In Featured, News

Monthly Digest with Coalition Updates, Must-Read News, and Upcoming Events

Coalition Updates

Fellowship Program: Incubate Prospective Leaders Of Diverse Charter Schools
The Coalition received a grant to design and implement a Fellowship Program to prepare four aspiring school leaders/founders to create and lead intentionally diverse charter schools. Each Coalition fellow will be matched with an exemplary member school to complete a residency, work alongside school leadership, and develop her/his own proposal for a new diverse charter. We are in the process of developing the full program, which will kick off officially in July 2018 for the 2018-2019 school year. In the meantime, we want to hear from you!

Is your school interested in potentially hosting a Fellow? Do you have plans or aspirations to expand your school or network of schools? Are you ready to train, mentor and supervise promising leaders of the diverse charters of tomorrow? Reach out to Elsa Duré at edure@diversecharters.org to stay connected. We will continue to share updates with the full network in the future.

We are hiring an experienced leader for the role of Program Director to lead and manage implementation of the Fellowship program. The Program Director is responsible for the overall management the program and will work with host schools and ensure that all Fellows are supported, inspired, and empowered to develop and ultimately launch high-quality diverse-by-design public charter schools. Know someone that would be great for this role? Forward the job description found here.

School Spotlight: Larchmont Charter School Highlights the Power of Integration
Larchmont Charter School, a K-12 school in San Diego, believes learning is an active process and at the core of the school’s model is Diversity:

Larchmont Charter School It is through ensuring a richly diverse environment – of both people and programming – that we create the setting for learning to occur. The diversity of our community provides students the opportunities to interact and benefit from students and staff from disparate backgrounds often resulting in a variety of perspectives leading to diversity of thought and increasing critical and creative thinking. The diversity in the program – both the interdisciplinary project based learning and the rich array of enrichment and elective offerings – music, art, movement, cooking, gardening, improvisation and more K-12 – tap into our students’ multiple intelligences and facilitate them making connections across the curriculum. This is the power of our model.

Larchmont Charter School’s recently released “Diverse by Design” video highlights the power of integration and how Larchmont is part of a national movement to realize the vision and promise of Brown v. Board of Education.

Summit Public Schools: The First Teacher Residency Program For Personalized Learning
Summit Public Schools recently launched its Summit Learning Teacher Residency, a one-year program that trains teachers to lead students in a personalized learning classroom setting. Teachers are immersed in Summit classrooms while also completing credentialing coursework leading to a California Single Subject Preliminary Teaching Credential.
During the program, residents:

  • Develop the skills, habits, and tools needed to personalize learning for every student and to build effective relationships,
  • Receive a student teaching placement that is deeply integrated in a Summit school site in California for four full days each week for the length of the academic year,
  • Engage in consistent, individualized coaching and support from an experienced Summit teacher and a program faculty member,
  • Are empowered as self-directed adult learners with a personalized trajectory and timeline through the program, and
  • Are active and important members of a professional learning community, working with the teachers, administrators, mentors, students and families to implement, reflect upon and continuously improve upon personalized learning goals of the school community.

Upon successful completion of the program, residents earn a California Preliminary Single Subject Teaching Credential in English, History/Social Science, Mathematics, Biology, Physics, Chemistry, or Spanish. Residents also receive priority in Summit’s hiring process. To learn more visit Summit’s page here.

From the Field: Federal Funding Opportunities
As part of the National Charter School Resource Center’s (NCSRC’s) dedication to assisting charter schools realize their goals, they compile and share funding opportunities for charter schools. Details on the most recent funding opportunity below. Visit their website to learn about other fellowships, grants, prizes, and scholarships.

The Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE): Impact Aid Discretionary Construction Grant Program
Type
: Federal
Amount: $17,400,000
Deadline: 09/15/2017
Eligible States: National


Upcoming Conferences & Events

The Century Foundation Panel: How Can Charter Schools Help Integrate NYC?
September 12th from 6 pm to 8 pm in New York, New York
Register

The Century Foundation is hosting a panel discussion on September 12th on “How Can Charter Schools Help Integrate New York City?”  The Coalition’s Executive Director Sonia Park will be joining New York City’s three charter school authorizers, as well as other charter and integration advocates, to discuss what role charter schools should play in promoting diversity. The discussion may be livestreamed here.

If you’ll be in New York City, join us for an exclusive Happy Hour at 4:30 pm prior to the panel with other Diverse Charter Schools Coalition schools. This is great opportunity to mingle with other member schools, chat with authorizers, and to discuss your top-of-mind issues.

Come for the camaraderie and wine, stay for the compelling discussion! RSVP required.

The Century Foundation Panel: Should Charter Schools Help Integrate Washington, D.C.?
September 19th at 4 pm in Washington D.C.
Register
Livestream

Missed the NYC event? On September 19, The Century Foundation and Learn Together, Live Together invite you to come hear D.C.’s education, civil rights, and charter school leaders discuss what role charter schools should play in promoting diversity. This event will attempt to answer questions such as: What effect do charter schools currently have on diversity in D.C. schools? Should charters in D.C. focus on creating diverse learning environments, or should most be dedicated to providing services to only the most disadvantaged students? How can district schools and charter schools coordinate and collaborate in this work?

The National Center for Special Education in Charter Schools (NCSECS)
October 10th from 3 pm to 5 pm via web
Register

The National Center for Special Education in Charter Schools (NCSECS) works to ensure that students with disabilities are able to access and thrive in charter schools. NCSECS started the CMO Special Education Network as one of its core initiatives to connect special education leaders from charter management organizations (CMOs) across the country in order to increase collaboration, sharing of resources and best practices, and opportunities for professional development.

NCSECS is excited to extend the offer of great professional development and networking opportunities through a subscription to the Network. Membership includes registration for one person at the annual meeting scheduled for December 4-6 in New Orleans. Interested, and want to learn more?  Join NCSECS’s fall web conference on October 10 from 3-5pm EST. Complimentary registration is available here.

Anti-Bias and Social Justice Institute
November 8th to November 10th in New York, New York
Register
ICYMI: Community Roots is offering Coalition member schools a 20% discount with code COALITION. Registration closes October 15th

The 3-day Anti-Bias and Social Justice Institute offers teams of up to 5 (five) educators and school leaders the opportunity to share in an exploration of the principles and strategies of the social justice work done at both the elementary and middle school level at Community Roots Charter School.  The Institute will focus both on building an anti-bias lens to curricula and how to develop staff to be leaders in this work.

Participants will be engaged in interactive learning through capacity building, classroom observations, sharing of resources, reflection, and planning time, as well as panel discussions with members of our school community.

A Struggle We Must Win: Advancing School Integration Through Activism, Youth Voice, & Policy Reform
October 19th to October 20th in New York, New York
Register

The NCSD 4th national conference will bring together 400+ parents, students, educators, researchers, advocates, activists, policymakers (from federal, state and local levels), and other supporters from across the country to discuss & strengthen strategies for reducing racial & socioeconomic isolation in PK-12 public schools. The 2017 conference focuses on empowering communities and the next generation of leaders.

The Diverse Charter Schools Coalition is proud to help sponsor the conference. Members Blackstone Valley Prep and Community Roots will facilitate workshops and Brooklyn Prospect will host a school visit on the 19th. Executive Director Sonia Park will also be participating in the plenary panel. See here for a full list of workshops + agenda.

Learning Forward’s 2017 Annual Conference: LEARNING BEYOND THE HORIZON
December 2nd to December 6th in Lake Buena Vista, Florida
Register

Learning Forward’s Annual Conference puts educator learning at the forefront. Find answers to your most pressing teaching and learning challenges here. Choose from more than 300 concurrent sessions addressing the most pressing issues for education leaders including improving instruction, social-emotional learning, culturally responsive pedagogy, applying data-driven decision making, understanding professional development redesign, developing leadership capacity, learning facilitation skills, supporting new teachers and principals, implementing effective school improvement, and much more.
Who should attend: Central office administrators, Superintendents, Policymakers and decision makers, Teacher leaders/Coaches, School-based teams, Principals/Assistant principals, and Technical assistance providers. 


News Roundup

What White Parents Can Do to Help Desegregate Schools by Patrick Wall
Mother Jones — September/October Issue

Five Charter Schools Line Up Hoping For State Nod by Jacqueline Rabe Thomas
The CT Mirror — August 28, 2017

The Key to Keeping Minority Teachers When the Rest of the Staff Is White by Liana Loewus
Education Week — August 18, 2017

When We Talk About Race, Let’s Be Honest: Four Ways Educators Can Address Race With Students by Tyrone C. Howard
Education Week — August 18, 2017

Silicon Valley’s School Integration Paradox: More Black And Hispanic Students Get To College — And Get Arrested by Matt Barnum
Chalkbeat —  August 16, 2017

District Admits Pushing Struggling Students Toward Charters By Mario Koran
The Voice of San Diego — August 14, 2017

Q&A With Former Schools Chief About Christie’s Legacy On Charters by Star-ledger Editorial Board
The NJ.com — August 13, 2017

Lack Of Progressive Schools In New Orleans Frustrates Parents by Danielle Dreilinger
The Times-Picayune — August 8, 2017

How It Works: A New Report Explains The Research Behind A School Model, Summit Public Schools Releases An Explanation Of The Research Behind Its Vision by Nichole Dobo
The Hechinger Report —  August 9, 2017

RESEARCH BRIEF: How to Support the Social-Emotional Well-Being of Students of Color: Research & Best Practices from Interdistrict Integration Programs by Carole Learned-Miller
The National Coalition on School Diversity — July 2017

Across the nation, school districts are intentionally integrating students of different racial and socioeconomic backgrounds in order to increase access to educational opportunity, boost achievement, and prepare students to be thoughtful and collaborative citizens in our multiracial society. Some districts have developed interdistrict integration programs in order to bring students together from neighboring towns or even an entire region. While the benefits of interdistrict programs are many, district leaders must ensure the social emotional well-being of students who are attending schools outside of their home communities. This brief highlights successful interdistrict integration programs and the practices their leaders and practitioners have employed to create welcoming and inclusive learning environments for their students.


Career Opportunities

Brooklyn Urban Garden School (BUGS)
Special Education ELA Teacher (Co-Integrated Teaching)

The Diverse Charter Schools Coalition 
Fellowship Program Director

Recent Posts

Start typing and press Enter to search

X
X