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Volume I, Issue 19, November 23, 2005
Charter Leader News
This issue of the Charter Leader News features information on . . .
All of us at the Charter Center feel especially thankful for the opportunity
to work with all of you to support New York City charter school students in their
quest for excellence. We extend warm wishes to you and yours during this holiday
season. Happy Thanksgiving!
*At your direction, we can include other leaders from your school or your Education
Management Organization (EMO) on the distribution list. Please let us know.
TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES
Reminder - Grades 3-8 ELA Coach Training on November 29:
English Language Arts (ELA) scorer training is required for all schools that
will be administering the ELA test this January. The ELA Coach Training will
occur on Tuesday, November 29, from 8 am to 4 pm. During training, your school's Coach will receive materials that will be used to
train the remainder of your staff. The Charter Center is currently evaluating
ways we can help your ELA Coach turnkey this training to your teachers in a timely
fashion. We will be sending you future updates about this process and provide
more specific information about the number of scorers needed from your school
during the scoring process in February.
At the request of many of your colleagues, we have designed an agenda that minimizes
the time that teachers will be away from their school building. Schools with
lower grades 3 through 5 should plan on attending the morning session, which begins
at 8:00 am. The afternoon session, which begins at 12:10 pm, will cover grades
5 though 8. We encourage schools with grades 1 and 2 to consider sending a representative
to the training to help you plan for future years.
For those schools that have not already done so, please RSVP as soon as possible
to Andrea Zayas at (212) 374-6816 or email: azayas2@nycboe.net. Please include name, phone, email and position of individual(s) who will be
representing your school community.
Training Location: New York City Center for Charter School Excellence, 111 Broadway
Suite 604, New York 10006, (212) 437-8300
FYI: Updated Guidance Documents for STATE ELA and Math Exam
School Leadership Learning Series Workshops in December:
There is still time for school leaders and members of their leadership team to
register for professional development workshops being held in December as part
of the School Leadership Learning Series. Each session series has two parts: attending Part I is a prerequisite to Part
II. Registration for sessions is currently underway; please RSVP to Rebecca Shimshak
at rshimshak@nycboe.net.
Building the Adolescent Literacy Toolkit for NYC School Leaders - December 5
Kylene Beers is a Senior Reading Researcher in the School Development Program
of the Child Study Center at Yale University. A former middle school teacher,
Ms. Beers is a respected authority on struggling readers; she is the 2001 recipient
of the Richard W. Halle Award given by the National Council of Teachers of English for outstanding contributions
to middle school education. This two-part workshop focuses on building the toolkit
leaders need to help their schools develop powerful adolescent literacy programs.
With a focus on accelerating the reading skills of struggling readers, the workshop
examines strategies that build word recognition, fluency, spelling, comprehension,
and vocabulary. Additionally, the workshop explores activities and trade novels
that encourage reluctant readers to read.
The December 14 workshop, entitled Effective and Explicit Reading Instruction for Struggling Middle School Readers, will be led by Anita Archer . The December 15 workshop, Enhancing Students’ Vocabulary, will be led by Isabel Beck. The workshops are co-sponsored by the NYC Department
of Education's Division of Literacy and the Charter Center. For more information
about the School Leadership Learning Series, presenters and session content, visit
our Web site at: www.nycchartercenter.org.
Charter School Facilities Planning and Financing Workshop - December 13:
The Charter Center is hosting a workshop on facilities planning and financing
for charter school leaderships teams on Tuesday, December 13, from 8:30 am to 2 pm. The morning session will feature a presentation by
Anne
Geggie, Business Development Officer with the NCB Development Corporation (NCBDC).
NCBDC has a strong focus on developing creative ways of helping charter school
operators remove the barriers to locating, renovating and financing suitable real
estate to house their schools. The organization is best known for producing the
highly-recommended “Charter Schools Resource Guide.”
Ms. Geggie's presentation will offer a comprehensive primer on the mechanics
of devising a sound facilities plan from a financing perspective. The afternoon/lunch
session will feature case studies from the field. Financing professionals will present
step-by-step analysis of how their programs and services become reality for charter
schools.
Click here to RSVP for this event.
CURRENT EVENTS
November Advocacy Meetings Emphasize "Lifting the Cap" in 2006:
At a November meeting of the Charter School Leader Network’s Advocacy and Equity Committee, current and future charter school leaders discussed and debated relevant issues
impacting charter schools, from funding equity to regulatory policy. The committee’s
top priority, however, continues to be coordinating support around the shared
goal of lifting the statewide cap on public charter schools.
To assist the committee in its work, the Charter Center is developing a “How
To” handbook for parents outlining specific activities for engaging legislators
and promoting the merits of the charter school movement. The Advocacy and Equity
committee meeting served as a precursor to two separate charter school community
forums held in November and organized by State Senator David Paterson (D-Manhattan) and State Assemblyman Michael Benjamin (D-Bronx), respectively. The forums in Harlem and the Bronx were intended to expand public
awareness and institutional support for public charter schools, as well as present
each lawmaker’s individual rationale for lifting the cap.
Mission:
The mission of the New York City Center for Charter School Excellence is to stimulate
the supply of high quality charter schools and support ongoing student excellence
in all NYC charter schools, impacting the effectiveness of public education. As
an independent nonprofit, the Charter Center is an advocate, bridge and catalyst
for the achievement of academic and operational success and sustainability of
all NYC charter schools for each young person.
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