to update parents twice a month about student progress. We do not currently have more in place to support students. We believe a revamped advisory program can lead to more positive pressure. The advisory program would also begin to develop Student Success Plans through structured coaching, with the hope of establishing student centered goals academically and socially. Establish groundwork for PLCs in order to create a stronger culture of learning, to better share ideas, and to update the curriculum using Understanding by Design to address student needs. - Administrator All content area teachers - Outside Professional Development professional - Schedule time for preliminary planning. - Professional Development days to introduce initiative and maintain over the course of the next school year. - Train an administrator/lead teacher further in to coach staff The goal of this improvement is promote more staff collaboration in designing curricula as a team and to provide a better experience for the students. Giving teachers the opportunity to work as a group will improve social capital. Additionally, decisional capital will increase through providing this opportunity. Re~establish student advisory committee/council. Administrator Lead teacher(s) Student representatives - Recruitment of students to advisory committee. In the past the school had a student council, but this has not existed in any purposeful form over the past two years. Students currently do not have a formal manner of meeting to discuss issues they are facing and to then bring these issues to the administration. i believe providing this opportunity would give students a greater stake in maintaining the culture of the school and allow them to feel they have a voice. 12 Create school wide events Administrators - Analysis of current school We need to create rituals and (rituals) and other traditions All staff traditions events to showcase where we to provide opportunities fo:r Students and Review of school calendar have come as a school and who celebration and to bring Parents to decide when to include we are. This plays a big role in stakeholders together. - Community events. bring everyone together in a Members - Select staff to lead each manner to improves culture and event. climate. All of the work above would be rnoot without rituals in place to maintain and celebrate the accomplishments ofour school. 10. Discuss progress aligned to the school?s missionwspecific goals, as stated in the school?s 2014 annual report. 2013-14 School Goals from the Annual Report GoalA: Students will be monitored at data team meetings using benchmark assessment, curriculum data, and parental involvement. For this goal, we are looking to see 1) improvement on quarterly benchmark assessments, 2) that staff are meeting for data teams twice and that 3) teachers will contact the parents oftheir advisory students twice a month. Progress in Meeting the Goal: At the end ofthe 2013-14 school year, we found the use of Study Island to be both cumbersome and difficult to extrapolate meaningful data. The assessment tool no longer aligned to curriculum advances or requirements for high stakes (state) assessments, and the insistent nature of the data, as well as the time, taken to administer tests deterred from class time. We are continuing the use of our own in house assessments as well as switching to the STAR 360 program. We expect to have the STAR program up and running in early December (with tests administered twice more this school year) and after the initial test we will set new benchmark goals /growth targets for each student. Once again, we found that time for intensive data team discussions has been limited teachers have been completing their SLOs and are starting to compile data we can look at in meetings. Parent contact by advisors and administration has been better than last year, as so far 90% of staff have made contacts at least twice a month and staff are documenting contact through the use of Google Docs via a template created by administrators. Goal 8: Students will achieve academic success as measured by state exams. For this goal, we wanted to see a minimum of 60% of the students taking CAPT reach proficiency in Reading, Writing, Science, and Mathematics. (We will look to set a goal for Smarter Balanced after receiving student data.) Additionally, we wanted all juniors retaking CAPT exams to demonstrate improvement. Progress in Meeting the Goal: 60% of the students taking the CAPT did not reach proficiency in all tests (see CAPT Data above). Of the 16 students who took CAPT, 12.5% were Special Education students and 31.3% qualified for free reduced lunch. We required eleventh graders to retest if they did not score at a GOAL level. On the 2014 CAPT, 36.8% ofjuniors added a GOAL certificate to their existing results from the 2013 exam. Additionally, 52.3% of all Juniors who tested improved at least one test from the 2014 This year, we will continue to prepa re our students for the Science CAPT test. Juniors will be given extra test prep and preparation though resources taken from the Digital Library and through the use of the Smarter Balanced interim assessments. Teachers, through conversations with administration, have also worked to include Smarter Balanced tasks into their curricuturn. 13 2013?14 Mission, Purpose and Specialized Focus Goals Goal A: Exploratiens students wilt strive to develop seifuassuredness and a positive attitude toward becoming iifelong learners. For this goal, we wanted students to be involved in aetivities and courses that help to develop confidence and skitls in getting answers to their We would look at observations by staff members that documented changes in student mannerisms and behaviors as well as anecdotal correspondences with parents about what they are now seeing in their child that differs from previous experiences in other schools. Students were evaluated by the following benchmarks: All students will be passing at least 80% of their courses and will be present 95% ofthe time and 85% of the students will attain passing grades above 80% in Adventure Education. Progress in Meeting the Goal: At the end of the 2813-14 school year, only ten students were in violation of the 8096/9596 and 89.2% of the students were passing Adventure Education. After the first quarter of 2014, 86.25% of all students were passing Adventure Education and 16.25% of students were on probation. In our staff meetings, we will continue to chart interventions that we think can benefit these students as well as adding supports in the classroom to improve their performance. Additionally, we continued to ensure that parents are more aware of changes to state policy and we have done a betterjob reporting academic issues (via teacher contact), truancy issues (via nurse contact), and behavioral issues (via administrative contact). Goal B: Explorations students will develop a healthy attitude toward their school, community, work, family, and most importantly to themselves. For this goal, students were to be involved in career exploration as measured by positive responses on career interest inventories and students would be involved in career exploration, ten times a year, achieving positive responses from job-site mentors 90 ofthe time. As a second goal, we wanted to improve fund raising activities in the school, with 75% of the students ultimately participating in some form of fund raising. Progress in Meeting the Goal: We have done a good job, overall, in developing a positive image of our students and school in our community. We had 55% participation in school fundraising both for charitable causes and class projects last year. This year, our senior class and senior class advisors have done a fantasticjob organizing various fundraisers, including a tag sale, bake sale, Halloween costume contest, pancake breakfast, and an upcoming pasta dinner in December. Seeing the great work the seniors have done, advisors in each of the other classes will look to do a fundraiser in the coming months. Our career exploration program has been successful and last year all ofthe students received excellent reviews from the places they worked at. This year, students have again been praised for their work ethic and behavior on }ob sites. After the first quarter, 93.8% of all students were passing the career explorations program. Those few students who failed will have three quarters to bring up their grades, and we will put in necessary supports over the remainder ofthe school year. 14 PART 3: GOVERNANCE, AND MANAGEMENT 11. Complete Table 11A, summarizing the school?s financial health. 'i'able ILA: .Sthoot Financiai Information (14.69% (10.51)% (4.74% -- 1.20% - 4.28% 5.18% ?fe-m Same-e?ng de?ed-it?. no debt (9.96% 5.27% interest expense) (pail-acme! interest. payment-s) . meat asgfet (current-aesets currentliabititiES): 12.92% 1.34% 1.27% Days of u'anStrict-ed cash. . - - . . 7.3a . (total expenditures a? deprecration) 365 . . 41 59 days 1 9 avg 63 33 days Cash flow (change in cash balance) - (123,456) (66,616) 26,784 12. Identify areas for growth and improvement in the school?s governance, financial systems, and core operating procedures. Discuss areas of concern and plans to address deficiencies. This renewal comes at an interesting time for Explorations. January, 2014 saw the retirement of long-term Executive Director/Principal Gail Srebnik. September, 2014 brought about another change in administration with the appointment of a new Executive Director/Principal and Vice?9rincipal to lead the school into the future. The past two months have been spent reviewing what?s in place and making a concrete plan to move the school forward. Prior to the recently mandated board training many board members didn?t realize the duties of a board member. Under the new administration following is a list of goals based on concerns that were brought up during a review of items in place: 0 Update both school and board policies (utilizing CABE model and CABE assistance as needed). Update Accounting Manual and ensure that all items in the manual are being properly followed and documented. In addition, add information regarding budgeting timeframe and procedures. - Update website to increase the ease of posting updates for agendas and minutes for Governing Board and Governance Council. 0 Ensure that both Administrators are properly trained in all financial and data reporting to the state. - Update Teacher/Empioyee Handbook and employment contracts for all employees. Create a salary schedule for all certified staff to ensure equity and consistency of salaries for new employees. 15 3.3. Please make the case for the school?s long-term viability over the next five years. Explorations serves a population that is in need of a school such as ours. increased outreach and educating people about public school options in Noethwest Connecticut has definitely benefited the school. How do we know that there?s a need for this school? a "Thank you for saving my son?s life. l?m not snre if he would be here if it weren?t for Explorations? - parent of 2013 Graduate 1: ?I?ve never seen my daughter smile when she came home from school, thank you for giving that smile back to me? - parent of current Sophomore ?l failed Algebra One twice, I ?nally feel like I?m learning what Algebra is all about because of the way you teach it.? current High School junior - "l can?t believe I?m taking college classes - barely made it through freshman year at and now l?m going to be taking college classes next semester and going to college in the fall? current senior. 0 "Thank you for letting me be part of my PPT and know what?s in my IEP. I?ve never felt like anyone wanted me to be part of my education.? current senior. - ?Thank you for giving me a chance, I won?t let you down? - current sophomore. These are only a few of the hundreds of comments that we hear every year. While it?s difficult to quantify anecdotal data, we are able to use it in house to ?take the temperature? ofthe building. When you try to evaluate our school based on testing, attendance and graduation rate alone, the numbers don?t show what is truly happening. Our model allows us to track each individual student longitudinally. :?Zor instance, absenteeism of 100 days in freshman year (not at Explorations) followed by transfer to Explorations and only missing 30 days during the student?s sophomore year. While 30 days is still in the range to classify the student chronically absent, we celebrated this improvement to see only 16 days during his junior year. @a rents have also reported positive results on parent satisfaction surveys we sent out last school year and, most recently, in the fall of 2014 (see table below). This year we have continued parent contacts, which we not chart using a Google Doc that administration may check on a basis. Thus far, over 90% of staff have been in contact with parents at least twice a month. Moving forward, we want to see these numbers rise, and as we continue to make parent contact a focus we expect to see more positive results. Fa112014 Parent Satisfaction Survey Snapshot Question Asked Percentage of Positive Responses was pleased with contact from teachers advisors. 87.5% (21/24) I was pleased with contact from administrators. 82.6% (19/23) lwas pleased with contact from the nurse. 95.8% (23/24) 16 I knew how my child was doing in school, based on contacts last year, 86.9% (20/23) before receiving progress reports and report cards. Last year, i was satisfied with the responses to questions and concerns i received when I contacted Explorations. We have been at capacity for each of the past two years. There have been many initiatives that have brought this about, from offering transportation stops in Torrington to accommodate the needs of at least 40 families from Torrington to sustained outreach to iocal middfe schoois as students begin the psocess of deciding "what?s next?. We have already had parents of 6th and 7th grade students asking us if it?s too early to be put on a waiting list for their freshman year. As we continue to polish what is already in place and implement new initiatives, we are confident that Explorations will be viable for many, many years to come PART 4: STUDENT POPULATION 14. Summarize the school's efforts to attract, enroll, and retain special populations. Explain how the school?s demographics reflect that of the target population and/or the communities the school seeks to serve. Provide evidence to substantiate the school?s ability to effectively serve low-income students, students with disabilities, and ELLs. Explorations takes the largest number students from Torrington, Winchester, and Canton, and in comparison to each of those districts the school routinely serves a higher percentage of Special Education students (see tables below). Our population of low-income students usually exceeds 30% (currently, it is As stated earlier, our current percentage of Special Education students is 48.3%. We have found that the nature of our school small class size, more personal relationship with our students has attracted a larger population of students in need of a different environment than what is typically provided in large, mainstream schools. in addition, students who have been bullied, students who have had a history of truancy and disciplinary issues, and students from LGBT community have found Explorations to be safe haven from prior experiences. At presentations to local schools, we often talk up the small size of our school and the students we bring with us speak honestly about how the school has changed their lives. As the word about our school continues to spread, we often find that guidance counselors and Special Education departments that have worked with us recommend students who would benefit from our school. Similarly, we have pe0ple inquiring about the school after talking to (current and former) students and parents of students. In particular, since adding a 9th grade we have made the school more attractive to these special populations, and students in general. We currently have a wait list of about 14 students and are at full capacity. The desire of students to attend Explorations has continued to grow over the past five years, and as we continue to make more positive changes we expect this to con?nue. 17 2610-11 Student Comparison Data Explorations WinchesteHGilbert) Causation StateAverage/Number 80 ,2 325 515 36?,198 45% 36.6% 5.4% j_ 34% 2012-13 Student Comparison Bate Explorations Winchester Gilbert) Canton": State Average/Number 73 325 5-1-1 549,689 30.1% 36.6% 7 31.8% 23.3% 7.37% 9.5% 11.3% In order to effectively serve these special populations, we have done the following: Providing Transportation Our largest sending district, Torrington, does not provide transportation for students in district to attend Explorations. In presentations at Torrington Middle School and conversations with parents, this was a major deterrent to families who wished to send their children to Explorations but who had no way to get to the school. Three years ago we started to provide transportation by sending a school bus to pick up 14 students. When the need increased, we provided a van and small bus. At the end of last year, when both of those ?lled up, we contracted to send a full size bus. Today, we transport around 40 students out of our operating budget. Opportunities for Low~lncome Students - As a Title 1 school, we have been able to use funds to allow students to take summer school classes and to euhance extracurricular activities 15. Complete Table 15A, providing student mobility information for the past three school years. . Mobility Bate: 2913312" "mags-i; Number of students who left during the schooi year 9 14 10 Number of students who did not {e-enroli the next school year and had not compieted the highest grade at the schoul 18 16. Complete Table 16A, summarizing demand and community support for the charter schooi. Explain how the charter school is increasing educational opportunities and equity for the students it seeks to serve. Provide information regarding the schooi?s attrition rate lie, the number of students leaving the school during the school year) and how the school seeks to decrease attrition. ?Table Waitlistinformetion 2010-11 291142 291243 2013-24 2014-15" i i 0 4 14 Explorations seeks to serve students that are disenfranchised with their local school district. In all honesty, if a student and their families were happy with their sending school district, they would have no reason to be looking for an aiternative. These students fit into a few categories. 0 Because of our small size, we work well with students that are overwhelmed by a large school environment. We are able to cater to their need for small class sizes and at the same time meet all of their academic needs. a As evinced the increasing population of Special Education students in our schooi, we are meeting the needs of Special Education students that are feeling underserved by their current school. We have enrolled a number of students from local districts that have been undergoing great transition within the special education department oftheir sending district and are searching for an alternative. In addition, we have developed very strong relationships with Special Education Directors in many local districts that have been referring students to us based on their knowledge of our program and our success in working with students with learning exceptionalities. As stated previously in question 2, we are a second (sometimes third) chance for students. Students that have tried and faiied (for a variety of reasons) and thought that high school graduation was not possible are often successful at Expiorations. At the same time, taking these at?risk students leads us to some of the issues that have been brought to light lately. For instance, if we accept a student who has received little to no credits for a freshman and sophomore year, they will likely need three years at Explorations to complete the requisite number of credits to graduate. This impacts our "cohort" graduation rate. In another instance we admitted a student as a senior who had planned on dropping out of school, but wanted to earn a diploma. One day before the school year began, they changed their mind. Because we had already registered the student on the P515 they became our ?drop-out?. 0 Over the past few years we have taken many students who have felt or been bullied in their home school. While many schools claim to have a Zero?Tolerance for Bullying, we can proudly say that at the end ofthe 2013?2014 school year we surveyed our students regarding bullying and climate issues and 100% of the responding students stated that they have never been bullied nor seen evidence of bullying in the school. This is something that we are very proud of. While we are not a Special Education Facility, nor are we an Alternative School we feel we are a niche school and very capable of meeting the needs of most students that may have been served in these settings. At the same time, with rigorous curriculum and high standards for our students, we are able to meet and exceed the needs of ali students. Addressing attrition in a mom comprehensive way is part of our pian for 20144015. Things we have begun working on already: Increasing opportunities for students to take advantage of college level classes through our partnership with Northwest Connecticut Community College. We have four students taking college classes this semester. Through increased publicity and encouragement, we have nine students that have registered 19 to take classes in the spring. {if those students, three were considered ?at-risk? students because of their educatienal history prier to coming to Explorations. through our scheduling process this yea r; we have offered all seniors in good standing the opportunity for open~ended days. What this means is that students in good standing (passing ail ciasses) that have no class during the last period(s) ofthe day may leave school early. We currently have 16 of 31 seniors that are taking advantage of this. This has increased theit aecess to college levei classes, and in some cases has ailowed a student to get an after school }ob or be home to help with family obligations, Due to a change in staffing arrangements this year, we are able to offer electives that have not been offered before. gor instance, we have added a Mythology Class and have plans to add a Women?s History and Economics Class in the Spring. We are allowing students to propose independent study projects and work with a teacher to complete thern. For instance, we have two students that are currently working on revamping our website to make it more user friendly, full of information and to have timely updates with an interactive calender. We have added opportunities to our unique Friday schedule. New to our personal enrichment activities are a fencing class, self-defense (facilitated by a student with proper training/certification), lmprovisational Problem Solving Workshop and animal socialization. New gob-site opportunities have been secured at Little Guild of St. Francis, First Act Bakery and a local law firm. 20 ASSURANCES it is imperative that charter schools as with all other public schools - adopt and uphold the highest ethicai and legal standards while deiivering excelient academic opportunities for students and their families. As the authorized representative of Explorations Charter Schooi, to the best of my knowledge, affirm that: All board members and staff have satisfactorily completed background checks, including a state and national criminai records check and a record check of the Department of Children and Families Child Abuse and Neglect Registry. if applicabie, all charter schooi management organization (CMO) staff members have satisfactorily completed background checks, as described in (1). All contractors, if the nature of the contractor?s work entails close proximity to students in the judgment of the Governing Board, have satisfactorily completed background checks, as described in (1). Records of any and all background checks are on file at Explorations Charter School and available for random audit by the Connecticut State Department of Education (CSEDE). Explorations Charter School has adopted written anti-nepotism and confiict of interest poiicies, and that no member or employee of the Governing?Board has a personal or financial interest in any asset, real or personal, of the charter school. Ail board members have received training in board responsibilities and best practices in charter school governance, and that no board member of Explorations Charter School serves on the board of another charter schooi or CMO. All pubiic funds received by Explorations Charter School have been, or are being, expended prudently and in a manner required bylaw. All Governing Board meetings are open and accessible to the nubiic, and that Explorations Charter Schooi has posted, and continues to post, on any lnternet website that the Governing Board onerates, the schedule, agenda, and minutes of each Governing Board meeting, including any meeting of a subcommittee of the Governing Board, Expiorations Charter Schooi does not discriminate in any employment practice, education program, or educational activity on the basis of race, color, religious creed, sex, age, nationai origin, ancestry, marital status, sexuai orientation, gender identity or expression, disability, or any other basis oiohibited by Connecticut state and/or federal nondiscrimination laws. By signing this Statement of Assurances on behaif of the Geverning Board of Explorations Charter School,? acknowie?ge that i understand the terms contained herein and af?rm the vahdity of each statement to the best of my knewledge. i furthet understand that Expiorations Charter Schoel may be subject to random audit by the CSQE to verify these statements. Signature: Name of Board Chairperson: {if} 1?11: oat-e; mi