TEOTLANEPANOLMACHILIZCAHUAHLOTL EL PLAN

Transcription

TEOTLANEPANOLMACHILIZCAHUAHLOTL
Page 1
EL PLAN DEL CONOCIMIENTO DE LA VIDA
CHARTER
OF
Academia Semillas del Pueblo
A CALIFORNIA PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOL
………………………………………………
CHARTER OF ACADEMIA SEMILLAS del PUEBLO
Los Angeles Unified School District Charter School Application | December 2006
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XINAXCALMECAC
Academia Semillas del Pueblo Charter
School is dedicated to academic
excellence, an appreciation of the
cultural and intellectual heritage of
Indigenous Peoples and the promotion of
positive social awareness. We
consciously strive to provide students
effective and comprehensive pedagogy
through a globally inclusive curriculum
within a positive, supportive learning
environment involving students,
teachers, parents and staff.
………………………………………………
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“EDUCAR ES SEMBRAR LAS SEMILLAS DEL
PUEBLO”
“To educate is to sow the seeds of the
People.”
- Dr. Juan Gómez Quiñones
TOTLAMACHILISMACHTIHLOTL
To-tla-ma-chilis-mach-tihlo-tl
………………………………………………
Nuestra Sabiduría Ancestral de la Vida
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Our Ancestral Knowledge of Life
“ Los padres son los primeros maestros
de los niños,
y los maestros son sus segundos padres.”
“Parents are a child’s first teachers,
and teachers are a child’s second parents.”
- Traditional
Ipan in Xihtzi Chicome
Tochtli,
Ipan in Xiuhpoualtzi
Panquetzaliztli,
Ipan in Tonaltzi Tze
Coatl
………………………………………………
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G
………………………………………………
d
Table of Contents
Assurances _____________________________________________
7
Introduction to Charter Renewal: The Accomplishments and
Achievements of the First term of Academia Semillas del
Pueblo Charter School _________________________________ 9
Element
44
1 ______________________ The Educational Program
Element
76
2 __________________ Measurable Student Outcomes
Element
80
3 ________________________ Methods of Assessment
Element
88
Element
95
Element
102
Element
107
Element
109
Element
112
Element
113
4 ___________________________________ Governance
______________________________________________
5 ______________________ Employee Qualifications
6 _________________ Health and Safety Procedures
______________________________________________
7 ____________________ Racial and Ethnic Balance
______________________________________________
8 _______________________ Admission Requirements
______________________________________________
9 ___________ Annual Independent Financial Audit
______________________________________________
10 _____________________ Suspension or Expulsion
Element
122
Element
123
Element
124
Element
128
Element
130
11 ___________________________ Retirement System
______________________________________________
12 _______ Public School Attendance Alternatives
______________________________________________
13 _____________________________ Employee Rights
______________________________________________
14 __________________________ Dispute Resolution
______________________________________________
15 _____________________________ Labor Relations
Element
131
16 ______________________________ Other Elements
………………………………………………
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ADDENDA
______________________________________ Attached
Grade Level Benchmarks
Program of Inquiry Matrix and Sample Lesson Plans
LAUSD Comprehensive Site Review
DVR Summary Report
OSASIP Independent Evaluation
WestEd Independent Evaluation
HPSG Application
Western Alliance for the Study of School Climate (WASSC)
Climate Survey
Awards
By-laws
Articles of Incorporation
Budget
Supporting Teacher Signatures
Supporting Parent Signatures
Pledges for Educational Equity: Community Support for
Academia’s Renewal
………………………………………………
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THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK
Assurances
As the authorized representative of the applicant for
renewal, I hereby certify that the information submitted
in this application for the renewal of the charter for the
Academia Semillas del Pueblo (“Academia”), to be located
within the Los Angeles Unified School District
(“District”) boundaries, is true to the best of my
knowledge and belief. I also certify that this
application does not constitute the conversion of a
private school to the status of a public charter school.
Further, I understand that if awarded the renewal of the
charter, Academia is committed to the following
affirmations:
………………………………………………
•
Academia shall conduct all required pupil assessment
tests pursuant to Education Code Section 60605 or any
other pupil assessments applicable to pupils in noncharter public schools.
•
Academia shall meet all statewide standards applicable
to non-charter public schools.
•
Academia shall be nonsectarian in its programs,
admission policies, employment practices, and all other
operations.
•
Academia will not charge tuition.
•
Academia will not discriminate on the basis of race,
ethnicity, national origin, gender, or disability.
•
Academia will admit all pupils who wish to attend Academia,
subject only to capacity.
•
The Meetings of the Council of Trustees for Academia
shall be held in accordance with all federal and state
laws governing non-for-profit organizations.
•
Academia shall comply with the Individuals with
Disabilities in Education Improvement Act of 2004
(“IDEIA”), Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act
(“Section 504”), and the Americans with Disabilities
Act (“ADA”).
•
Academia shall comply with the Public Records Act and
the Family Educational Privacy Rights Act (“FERPA”).
•
Admission to Academia shall not be determined according
to the place of residence of the pupil, or of his or
her parent or guardian, within California. This is
subject only to capacity and the admissions procedures
and preferences stated herein.
•
Academia shall continually strive for a healthy,
collaborative, synergistic relationship with the
District without imposing a burden or liability on the
District.
•
Academia shall offer, at a minimum, the same number of
minutes of instruction set forth in paragraph (1) of
subdivision (a) of Education Code Section 47612.5 for
the appropriate grade levels.
………………………………………………
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•
Academia shall maintain written contemporaneous records
that document all pupil attendance and make those
records available for audit and inspection.
•
Academia shall comply with all laws related to the
minimum and maximum age for public instruction.
•
Academia shall meet all requirements for employment set
forth in applicable provisions of law, including, but
not limited to, teaching credentials, fingerprinting
and background checks, as required by law.
•
Academia shall ensure that teachers in Academia hold a
Commission on Teacher Credentialing certificate,
permit, or other document equivalent to that which a
teacher in other public schools are required to hold,
and are highly qualified as required by the No Child
Left Behind Act (“NCLB”). As allowed by statute,
flexibility will be given to non-core, non-college
preparatory teachers.
•
Academia shall on a regular basis consult with its
parents and teachers regarding Academia’s educational
program.
•
Academia shall at all times maintain all necessary and
appropriate insurance coverage.
•
Academia facilities shall comply with the California
Building Code, as adopted and enforced by the local
building enforcement agency with jurisdiction over the
area in which Academia is located.
•
Academia shall notify the Superintendent of the school
district of the pupil’s last known address within 30
days of the pupil being expelled from or leaving
Academia without graduating. Academia shall provide
that school district with a copy of the cumulative
record of the pupil, including a transcript of grades
or report card and health information, upon request.
•
Academia shall comply with all applicable provisions of
the No Child Left Behind Act.
•
Academia shall comply with all other applicable
federal, state and local laws.
………………………………………………
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______________________________________
___________________
Dr. Juan Gomez Quiñones, Board President
………………………………………………
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Date
Introduction to
The Renewal Charter:
Page 12
The Accomplishments and
Achievements
of The First Term of Academia
Semillas del Pueblo Charter School
ACADEMIA SEMILLAS DEL PUEBLO CHARTER SCHOOL
Academia’s sixth grade
(“Academia”) is dedicated to academic
students have out
excellence, an appreciation of the cultural
performed their peers in
and intellectual heritage of Indigenous
East Los Angeles public
Peoples and the promotion of positive social
schools scoring a
awareness. We consciously strive to provide
disaggregated API of 632
students effective and comprehensive pedagogy
through a globally inclusive curriculum within a positive,
supportive learning environment involving students,
teachers, parents and staff. Academia is a high quality
public charter school. We believe learning best occurs when it
is an act of love and the product of community.
Academia has achieved academic success and has developed
important and effective dimensions in community-based
schooling. The following summary documents the school’s
achievements and accomplishments across multiple domains.
Academia has successfully implemented innovative and
effective approaches to educating students. Academia’s
instructional strategies are most effective in serving
historically discriminated communities currently serviced
by underperforming schools. Academia’s two campuses have
eased the shortage of school facilities and seat space in
overcrowded areas of East Los Angeles in particular as
full day Kinder is implemented in the District, and in the
middle school grades. Academia continues to close the
achievement gap among students of various backgrounds by
better preparing English Learners and children of
historically discriminated communities.
A. Achievement in Academics
………………………………………………
Parents all over Los Angeles continue to seek out
Academia’s academic and cultural program. Academia has
continued to grow in enrollment. Starting with 139
students in 2002-2003, our student body has more than
doubled with current enrollment K-7 at 340 students. (see
Figure 1) School personnel maintain an annual list of
interested parents. Over one hundred students are
currently waiting for an opportunity to enroll in
Academia’s challenging university preparatory program.
Moreover, current attendance rates have surpassed our past
high rates during this year’s first reporting period
achieving a 99% attendance rate school wide.
Page 13
1. Meeting Growth Targets
Academia has attained its Academic Performance Index
growth targets in the past 2005-2006 academic year and
cumulatively two out of the last three years. Moreover,
Academia’s sixth grade students have out performed their
peers in East Los Angeles public schools scoring a
disaggregated API of 632 in 2006 (see Figure 2). Meeting
this achievement goal is significant in a number of ways.
The students in this cohort were enrolled as third graders
in the first year of our school’s existence and also
constitute Academia’s first graduating class. It is also
a testament to the effectiveness of the school’s curricula
and pedagogy designed to prepare students for a university
education. In 2003, Academia’s baseline API was 559,
which indicates a growth of 73 points. Our sixth graders
demonstrated greater API improvement than students in
surrounding schools. Of significance, Academia met its
overall API Growth Target for 2006 (see Figure 3), while
students at the two other local middle schools have failed
to meet growth targets since 1997.
2. Continued Annual Progress
Overall, the number of AYP
Criteria met by Academia
students have increased by
almost 100% since 2003,
Academia students have made significant
progress as measured by Adequate Yearly Progress
indicators (see Figure 4). The California Department of
Education recognizes that in 2005, Academia, “had
significant demographic changes and will not have any
1
Yet, our school continues
growth or target information”.
to work towards our goal of one hundred percent
achievement of all AYP Criteria for all subgroups. Every
year, our school’s growth in enrollment has changed the
way our AYP is measured by increasing the number of AYP
1
http://api.cde.ca.gov/APIBase2006/2006GrowthSch.aspx?allcds=19647336119929
………………………………………………
Criteria to be met. Academia students have increased the
number of criteria met every year. Academia students met
100% of the AYP Criteria set for schools in 2003 and 2004.
In 2005, the number of Criteria rose to 13, and Academia
students met 46% of these Criteria. In 2006, the number of
AYP Criteria increased to 17, and Academia students met
65% of these. Overall, the number of AYP Criteria met by
Academia students have increased by almost 100% since
2003, our baseline year. Academia has developed a plan to
provide student intervention services to provide support
for struggling learners. Academia will continue to
implement its strategic intervention plan for student
success by analyzing student performance at regular
intervals during the academic year. (See attached HPSG
Application).
2. Learning Language: Acquiring English
Through A Multilingual Program
Academia’s state standardized CELDT test results indicate English
Learners are moving towards English proficiency at a rate
exceeding LAUSD’s ( see Figure 5 ).
Moreover, the CDE recently added a new Title III
accountability report called Annual Measurable Achievement
Objectives (AMAO’s). These reports track the progress
English Learners are making towards English Proficiency.
There are two years worth of data for Academia (see Figure
6). AMAO 1 reports the percent of students reaching annual
progress in learning English on the CELDT. Students went
from not reaching the target in 2004 (46.8%) to exceeding
the target in 2005 (64.8%). AMAO 2 reports on students
attaining CELDT defined English Proficiency. Again
students went from not making the target in 2004 (20.6%)
to making the target in 2005 (38.9%).
More than 70% of English Language Learners that enrolled in
Academia in the third grade in 2002, achieved CELDT defined
English Proficiency by the fifth grade (see Figures 7,8, and 9).
This success in learning English is an expected outcome of
our dual immersion methodologies and of the enrichment of
primary education by the additional instruction of their
mother tongue, Nahuatl and a foreign language, Mandarin.
Once our students learn English they can outperform
2
monolingual students at their grade level .
2
See Lambert, W. E., & Cazabon, M. (1994). Students' views of the Amigos
program. (Research Report No. 11). University of California, Santa Cruz:
National Center for Research on Cultural Diversity and Second Language
Learning.
………………………………………………
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3. Meeting Grade Level
Standards
Academia’s students have surpassed goals of
expected achievement in grade level standards.
A greater percentage of
students of Academia are
healthier than their
peers in the
neighborhood district
The number of students that have achieved
grade level standards since our first year
(2002-2003) has increased by 19% over four years. Our
first year’s second and third graders represent a cohort
of students now in the 6th and 7th grades. By the end of
the 2006 academic year, ninety-seven percent (97%) of this
cohort achieved grade level standards, exceeding our
expected goals (see Figure 10).
4. Wellness & Fitness
Childhood obesity has become a national concern. Most
understand the impact of unhealthy living on academic
success. At Academia, wellness is a priority. A greater
percentage of students of Academia are healthier than
their peers in the neighborhood, district and the state
(see Figure 11). Academia students outpaced their fifth
grade peers in the Physical Fitness Test (PFT) across the
state. Forty percent (40%) of Academia fifth graders
achieved all State of California fitness standards
compared to only 25.6% of fifth graders statewide. In the
LAUSD, only 19.7% of fifth graders met all fitness
standards. While in El Sereno, some neighboring schools
reported that an average of only 14% of their students met
all fitness standards. The State of California has also
adopted Healthy Fitness Zone (HFZ) benchmarks. Academia
students outpaced their peers in several HFZ benchmarks as
measured by Physical Fitness Tasks. Academia students
outperformed their peers in four key Fitness Tasks: Body
Composition, Trunk Extension Strength, Upper Body Strength
and Flexibility. According to the HFZ Body Composition
indicators, Academia students are on the whole 13% more
fit than the District students overall and up to 15% more
fit than local peers.
One hundred percent of Academia students met HFZ standards
for Trunk Extension Strength, while only approximately 88%
of students did so district and statewide. Eighty percent
of Academia students achieved HFZ standards while only
63.5% and 67.1% of students District and statewide
respectively. Eighty percent of Academia students achieved
………………………………………………
HFZ standards in Upper Body Strength while only 63.5% of
LAUSD and California students did, respectively.
Additionally, 93.3% of Academia’s fifth grade class
achieved HFZ standards for Flexibility while only 63% of
students District-wide met these and only 50.8% of their
peers in the neighboring school met these standards.
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Our students’ success in fitness is an expected outcome of
our cultural visual and performing arts program that
includes regular instruction in Yang style Tai Chi Chuan,
QiGung, and traditional Aztec dance.
B. Accomplishments In School
Organization
At the request of the National Council of
“the site assessment team
La Raza and with the agreement of the
administration of Academia, Foundations
found a unique and highly
for a Brighter Future, an East coast
successful charter
based professional independent school
school ”
evaluation organization, applied its OnSite School Assessment School Improvement Process (OSASIP)
at Academia in November of 2004. Academia considers this
external evaluation to be an accurate mid-charter
evaluation as agreed to in our first term. The OSASIP is
designed as a comprehensive means of evaluating school
effectiveness and assisting schools in developing a plan
for improvement. The OSASIP team reviewed all aspects of
school performance in “Essential Building Blocks for
School Success” that make up the OSASIP: Accountability
and Planning; After School; Business and Finance;
Curriculum; English Language Learning; Governance and
Educational Law; Human Resources; Instruction; Leadership;
Parent and Community Involvement; Professional
Development; School Climate and Student Behavior; Student
Assessment; Student Health and Support; and Supplemental
Funding. These ‘Building Blocks’ were selected by
Foundations because of their importance to student
achievement.
According to the OSASIP report, “the site assessment team
found a unique and highly successful charter school.”
3
Additionally, the OSASIP report indicated that:
“At Academia Semillas del Pueblo Charter School, 79% of the
total number of Components across all Building Blocks were
rated as meeting or exceeding expectations. This represents
an exceptional accomplishment.
Closer analysis shows that
3
On-Site School Assessment School Improvement Process (OSASIP) at
Academia Semillas del Pueblo Charter School in November of 2004, p.66.
………………………………………………
the percentage of Components rated as meeting or exceeding
expectations is highest (93%) in the first tier where the
greatest impact on student achievement resides.
Sixty
percent (60%) of Components in the second tier and just over
two-thirds (67%) in the third tier met or exceeded
4
expectations.”
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In 2004, with the support of the Raza Development Fund,
Academia contracted a second nationally recognized
independent evaluation firm, WestEd. Given the cultural
focus of the school, the administration of Academia
invited WestEd’s Culture and Language in Education
Research (CLE) unit to conduct an evaluation and technical
assistance project for the school. Two major purposes of
the evaluation were to: 1) provide an assessment of
Academia’s success in providing a learning climate based
on the core mission and goals of the school and to
identify key issues that the school should address as it
plans for its future and 2) facilitate the development of
a strategic plan template for school-wide action planning
based on evaluation findings and ongoing collaboration.
The WestEd study reports that the evaluators, “We observed
many examples of their vision being realized in practice
and believe that the school is fulfilling its essential
mission of becoming a transformative institution that
‘grounds strong academic standards in the cultural and
collective realities’ of the students. Structures for
cultural learning and living skills go beyond the student
level. They also serve as mechanisms to promote community
5
involvement, capacity building and service to others.”
Educational experts have affirmed that ways of becoming a
transformative school impact education even beyond our
doors. Dr. Linda Rogoff, co-author of Learning Together,
has written, “There is a big differences between improving
schools and restructuring schools. School improvement
applies new knowledge and ideas to existing programs. It
is a tinkering process. School restructuring, on the
other hand, is a process in which entirely new systems and
6
conditions are created.” Academia is not tinkering, it is
transforming.
These studies were important to meeting
Academia’s mission of excellence in education.
Both studies highlighted best practices and
made recommendations for improvement as a part
of our on-going cycle of reflection and
improvement. Importantly, all of the major
4
“The school has truly
made parents partners
in the education
process.”
ibid., p.67
5 WestEd Evaluation Report for Academia Semillas del Pueblo, Executive
Summary, July 6, 2006
6
Rogoff,L., Goodman Turkanis, C., and Bartlett, L. Learning Together:
Children and Adults in a School Community. Oxford University Press. 2001.
………………………………………………
findings in the studies have been included in our plans
for strategic school development. Below are some of the
positive findings highlighted by these studies and other
internal methods of assessment.
1. A Living Community
Extensive Parent Engagement: Community based
schooling
Parent engagement continues to grow and exceed that of
other local schools. Not only are Special Education
parents extremely informed of the educational program of
their children, but all parents have been engaged by the
school culture, Indigenous pedagogy, International
curriculum and plethora of involvement activities and
forums. Parents are active members of our Governance
Council. Parents regularly attend monthly meetings with
their children’s teachers. One hundred percent of our
parents have participated in at least one method of parent
engagement (see Figure 14). Parents participate fully in
quarterly community assemblies. Parents regularly assist
in the classroom and volunteer as docents on student field
trips. Importantly, parents also provide leadership in
community celebration and issues involving school safety.
In 2004, the OSASIP reported that, “The school has truly made
parents partners in the education process. Parents and school
staff collaborate at all levels to provide support to the
children and the school as a whole. Teachers and parents speak
highly of each other’s commitment to open communication and
ongoing cooperation for the benefit of the children.” 7
In Community-Based Education for Indigenous Cultures,
author David Corson 8 argues that community-based education
is a means of combating the tendency of governments to
view educational policy and curriculum in terms of the
economic market. The author identified exploitative
economic social relations as the root of educational
failure in modern society, and as the source of alienation
in schooling for Native Peoples. Importantly, Corson
emphasized that Native Peoples have found that,
“community-based education has become central to cultural
9
and linguistic revival”. According to Corson, schools that
engaged in community-based education in Native communities
organized a collective response to the individual needs of
Indigenous students. Most important in community-based
7 On-Site School Assessment School Improvement Process (OSASIP) at Academia
Semillas del Pueblo Charter School in November of 2004, p.5.
8 Corson,1998
9 ibid., p. 239
………………………………………………
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education is the process by which schools, such as
Academia, work to engage the community’s wisdom and not
10
simply convey the work of the school to parents. Academia
excels in the practice of community-based education
through its governance model and educational practices as
well as its high rate of success in parent engagement. At
Academia, parents have been involved in all aspects of
school governance from school management, to curriculum
design to field trip supervision. Academia has been
characterized as transformative and purposeful in the
recently completed study of the school by WestEd.
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Positive School Climate
… transformative
and purposeful…
Native Language and Culture have successfully and
positively affected student learning and
motivation at Academia. The mission and vision of
Academia reflect a collective path that adults
have forged to organize a better school for the children
of the community. According to an internal climate survey
conducted by school personnel, the school community is
perceived as living its mission. (See attached school
climate) Students perceive the school as being inclusive
of their families. Moreover, students are highly
motivated to learn because of the culture generated and
support received by the adults in and around the school
environment. Based on the recent study conducted by
WestEd, the school was characterized as having “structures
for cultural learning and living” that encompass the
entire learning community, “as mechanisms to promote
community involvement and capacity building and service to
others.” 11 The WestEd study also describes this strength as
follows: “Just as the spectrum of four languages and
worldviews is evident, it is also by design that Academia
Semillas del Pueblo enacts a pattern of relationships at
the school that reflects an indigenous ethos. This can be
seen in the collective approach to teacher development,
parent participation, cooperative learning and inquiry,
and in the recognition of value and responsibility of all
stakeholders.” 12
Expanding Social responsibility
Academia has developed a variety of ways to expand social
responsibility both among our students and our community.
Students regularly engage in reflection and character
building through our cultural practices of Danza Azteca
10 ibid., 1998
11 ibid
12 ibid
………………………………………………
WestEd
and the martial arts instruction of Tai Chi. In addition,
students engage in the use of a Xinaxtin or ‘seed’
character development plan we have developed to emphasize
a supportive and socially respectful school culture
through self reflection. Students and staff are united by
a sense of belonging. Students express their feelings in
respectful and constructive ways to appreciate our
community’s diversity. In many ways, culture is a
framework for youth development of characteristics and
ways of relating that are Indigenous. It helps students to
understand themselves as human beings, and it revolves
around relationships. These internal practices have been
lived by our students hand-in-hand with practices of
community service. Students often participate in
community events including clean-ups, environmental
awareness activities, acts of civil engagement and gang
reduction. Our parents have contributed to our expanding
social responsibility as well as organized community
members in a variety of public forums and gatherings. Our
teachers have been invited to participate in a variety of
workshops, forums and conferences to present on the
effects of their work as well.
Collaborative School Leadership
The Academia school community values, validates and
benefits from each member’s leadership and contributions
to reciprocal learning and the school development process.
By carefully selecting elders and adult team members, the
school models value levels of higher consciousness that
follow in the ways of ancestral traditions, cultivating
deep awareness and leadership qualities in all of its
membership. In 2004, the OSASIP team noted that, “The
staff of Academia Semillas del Pueblo Charter School
reflect the dedication and passion of the two coprincipals. The teachers are hard working, dedicated
professionals committed to their students, their families,
13
and the school.” Academia incorporates alternative
perspectives and fosters a strong sense of collective
commitment to the school’s success. The 2004 OSASIP review
additionally found that,
“the two co-principals for the dedication and passion that
is so evident in everything they do for the school. They are
both intelligent, competent, tireless individuals committed
to excellence.
Their concern for the students, staff, and
parents of Academia Semillas del Pueblo Charter School is
quite evident. They lead by example and the tone they set
13 On-Site School Assessment School Improvement Process (OSASIP™) at
Academia Semillas del Pueblo Charter School in November of 2004, p.5.
………………………………………………
Page 20
for the school is one of excellence. They have effectively
communicated the mission and vision of the school and the
beliefs and values of the school culture.
As a result of
their leadership, the staff reflects their dedication and
commitment to Academia Semillas del Pueblo Charter School.
14
They are excellent role models to follow.”
2. Building Capacity
International Curriculum: Becoming a World School
This year Academia received a grant to train teachers on
the highly praised educational system developed by the
International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO). Academia
has already begun to implement the IB educational system
through the Primary Years Program (PYP). Academia will
also work to gain IBO authorization for the Middle Years
Program (MYP) as well as to provide a continuum of
powerful education for our students. The PYP and MYP teach
children world citizenship and encourage them to be active
learners, well-rounded individuals and engaged
international citizens.
Academia wishes to be authorized as an IB World School and
join the community of state, private, national and
international schools from every region of the world.
These are schools that share a common philosophy—a
commitment to high quality, challenging, international
education that Academia believes is important for our
students. Only schools authorized by the IBO as IB World
Schools can offer any of its three academic programs: the
Primary Years Program (PYP), the Middle Years Program
(MYP), or the Diploma Program. Academia will become a
candidate school and aspires to being an IB World School,
offering the PYP/MYP. Candidate status gives no guarantee
that authorization will be granted.
Schools applying to offer the PYP or MYP must begin
implementing these programs before the school is granted
IB World School status. A delegation appointed by the IBO
will schedule a visit to the school and report on the
school’s progress and capacity to deliver this program. If
the outcome is positive, Academia will be authorized to
offer the program and will attain the status of IB World
School. For further information about the IBO and its
program, visit http://www.ibo.org.
Academia will strive to become one of the 1,855 schools in
124 countries, and the first primary school in East Los
14 ibid.
………………………………………………
Page 21
Angeles to be authorized as an IB World School.
Academia’s 350 students, from K-7th grade, will be part of
the over 200,000 students to receive the IB’s three
challenging programs worldwide. Each program includes a
curriculum and pedagogy, student assessment, teacher
development and a process of school authorization and
evaluation.
Excellent Professional Development
As a part of the decision to implement the International
Baccalaureate Primary and Middle Years Program, our
teachers have engaged in extensive inquiry based
professional development with International curriculum
consultant and through IB seminars. Before the IB,
Academia has been successful at developing and tailoring
its professional development needs both internally and
through the use of external entities such as WestEd,
Charter School Development Center, and the National
Council of La Raza. Academia has also participated in
LAUSD sponsored professional development activities.
Professional development for the next chartered term will
focus upon the International Baccalaureate and Indigeneity
to further student enrichment.
Rigorous and well-planned Curriculum
Most recently, through the International Baccalaureate
Program trainings, Academia has developed a cohesive
curriculum matrix that is coordinated across subject
matter and across the grade levels. This is a part of the
IB Continuum from the Primary Years through the Diploma
Program. Likewise, Indigenous curriculum has been designed
through the study of best practices among Native educators
and schools across the continent. WestEd has been and will
continue to be instrumental in guiding the development of
our Indigenous pedagogy and curriculum through their
Language and Culture in Education division. The staff of
Academia has accomplished a formidable task in curriculum
development in preparation for the IB accreditation
process. According to an IB representative, “It surpasses
what has been done by some recently accredited IB
schools”. In response to WestEd’s study recommendations,
a full-time curriculum specialist facilitates coordination
of school-wide development and implementation, ensuring
continuity and articulation across and within grade
levels.
………………………………………………
Page 22
(See attached 2006-2007 Program of Inquiry and lesson
plans for an example of the curriculum articulation and
planning across grade levels and subject matter.)
Using Technology in the Classroom
The demands of an increasingly technological society
require that individuals respond to this reality in a
caring, critical and resourceful manner. All teachers at
Academia utilize technology in instruction for both
inquiry based teaching and collaboration among the staff.
Academia believes that technology should not be a fetish
of the few. At Academia we aspire to use technology to
develop creative problem solvers who are caring and
responsible individuals, able to respond critically and
resourcefully to the demands of an increasingly
technological society. For example, our Nahuatl instructor
has developed video resources to enrich and archive the
Nahuatl language instruction. A variety of electronic
media are used to engage students of all ages in language
learning. Technology needs to be considered as a tool
that enhances everyone’s educational experience, their
research and communication skills, their literacy and
content knowledge, as well as their efficiency.
Therefore, building technology skills is in line with our
goals to prepare students for technological proficiency in
the global world. As part of the staff’s professional
development, integration of technology in the curriculum
for student use is being developed, incorporating the
monitoring of its effectiveness, and its impact on
capacity building and student learning.
Financial Soundness and Facility Development
Academia has been determined to be “Financially Sound” by
the California Charter School Finance Authority, an entity
of the State Treasurer, for the purposes of the Charter
School Facilities Project award of over $6.5 million
dollars for school construction and an additional $6.5
million loan. Independent auditors have audited Academia
annually and have consistently found that the school
adheres to all fiscal regulations. According to a recent
fiscal review of Academia conducted by the LAUSD Charter
School Division during an Annual Comprehensive Site
Review, Academia demonstrates sound fiscal standing. In
fact, the fiscal review demonstrates that Academia has
actually improved its fiscal position since its second
year with increasingly positive indexes of financial
health recorded on a yearly basis.
………………………………………………
Page 23
Additionally, Academia has successfully rehabilitated two
facilities and converted these into well-organized
learning environments. Both of the rehabilitation
projects were worth nearly a million dollars and were
completed on time and on budget. A draft Master Facilities
Plan has been developed and is ready to implement once the
California Charter School Finance Authority communicates a
clear path to apply the funds secured for permanent campus
development. Better known as Proposition 55 funding, the
Academia Facilities Project award is actually a nearly $14
million dollar school project developed in partnership
with various offices of the LAUSD. Academia has also
secured grants from various entities including: the
California Charter Schools Association, the National
Council of La Raza, the City of Los Angeles, the Raza
Development Fund, the Seventh Generation Fund for Indian
Development, the California Department of Education and
the U.S. Department of Education. In sum, Academia has
secured over one million dollars in grants over the course
of its first term.
3. Constructing New Knowledge
Native Language & Culture
Academia has successfully developed and implemented a
curriculum in Nahuatl language and indigenous culture that
includes pedagogy, methodologies, mathematics, social
practices and instructional materials. This repertoire has
been shared with Native educators across the continent and
has been seen as an innovative paradigm for Native
schooling internationally. Educators in Mexico as well as
in Native American communities in the United States have
called on Academia for professional exchange including the
Agradable Compromiso in Mexico City and the proposed
Native American Charter School Association in New Mexico,.
Academia is the only school in LAUSD that teaches a Native
American language. Our students learn to think in Nahuatl,
study Native Mexican mathematics, and practice Indigenous
visual and performing arts through our program. The
instruction of this mother language motivates students
from disadvantaged families in East Los Angeles to strive
for intellectual rigor, as it is a culturally relevant
practice, instilling honor in the students. Moreover,
recent surveys conducted in the Belmont High School
learning complex indicate that up to 14% of students speak
Nahuatl at home, while up to 26% of students attending
adult school in the Mid-City area report they speak
………………………………………………
Page 24
15
Nahuatl at home.
Such studies in the Roosevelt and
Garfield high School complexes would also indicate high
levels of Nahuatl maintenance.
Page 25
Chinese Language & Culture
In 2006, Academia received a major federal grant called
the Foreign Language Assistance Grant. The grant will
provide Academia with over $300,000 over the next three
years. Our grant application was rated as fifth highest
among over two hundred competitive applicants from across
the country. Academia will continue to develop its
Mandarin Language & Culture Program with the guidance of
Dr. Gay Yuen, a leader in teacher education in California.
We currently teach more students Mandarin than the entire
Los Angeles Unified School District (see Figure 13).
Interestingly, LAUSD personnel of the World Languages
Division have recently informed us that the District plans
to implement a Mandarin Dual Immersion program at a local
elementary school. We are also collaborating with the
District and several other community leaders in a
community-based initiative to expand the instruction of
Mandarin in the LAUSD with the
“Meeting the educational
Committee of 100, the Asia Society,
needs of students with
and the Asian Pacific American Legal
Center. Additionally, Hanban, an
disabilities by providing
agency of the Chinese Government as
services in accordance with
well as the Chinese Language
their Individualized
Department of California State
Education Programs ”
University, Los Angeles, have
recognized our Chinese Language and Culture program.
Finally, Academia’s Chinese Language and Culture program
has helped to bridge the communication gap among neighbors
in Northeast Los Angeles as our students often act as
interpreters and even ambassadors for their families when
interacting with neighbors of Chinese origin.
Special Education
Academia excels in the education of Special Education
students and in its service to their parents as mandated
by law (see Figure 12). The 2006-2007 District Validation
Review audit conducted at Academia by LAUSD commended
Academia for, “Creating a school environment that welcomes
parent and community participation. Providing inclusive
learning environments, activities and programs that
provide opportunities for students with disabilities to
15
Centro Latino Educacion Popular. Belmont Community Adult School Study,
Draft Copy November 7, 2006.
………………………………………………
participate and progress in the general education
curriculum. Facilitating parent involvement to improve
services and results for students with disabilities.
Meeting the educational needs of students with
disabilities by providing services in accordance with
their Individualized Education Programs.” The DVR team
determined that 100% of the review items in the core
curriculum, “were evident during observation of the
classroom”, and that “100% of the services were
implemented as documented in the IEP’s reviewed.” While
the Office Of the Independent Monitor of the Chanda Smith
Decree has noted in its year-end Progress Report on MCD
Outcomes that they have, “Serious reservations about the
ability of the District to achieve outcomes in this final
year.” And that “…there is little indication that
ownership of this reform effort has penetrated to the
school level.” At Academia, however ownership over the
reformation of Special Education has succeeded.
Page 26
Extended Kinder Day
In response to the needs of working families and in
preparation for high academic expectations of our
students, Academia has successfully implemented the fullday kindergarten program. Our comprehensive day-long
kinder program is academically rigorous as well as
developmentally rich. Our program prepares our students
for a rigorous academic curriculum aligned to state
standards and the International Baccalaureate Primary
Years Program model of inquiry. Our extended day kinder
program will continue during the five-year timeline of the
next charter.
Dual Immersion and Heritage Language Instruction
Academia successfully enriches the education of our
students by providing instruction in Spanish as a way to
foster academic excellence and honor the heritage of the
students and community we serve. Academia provides a
positive educational model and honors the heritage of the
students and community served. As a result of our
influence, other public schools in El Sereno have begun
dual immersion programs in order to provide more options
favored by the greater community. The teaching of
Spanish, English, Nahuatl and Mandarin is intended to be
far more than an academic exercise—language study provides
an encounter with different worldviews, and allows young
learners to understand firsthand the subtle ways that
language and culture structure webs of
relationships and meaning. Raised in
With the collaboration of
professional artists,
parents
and the Los Angeles
………………………………………………
Trade Technical College, a
Los Angeles Unified School District Charter School Application | December cast
2006
of over 200 Academia
students performed in all
aspects of a full-scale
multicultural Los Angeles, our students need to understand
who they are as Indigenous People; they must know their
own ancestral ways and, in turn, be prepared to encounter
others’ traditions and worldviews with the light of
understanding and compassion. “Exposure to diversity is a
popular concept in education, however Academia provides a
direct experience of ‘difference,’ prioritizing the value
of giving children the benefits of “being able to analyze
the world in several languages.”
Visual and Performing Arts
Visual and performing arts are at the core of the cultural
practices of Academia. Community gatherings as well as the
time of day are guided by the beat of a drum. Through
Traditional Aztec Dance & Music, Tai Chi, and Native song,
our students live and breathe the performing arts as they
are practiced daily to enrich their appreciation for world
cultures, including their own. Parents often accompany
their children at regular dance practices both during and
after school. Community celebrations usually include
cultural dance and ways for our students to exhibit
community leadership as well as opportunities for
intergenerational relationship building.
4. Facing National Realities
School Safety: Overcoming hate crime
Beginning on May 31, 2006, Academia Charter School was
targeted by hate speech and a hate crime. Our children
were placed at the center of the attack, our staff was
terrorized and our parents were faced with the
unimaginable. Hate speech aired on the public airwaves and
as a result the school received a bomb threat against our
children on June 1, 2006. Why? Simply put, because parents
in our community have a choice in public education.
Hate was met with love. Parents, teachers, school staff,
and community members rallied to protect the children and
support the school. Countless parents met, mobilized,
marched and moved our elected officials to protect our
community. Elected officials immediately sent their
representatives to respond to the threat. Mayor Antonio
Villaraigosa, Councilman Huizar, and City Attorney Rocky
Delgadillo’s offices were the first to respond in calling
on the city’s police department to increase patrols and
vigilance at Academia. Congresswoman Hilda Solis’ office
………………………………………………
Page 27
monitored the situation ensuring federal protection. LAUSD
Board member Monica Garcia also monitored the crisis. On
June 8, 2006, several community representatives visited
our campus to support Academia at an open house event
organized to invite the media into the school. Community
groups included: the Watts Labor Community Action Center,
the March 25th Coalition, East L.A. Women’s Center, the
Greater El Sereno Chamber of Commerce, Hermandad Mexicana
Nacional, the National Council of La Raza (NCLR) and
several other organizations and individuals. Over twenty
different local, national and international media outlets
attended the open house and press conference. Academia has
mounted a campaign to promote the positive work of its
staff and students. While the attacks may continue,
Academia has successfully developed a safety net to deal
with such attacks and other terrorist threats by
maintaining active communication with law enforcement and
through community education on overcoming hate crimes.
As the school continues to develop and use tools to
analytically examine the multidimensional and holistic
outcomes of instruction, its transformative practices, and
student development, it is also strengthening ways to
articulate the profound effects of Indigenous
relationships to others, who (due to misinformation,
differing belief systems or lack of experience) have
little concept of its depth and significance. With the
development of consistent, multifaceted measures for these
complex aspects of character development in students and
community, Academia will also able to demonstrate an
outstanding strength that reaches far beyond
individualized academic progress - one that has an
enduring value and promotes understanding, while
positively impacting safety for the entire learning and
extended community.
Semillas: The Academia story
Academia is located at 4736 Huntington Drive South, in Los
Angeles, California, and is in its fifth year of
operation. When the school first opened in September of
2002, it’s kindergarten through third grade enrollment was
approximately 130 students. For the first three months of
operation, classes were held outdoors in a field adjacent
to one of the community recreation facilities and within
the recreation hall itself. The “School in a Field”
currently operates as a school without walls in an open
facility. Academia added a grade level each year up to
and including the seventh grade.
………………………………………………
Page 28
The founders of Academia include several leaders of the
Chicano Movement of the late 60’s and late 70’s. Other
participants of the charter school inspired by the Chicano
Movement ideals took up the challenge to establish a
Chicana & Chicano Studies department at UCLA. In 1993,
four of the founders led the organization of a student
hunger strike that led to the now established Cesar E.
Chavez Chicana & Chicano Studies Department at UCLA.
Marcos Aguilar and Minnie Ferguson were leaders of this
student movement and community demand for a just education
at the university. Three of the members of the current
Board of Advisors are considered founders of Chicano
Studies, and include Dr. Juan Gomez Quiñones, UCLA, Dr.
Rodolfo Acuña, CSUN and the current director of the UCLA
Chavez Chicana/o Studies Department, Dr. Reynaldo Macias.
Collectively they comprise an effort to influence younger
generations of Los Angeles youth to complete their
education, serve their community, and change their future.
The charter school is a continuation of this long
trajectory of work in community-based transformative
education. To be sure, the founders of the school now
include the entire community of Academia.
Our way of education, our pedagogy and our instructional
strategies are based primarily upon our Indigenous
ancestral culture. We have been informed by the living
legacy of elders who keep the oral tradition through song,
story, dance and ceremony. We have also established our
pedagogy upon the written records left by our ancestors in
the form of manuscripts and painted books. Importantly,
our work is part of a network of Native Americans
organizing the regeneration of our traditions and our
peoples. We are grounded in the living traditions of
Azteca-Chichimeca martial dance and culture, Our
educators have learned from the elders and oral tradition
of the Haudenosaunee Confederation of Nations, the Zuni
Pueblo, the Quiche Maya, and the Inca of Ecuador, all of
which have struggled to straddle the challenge of ancient
memory and modern reality. Importantly, lessons learned
from our participation in annual gatherings of the Seventh
Generation Fund Indigenous network has grounded our vision
of indigenous education and the importance of the
diffusion of the Nahuatl language in our community. Thus,
indigenous networks such as the Seventh Generation Fund
and national networks such as the National Council of La
Raza help guide the mission and practice of our charter
school. Through the National Council of La Raza, Marcos
Aguilar, our Tlayecantzi, or school Guide, has
participated as a founding member of the National Core
Qualities Task Force to identify elements essential to
………………………………………………
Page 29
public schooling in Raza communities and develop methods
to ensure these elements are positively addressed in all
NCLR affiliate charter schools, and eventually all public
schools. Most recently, Academia has been invited to help
found a national network of Native American charter
schools.
5. Meeting The Needs of The
Community
In East Los Angeles, children and youth face daunting
social realities. As a community we see our youth dropping
out of high school, joining gangs or entering juvenile
halls or other detention centers. Academia is a response
to these realities. Academia has successfully engaged in
building healthier families and community since its
inception both on campus and off. While academic
indicators are important in assessing student progress,
and in evaluating school performance, school climate and
safety are precursory conditions necessary for academic
success – conditions that local schools fail to address
adequately.
Currently in Los Angeles Unified, our
students and their peers have a dismal educational path to
face in the District schools. Only 66.1% of high school
students in LAUSD graduated in the class of 2005, while
only 31.5% of those graduates did so with University of
California or California State University required
16
At El Sereno’s Wilson High School (a Program
courses. Improvement school since 1997), only 61.7% of students
graduate, while only 34.1% graduate with UC/CSU required
courses. In contrast, Francisco Bravo Medical Magnet High
School, another local school, graduated 91% of its
students in 2005, and 98% of those had completed UC/CSU
17
required coursework. Unfortunately, only a fraction of the
students attending Bravo High School are from neighboring
communities as it caters to students throughout the LAUSD.
In a recent interview, noted civil rights attorney and
Director of the Advancement Project, Constance Rice
commented on the social reality our students face and the
important role schools should play in this reality:
“Research shows that this kind of conduct (gang crime and
violence) doesn’t come out of a vacuum; it comes from a
Petri dish of conditions. Most kids don’t go anywhere near
gangs, even in the areas where [the territory] is
controlled. But when you look at the best people who’ve been
studying this phenomenon for 40 years, all of them say, ‘You
16 http://dq.cde.ca.gov/dataquest
17 http://dq.cde.ca.gov/dataquest
………………………………………………
Page 30
can arrest everybody you want to; it is not going to end
this problem. You’ve got to change the conditions in the
neighborhood that spawned this kind of social reaction.’
It’s a neighborhood strategy! It really has to be family
based, and the schools have got to [play a lead role].
They’re not prepared to, and they don’t want to; they’re
afraid of this issue….We have got to get a model that is
neighborhood based. We need the help of institutions. But
they can’t be [isolated] the way they are; they can’t be
completely
nonstrategic
and
uncoordinated
in
their
approaches. You have to do a diagnosis. We’re talking about
the whole neighborhood strategy; we’re talking about the
city configuring itself to actually solve these problems
with the schools. The schools I think, are the most critical
18
institutions in this picture.”
Ms. Rice speaks from a research-based position as the
Advancement Project is in the process of an analysis of
gang violence and gang intervention in Los Angeles,
California. The Citywide Gang Activity Reduction Strategy
Phase I Report issued in August 2006 by the Advancement
Project states that, “The Gang Activity Reduction Strategy
Project began on March 29, 2006 with the goal of
developing a coordinated, effective and efficient citywide
19
The Report goes on to
strategy to reduce gang activity.”
emphasize that, “In reviewing the City’s past efforts to
reduce youth participation in gangs and violence and
comparing it to this current effort, the City has an
unprecedented opportunity to learn from past mistakes,
build on current successes and bring about the kind of
comprehensive solution that the nation’s top gang scholars
say is required: reduce youth gang activity and neutralize
gangs by building healthier communities capable of
20
providing safety and vitality for all children.”
For the majority of local children, quality education and
college preparation are not available (see Map 1). Youth
lacking a college education have few options. The Report
indicates a portrait of the future for the underserved
youth of Los Angeles. Among other conditions, our children
encounter the impacts of increasing joblessness, poverty,
gang violence and numbers of prison gangs. The Report also
21
states that, “gang culture is now American youth culture”.
The Advancement Project experts conclude “far more gang
crime occurs” in the neighborhoods of Los Angeles City
22
Council District in East and Northeast Los Angeles, the
communities Academia serves, than in other parts of the
18
tu Ciudad, October-November 2006, p.73-75.
19 The Citywide Gang Activity Reduction Strategy Phase I Report”, the
Advancement Project, August 2006, p.1
20 ibid, p.1
21 ibid, p.3
22 ibid, p.15
………………………………………………
Page 31
23
City. The report goes on to assert that, “Rather than East
Los Angeles and South Los Angeles, the Northeast region
(including Highland Park and Lincoln Heights) was the area
where the highest proportion of violence in that community
24
El Sereno, where Academia is
was attributable to gangs.”
located is squarely in Northeast Los Angeles. In fact,
Northeast Los Angeles was identified as a “Hot Zone” by
the report, and that, “an analysis of population density
and number of violent crimes shows that at least in the
Northeast area, there is a high population density and a
high number of violent crimes. This means that spatial
targeting of these neighborhoods with effective
25
intervention may produce significant results.”
Advancement Project maps indicate the level of violent
gang related crime faced by the families we serve in
comparison to local areas.
Not surprisingly, these same social factors continue to
impact the lives and well being of our children in the
communities of the Greater East Los Angeles area (see Map
2). The Report cites that:
“In comparing the areas that are highly impacted by gang
crimes with those that are less impacted, some definite
differences in the demographic profiles emerge. Generally,
the areas impacted by gang crimes tend to have lower
proportions of non- Hispanic White population and a larger
presence of African Americans and Latinos. There is also a
large proportion of non-citizen, foreign born population,
and a greater than average proportion of population with low
educational attainment (as depicted by the percentage of
people without high school degrees).
The proportion of
renter occupied housing compared to home ownership is also
greater than average in these areas. Poverty level also has
a significant relationship to areas with high gang crimes
and
becomes
more
prevalent
in
areas
with
a
high
26
concentration of violent crime.”
However, LAUSD schools do not have the resources to
address gang violence holistically. More importantly,
addressing the social ills our students face is not even a
central element of most public schools. The Advancement
Project notes:
“In terms of LAUSD’s own programs addressing school violence
and/or gangs, the greatest obstacle for efficacy seems to be
that violence prevention is not a priority in the schools.
The greatest emphasis is placed on improving test scores and
teachers are reluctant to take class time to engage students
around violence prevention curriculum, even when available.
The District seems to largely operate on a “reactionarysuppression” mode, which impedes sustained implementation of
23
24
25
26
ibid,
ibid,
ibid,
ibid,
p.15
p.21
p.21
p.24
………………………………………………
Page 32
prevention programs, by pulling program staff away to handle
27
crisis situations.”
Page 33
If our schools do not prepare the majority of our students
for a college education, nor adequately intervene or
prevent gang violence, nor curb the tide of “gang culture
as American youth culture”, then how can we begin to
measure their “achievement”? Children in East Los Angeles
have to look forward to local middle schools and high
schools that have been in Program Improvement status since
28
Academia stands in stark contrast to this grim
1997.
record of bureaucratic indifference. We are an Indigenous
school, organic to our community, and born of a history of
social struggle and generational obligation. Academia
exists to remind our People that it is not enough to
institutionalize our children – we must empower children’s
learning processes and honor their dreams. The result
will hopefully bring a better world into existence. We draw
from the wealth of our ancestral knowledge of nature and
the cosmos to care for the delicate lives of our XINAXTIN,
our seeds – as a community. As Indigenous People, the
founders and families of Academia uphold the social and
intellectual agenda we share with Indigenous Peoples all
over the world.
Academia’s mission serves a social mission of community
building – of community REGENERATION. WestEd’s
independent evaluation of
Academia supported the effectiveness
of the Indigenous pedagogy of the
“The school
school.
offers structures
for intergenerational exchange
and models of appropriate
relationships … that extend
“Culture as Character Building and
Community Development
Raised in multicultural Los Angeles,
students need to understand who they are as the descendents
of an indigenous people; they must know their own ancestral
ways and, in turn, be prepared to encounter others’
traditions and worldviews with the light of understanding
and compassion. Exposure to diversity is a popular concept
in education but ASDP provides a direct experience of
‘difference,’ prioritizing the value of giving children the
benefits of “being able to analyze the world in several
languages.’
“At ASDP, The teaching of Spanish, English, Nahuatl and
Mandarin is intended as far more than an academic exercise—
language
study
provides
an
encounter
with
different
worldviews,
and
allows
young
learners
to
understand
firsthand the subtle ways that language and culture
structure web relationships and meaning. Just as this
spectrum of four languages and worldviews is evident, it is
27 ibid, p.67
28http://dq.cde.ca.gov/dataquest/APIBase2006/2006APR_Sch_PI_Report.aspx?all
cds=19647331939859&df=2
………………………………………………
also by design that ASDP enacts a pattern of relationships
at the school that reflects an indigenous ethos. This can be
seen in the collective approach to teacher development,
parent participation, cooperative learning and inquiry, and
in the recognition of value and responsibility of all
stakeholders. In many ways, culture is a framework for youth
development of characteristics and ways of relating that are
indigenous. As one instructor put it, it’s really about them
understanding themselves as human beings. Everything we do
here is about relationships. The three school wide
agreements or guiding principles are: respect, work hard and
never give up. While these are different than the seven
Acuerdos de Comunidad listed in pg 13 of the Charter, they
do relate to students’ lives and are visible and accessible—
even as observed in a K-1 class where students resolved a
29
debate by encouraging one another to “never give up.”
WestEd evaluators documented the school culture and
pedagogy as it is lived, and as it effects change in the
lives of the families of the school community. Throughout
the year, students engage in community building events
along with their families. One such event was documented
by WestEd evaluators and contextualized in the school
vision:
“The school considers the entire community, students,
teachers, parents and community as learners of and
participants in cultural activities. The vision to create
community identity is very valuable. The school offers
structures for intergenerational exchange and models of
appropriate relationships such as in danza, ceremonial
practices, instruction by elders and stewardship projects
that extend beyond the school walls. One CLE team member
witnessed
a
community-wide
event
where
the
school
participated in cleaning a stream area in a park. Ceremony
was involved during the day’s events. Staff, students and
parents of the school migrated from one location to another
as they engaged in environmental stewardship activities,
performing danza and ceremonial rituals while opening up the
flow of waters in an urban stream, and sharing with the
30
community.”
The community celebration referred to by WestEd above was
held in Ramona Park, one of the heavily gang controlled
parks in our immediate surrounding community. This City
park is a borderland of sorts. On one side is a highly
“successful” magnet high school, Bravo Medical Magnet, and
on the other is Murchison Elementary School (designated
Program Improvement since 1997) that primarily services
Ramona Gardens Housing Projects. This community event
demonstrates Academia’s engagement as a community member.
Academia strives to develop its students as organic
intellectuals who provide leadership contributions to
their families and communities. These are the significant
differences Academia will continue to develop and that the
29
30
WestEd Evaluation Report for Academia, August 30,2006. p.34
WestEd Evaluation Report for Academia, August 30,2006. p.34
………………………………………………
Page 34
Advancement Project longs to see in the City’s schools and
gang intervention programs. Ours is a school that is
“neighborhood based” and focused on serving the families
of our school as they overcome the barriers the community
faces. Academia community events and gatherings are but
one strategy to transform communities into healthy,
vibrant places to live. Through the International
curriculum, Academia also seeks to influence the critical
development of the child by fostering a positive and
productive sense of self that challenges the need to
create an identity through gang membership.
Page 35
Impact – The 21st Century Learner
The lived experience Academia
Academia is a human project to
has witnessed for the past five
transform young people for their
years has several important
b tt
t
d f
th b tt
t
implications upon educational
practice, pedagogy, research and even society itself. The
sphere of public elementary and secondary education has
been dominated of late by political agendas that maintain
that education can and should follow business practices
under a free market economy. The pedagogy of this free
market type school has in turn been relegated to the role
of preparation of the workforce. Research abounds under
this agenda that sanctifies the demand for statistical
accountability and bottom line results based upon
empirical data derived from high stakes testing. Modern
American society in its turn embraces public schooling as
the de facto method of socialization for children and
laments the passing of a mythical past that held the arts
and philosophy in high esteem. To the contrary, the
experiences of Academia depart from the hegemony of modern
public schooling through its generation as a parallel
public organism – a third cultural reality. While many of
the trappings of modern public schooling can still be
found at Academia, its educational practice and pedagogy
differ from the ground up. Most importantly, the charter
school’s development as a grassroots educational center is
a part of a community-wide movement to regenerate
appreciation of Indigenous culture and community. Since
community wellness is at the heart of its mission, its
path departs from that of sterile statistical
accountability to many paths of collective, cultural,
social, linguistic, generational, and natural
accountability. Children in such an environment are more
motivated to learn. Academia is a human project to
transform young people for their betterment and for the
betterment of the natural universe. Since few would
disagree that the world of tomorrow will be lived by
………………………………………………
generations to come, all public education should include
some element of this humanism.
Page 36
According to a recent article in Time Magazine, changes in
public education are expected as, “the New Commission on
the Skills of the American Workforce, a high-powered,
bipartisan assembly of Education Secretaries and business,
government and other education leaders releases a
blueprint for rethinking American education from pre-K to
12 and beyond to better prepare students to thrive in the
global economy.” 31 The authors go on
“Right now we're aiming too
to outline the New Commission on the
Skills of the American Workforce’s
low. Competency in reading and
findings on the skills students
math--the focus of so much No
preparing for the 21st century must
Child Left Behind (NCLB)
develop. These skills include:
testing--is the meager
“knowing more about the world”,
minimum.”
“thinking outside the box”, “becoming
smarter about new sources of
information”, and “developing good people skills”. Beyond
providing alternatives to gangs and violence, Academia is
committed to developing these new types of learners, new
members of a civil society. Importantly, the article notes
the contradiction this represents with the current
emphasis on high stakes testing. “Right now we're aiming
too low. Competency in reading and math--the focus of so
much No Child Left Behind (NCLB) testing--is the meager
32
Better preparing learners, especially in our
minimum.”
communities, will mean raising our sights so that all can
achieve the needs of global citizens in an international
and multiethnic city and society. Multilingual education,
international curriculum and a firmly rooted sense of self
and self-appreciation will help our students excel as 21st
century learners.
Proposals for Innovation, Restructuring
& Transformation
The experience of the Academia school community leads to
several interesting questions. How do similar students in
dominant-culture public schools rate their experiences in
school climate? How do adults in Native communities engage
in the education of their children in District schools
elsewhere? What practices exist in District schools to
motivate learners of Native Peoples? Future research for
Academia may also include comparative analyses to other
31 Wallis, C. and Steptoe, S.(2006, December 18).How to Bring Our Schools
Out of the 20th Century. Time Magazine, Volume 168, Number 25.
32 Ibid.
………………………………………………
neighborhood public schools to understand the reasons for
standardized test results which trend downward as students
grow in the dominant public school system and the opposite
in Academia. Future research may also find it important to
evaluate changes in school climate in the District. Future
researchers in Indigenous education would benefit from
continued dialogue with practitioners and Indigenous
community members. Research in Indigenous communities in
urban metropolitan areas could focus upon identifying
culturally relevant strategies to transform public
education.
Academia’s success can be a source of influence to the
LAUSD in its ‘Culturally Relevant and Responsive
Initiative”. According to the LAUSD presentation to the
NCRESSt Conference in Denver, Colorado in February of
2006, their recent research indicates that, “There is a
direct link between student achievement and the extent to
which teaching employs the cultural referents of
33
students,” . The presentation goes on to define the
achievement gap among students as a problem due to,
“learning encounters [that] may not be culturally
34
While the District’s initiative targets
relevant.”
African Americans, Native Americans and Latinos have also
been shown to sustain a similar achievement gap. An
Action Plan was developed to target African American
students that included five tenets: the Student
Opportunity to Learn, the Adult Opportunity to Learn,
Professional Development, Parent Engagement and Evaluation
and Monitoring. However, UCLA Professor of Education Dr.
Kris Gutierrez notes that, “The under-education of
children in California, especially those for whom English
is not the home language, serves as an illustrative case
of the effects of race-based educational practices
instituted through color-blind approaches to educational
35
equity.” Dr. Gutierrez goes on to explain the detrimental
effects of the conception of ‘equality’ in education as
“sameness”. As noted elsewhere in this report by WestEd,
Academia goes beyond the ‘sameness’ paradigm in culturally
relevant education.
Academia could serve as a model to target Indigenous
students, especially Indigenous students whose families
have migrated from Latin America (often referred to as
Hispanics or Latinos), to close the achievement gap in
LAUSD by addressing the cultural irrelevance of the
33
Ross, R. LAUSD Presentation to the NCRESSt Conference: Defining the
Problem, February 16-17, 2006.
34
Ibid.
35
Gutierrez, K.D. ‘Fairness as Sameness’: The New Tonic of Equality and
Opportunity. To be published.
………………………………………………
Page 37
District’s structure, culture, curriculum, pedagogy,
professional development and methods of parent engagement.
In the LAUSD presentation, Dr. Randy Ross emphasizes that,
“other things being equal, if learning encounters between
students and teachers are culturally relevant, then we
should expect high outcomes for all students—attendance,
36
achievement, graduation, post-graduation success.”
Importantly, Dr. Ross does not narrow the “achievement
gap” as simply the difference in scores on standardized
state mandated tests. Accordingly, Academia organizes
educational equity through its culturally relevant
pedagogy, methodologies, curriculum and school culture to
make all things equal for our students. Academia provides
a nurturing environment for our students to learn better.
Dr. Juan Gomez Quinones has written that, “Semillas has
pioneered a community inspired and student motivated
school, the likes of which had not been attempted, much
37
Academia is a
less seen, among working class Latinos.”
right to a historical wrong committed in East Los Angeles
schools.
Four proposals to the District surge from the practice and
experience of Academia to close the achievement gap
between Mexican, Central American, other Spanish speaking
Indigenous peoples and dominant culture students:
1. Enrich education for all students through inquiry-based
learning.
2. Expand education for all students through multilingual
and international curriculum.
3. Embrace all parents in all schools as the first
teachers of their children through graduation.
4. Empower teachers to think, act and work collectively.
Tables, Figures, and Charts
Figure 1: Enrollment Growth
36
Ross, R. LAUSD Presentation to the NCRESSt Conference: Defining the
Problem, February 16-17, 2006.
37
Gomez Quinones, J. America, Americans. To be published.
………………………………………………
Page 38
Page 39
………………………………………………
Figure 2: Academia Disaggregated
Scores
Middle School API
Page 40
ELA Middle School API Scores
640
632
630
620
610
602
600
590
588
588
580
570
560
2006
Year End
………………………………………………
El Sereno Middle School
Hollenbeck Middle School
Stevenson Middle School
Figure 3: Semillas 2005-2006 API Growth
Page 41
………………………………………………
Figure 4: Academia Continued Annual Progress
Page 42
AYP Criteria
18
17
16
14
13
12
11
10
TOTAL Criteria
MET
8
6
6
5
5
4
2
2
2
0
2003
2004
2005
YEAR
………………………………………………
2006
Figure 5: Learning English
Page 43
Redesignated Fluent English Proficient Students
0.032
0.083
2004
0.042
0
Year
0.05
HUNTINGTON DR ELEM
STATE
LAUSD
ACADEMIA
0.09
2005
0.077
0.091
0.071
0.096
2006
0.095
0.17
0
0.02
0.04
0.06
0.08
0.1
0.12
0.14
0.16
% Students Redesignated per Year
………………………………………………
0.18
Figure 6: English Proficiency Comparison
Page 44
AMAO English Proficiency
70.00%
64.80%
62.40%
60.00%
% of Students
50.00%
40.00%
38.90%
40.80%
AMAO 1 - Percent of Students Making
Annual Progress in Learning English
AMAO 2 - Percent of Students Attaining
English Proficiency on CELDT
30.00%
20.00%
10.00%
0.00%
Academia
LAUSD
………………………………………………
Page 45
………………………………………………
Figure 7.
English Proficiency Comparison
Page 46
………………………………………………
Figure 8.
CELDT English Advancement
Page 47
………………………………………………
Page 48
………………………………………………
Figure 9.
CELDT English Proficiency Cohort Study
Page 49
Academia CELDT English Proficiency 3rd Grade Cohort
Yearly Progress
50%
53%
2006
2005
2004
2003
1
29%
25%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
% English Proficient
………………………………………………
60%
6th
5th
4th
3rd
Grade
Grade
Grade
Grade
Figure 10.
Standards
2002-2006 Achieving Grade Level
Page 50
2002-2006 Student Grade Level Achievement
120
100
80
Math
Reading L1
60
Reading L2
Writing L1
Writing L2
40
20
0
2003
2004
2005
2006
80.7
81.1
91.65
88.6
Reading L1
76.15
70.45
91.65
100
Reading L2
76.15
80.3
97.7
100
Writing L1
76.55
74.2
89.45
97.75
Writing L2
78.8
76.5
95.45
100
Math
Achievement per Year per Subject
………………………………………………
Figure 11.
Physical Fitness
Page 51
Physical Fitness in El Sereno
120
100
80
Academia
Huntington
El Sereno
Farmdale
Murchison
60
40
20
0
Aerobic
Capacity
Body
Composition
Abdominal
Strength
Trunk Extension
Strength
Upper Body
Strength
Fitness Tasks
………………………………………………
Flexibility
Figure 12.
Special Education Achievement
Page 52
Indicators of Special Education Achievement
0.98
0.95
0.93
0.9
0.95
0.93
0.85
0.85
0.81
0.75
0.61
0.52
0.41
0.21
0.103
0.01
TARGET
ACADEMIA
LAUSD
5
0.02
0.02
0
5
5
0.0175
7
0.103 0.0175
0
0
0.52
1
0.0923 0.141 0.0221 0.355
10
10
10
13a
13a
13b
13b
14a
14b
0.9
0.95
0.98
0.93
0.93
0.85
0.85
0.75
0.95
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
0.63
0.79
0.86
0.73
0.93
0.57
0.6
0.741
0.79
MCD OUTCOMES
………………………………………………
Figure 13.
Chinese Language and Culture
Page 53
Students Learning Mandarin
350
Students Currently Enrolled
300
250
200
ACADEMIA
LAUSD
150
100
50
0
………………………………………………
Figure 14.
Parent Engagement
Page 54
Hours of Parent Participation 2005-2006
6000
5301
Hours Of Parent Participation
5000
4000
3648
3000
2000
1000
0
Total parent participation expected hours per year
………………………………………………
Actual hours participated per year
Map 1.
Gang Related Violence in Los Angeles
Page 55
QuickTime™ and a
TIFF (LZW) decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
………………………………………………
Map 2.
Educational Attainment in East Los Angeles
Page 56
QuickTime™ and a
TIFF (LZW) decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
………………………………………………
Element 1.
The Educational
Program
38
Page 57
A. Student Population
COMPARABLE STANDARDIZED TEST SCORE Data
Major
Ethnici
ty #3
Major
Ethnici
ty #2
Major
Ethnici
ty #1
Students
Elegible
for
Similar
Schools
RankAPI
State
Ranking
API
Score
g
p
Schoolw
G
h
ide
G
th
PI
u t
Track
Program
# ?of
Student
s
Elementary
Schools
Bridge Street
School
Sheridan St.
Elem.
Second St.
Elem.
Huntinton Dr.
Elem.
No No 638
Ye Ye
s s 674
2
5
96
1
4
100
No
Ye
s
Ye
s
Ye
s
688
3
9
95
642
1
1
93
African
Am.
African
Am.
Latino
African
Am.
Latino
African
Am.
Latino
741
4
8
91
Latino
Asian
No
700
P5
(199 Ye Ye
7) s s 676
Ye Ye
P2 s s 650
3
7
88
Latino
Asian
1
4
97
Latino
Asian
1
2
95
African
Am.
African
Am.
Latino
2
2
94
Latino
Asian
Filipino
African
Am.
5
6
80
Latino
Asian
White
1
4
95
Latino
African
Am.
White
416
No
P3
1280
No
No
616
No
No
593
No
No
El Sereno Elem.
Sierra Park
Elem.
572
No
No
762
No
Utah Elem.
Sunrise St.
Elem.
528
No
579
No
Farmdale Elem.
698
No
P2
Multnomah Elem.
620
No
No
No
Ye
s
Ye
s
Ye
s
No No 651
Ye Ye
s s 773
Latino
White
White
Filipino
Asian
Filipino
Filipino &
White
Middle Schools
Hollenbeck
2653
No
P5
(199
7) No No 588
38
“A description of the educational program of the school, designed, among
other things, to identify those whom the school is attempting to educate,
what it means to be an ‘educated person’ in the 21st century, and how
learning best occurs. The goals identified in that program shall include
the objective of enabling pupils to become self-motivated, competent, and
lifelong learners.” Ed. Code § 47605 (b)(5)(A)
………………………………………………
P5
(199
7) No No 602
El Sereno
2227
No
Stevenson
Charter
Elementary
Schools
Academia
Semillas del
Pueblo
Charter Middle
Schools
2587
No
P2
318
No
P1
Kipp LA Prep
233
No
No
CALS Academy
258
No
No
4
No No 602
1
4
86
Asian
Filipino
/African
Am./Asia
n
Latino
Ye
s No 588
1
1
84
American African
Latino Indian
American
5
10
84
5
n/a
1
Ye
s
Ye
s
Ye
s 772
Ye
s 773
92.1 Latino
Africa
n Am
Africa
n Am
Our students
As written in the Charter of Academia in 2002, we will
continue to serve students who live in historically
disenfranchised communities that flank the historic center
and birthplace of Los Angeles. Academia plans to continue
to recruit families from the neighborhoods east of the Los
Angeles River, from Boyle Heights to the boundaries of
unincorporated East Los Angeles. The following are a
series of descriptors regarding poverty, identity,
language, and educational attainment in Eastside
communities that describe our target student population.
Poverty, in some form or another, is a daily reality for
nearly 100% of the children who live in these communities.
39
released by
According to year 2005-06 A.P.I. Reports
the California Department of Education, above 90% of
children attending schools in the Eastside are
participants in Free or Reduced Price Lunches. At
Academia, over 80% of currently enrolled students qualify
for Free or Reduced Price Lunches. To no-one’s surprise,
the U.S. Census 2000, reports that Eastside communities
are highly self-identified as Latino, with some schools
such as Huntington Drive Elementary School serving a
40
student body which is 95% Latino . The most recent LAUSD
School Profile analyses of Eastside schools published on
the District’s web page, (www.lausd.k12.ca.us), also
39
40
African
Am.
1
Obtained from < http://data1.cde.ca.gov/dataquest/>; Example schools
include: El Sereno Middle (92.1%), Belvedere Middle (95.3%), and
Hollenbeck (97.4%).
According to year 2000 U.S. Census data reported on
<http://factfinder.census.gov>. Example schools per census tract:
Huntington Drive Elementary (95%) (http://data1.cde.ca.gov/dataquest)
………………………………………………
White
Page 58
confirms this distinct identity of students in these
41
communities. The year 2005-06 A.P.I. Growth Reports
record that, well over 50% of Eastside elementary school
students are designated as English Learners (ELs).
Significantly, 1990 U.S. Census figures reported that the
average educational attainment of adults in these
communities is 5th grade. Current A.P.I. Base Reports
estimate that usually fifty percent or more of Eastside
parents have not graduated from high school. 5
Academia has identified four salient factors that provide
some measure of our students’ needs: poverty, identity,
language and parental education. Our entire mission and
unique school vision is predicated upon the assertion that
if these four factors are consciously addressed by the
school culture, academic success will be one of the
clearest outcomes of school performance.
In reality,
poverty is difficult to quantify because it exacts such
complicated consequences from those who live it.
Nevertheless, poverty as measured by the U.S. Census and
others, is a defining experience in the lives of the
children we will serve. Poverty will help determine their
worldview, aspirations, social capital and importantly
their family’s material resources for educational
attainment. Academia integrates the social themes and
problems associated with poverty in the curriculum through
research and projects intended to propose real solutions.
Besides poverty, students in Eastside schools &
communities are overwhelmingly of Mexican heritage,
although they are usually identified as “Latinos” by
mainstream quantitative research. Cultural identity is a
powerfully distinguishing element of a child’s life - it
is a foundation of individual autonomy. The IBO encourages
World Schools to promote local culture as students become
educated through an international curriculum as it deepens
their understanding of global issues. Academia has
consciously and overtly organized a school culture that
benefits from the community’s daily and historic culture,
and its local funds of knowledge. Beyond celebrating
holidays and folkloric performances, Academia is also an
act of community building as it bridges generations,
immigration, centuries and languages.
To the outsider, the languages spoken in the homes of East
L.A. are one of the most easily observable expressions of
community identity. Spanish, of course, is the dominant
41
42
FROM: http://data1.cde.ca.gov/dataquest; Examples include: Huntington
Drive Elementary (52.1%), Academia (45%)
FROM: http://api.cde.gov; Examples include: Ford Blvd. Elementary (50%),
Utah Elementary (61%), Hammel St. Elementary (52%), First St. Elementary
(48%)
………………………………………………
Page 59
familial language on the Eastside, creating an exploitable
market for business interests and immigrant enterprises
throughout the greater Los Angeles area. In East Los
Angeles schools, children enter school predominantly
speaking Spanish. To the child, home language can either
be an embracing familial bond, or yet another barrier
between family and child in today’s complicated world.
Add to this complication the fact that what little formal
education many Eastside parents have, was gained in Mexico
in an educational system very different from standard
schooling in the U.S., thereby creating another chasm
between parents and children. Parental educational
attainment obviously influences a child's school
performance in the amount and types of resources a child
brings to the classroom from home. The type of social
capital (literature, language, class status, experiences,
etc...) middle class students of the dominant culture
bring to their schools, place the average Eastside child
at a disadvantage if not addressed. Academia organizes
parent engagement in ways that educate as well as involve
family members in the formation of their children. In
sum, the poverty, identity, language and the educational
attainment of Eastside families are at once the
progenitors and guides of our school mission, pedagogy and
culture.
B. Our Mission and Educational Vision:
Indigenous, International and
Regenerative.
Academia is dedicated to student academic excellence, an
appreciation of the cultural and intellectual heritage of
Indigenous Peoples and the promotion of positive social
awareness. We consciously strive to provide students
effective and comprehensive pedagogy through a globally
inclusive curriculum within a positive, supportive
learning environment involving students, teachers, parents
and staff.
Our vision of education is centered on the needs and
rights of the child and family.
Our school is dedicated
to serving disadvantaged children, children at risk of
gang membership, and children at risk of cultural
alienation in mainstream schools. Our curriculum
successfully motivates and engages otherwise disaffected
youth in academic pursuits. Our curriculum is both native
and global in scope. Our vision of education is
regenerative. Our pedagogy is meant to provide an
excellent education for children to enrich their innate
………………………………………………
Page 60
capacity to transform our community’s reality into one
that is more just. We believe our school should continue
to be an integral member of the community, capable of
providing learning and leadership opportunities to the
entire community. Our vision of regenerative education is
like the many currents of a powerful river all
contributing to its power on its course to the great delta
and ocean of infinite knowledge. Two main currents give
life to the river, indigenous pedagogy and an
international curriculum. We call our pedagogy
Regenerative Education. Academia is in the practice of
organizing hope.
Page 61
C. Typical School Day
In a recent LAUSD Charter Schools Office Mini-Site Review
the typical school day at Academia was described in part
as follows:
“Upon entering the building where the eleven K-4 classrooms are
housed, one is struck by the two commendations from the City of
Los Angeles signed by both Mayor Hahn and Mayor Villaraigosa, as
well as County and Congressional Recognition certificates.
A
brightly colored building with the students in equally bright
colored uniforms; it is a very stimulating academic environment.
Designed to be an open setting with no walls dividing them, none
of
the
students
classes.
seem
to
be
distracted
by
the
surrounding
On the first floor, there were four classes in the
large central space; towards the back of the building there were
three.
for
a
There is a workspace where parents were busy preparing
meeting,
storage
space,
a
copy
room
and
bathrooms.
Upstairs there were four more classes divided into two large
spaces.
Each classroom area has two sections – a directed
teaching area and a work area.
The teachers stay with the same
group of students all day except for any group interaction they
may have planned with other classes of the same grade level.
The walls are painted in bright colors with huge canvas murals
on the upper walls of the vaulted ceilings of the warehousestyle school.
There are posters, student work and artifacts of
indigenous cultural influences throughout the school.
In the
main hallway there is a bulletin board for parent-sponsored
events
and
curriculum.
a
breakdown
of
the
International
Baccalaureate
Classes change according to a drumbeat.”43
This well written description of our school day describes
a vivid and vibrant environment created through the
collaboration of professional educators, students and
parents. The typical school day begins with a welcoming
of all members of the community and meditation. Several
schedules set the students to motion guided by their
43
Watts, Linda A. “Regular Site Visitation Narrative,” October 19, 2006.
………………………………………………
teachers from Tai Chi Chuan practice to Nahuatl
instruction, to Mandarin lessons to any number of
curricular units planned collectively by each team of
teachers through the Units of Inquiry. Morning exercise is
usually followed by a brief nutrition break in the midmorning, a lunch break mid-day and a continued instruction
between these breaks. School lets out in the early
afternoon to be followed by student’s intervention
lessons, teacher study groups or staff/parent meetings
depending in the day of the week.
D. Instructional Program
Indigenous Pedagogy: Regenerative Education
Regenerative Education is authentic, autochthonous and
endogenous. Academia is dedicated to ensuring that
students become self-motivated, competent, lifelong
learners by making education purposeful, social and
transformative to both the individual learner and one’s
community. Our vision of a school community and our
pedagogical ideals and concepts are founded upon by the
legacy of Indigenous Mexican education. Ancestral Mexican
schooling ethos embodied social ideals and appreciations
intended to develop the child as a complete person and as
a civically responsible member of a human collective.
Indigenous Mexican schools organized pedagogy, curriculum,
administrators, teachers and sites as a part of
collectivist societies that instilled individual autonomy
in children. The indigenous heart of our vision is a
repossession of an identity denied from our children in
standard schools. Los Angeles continues to be a part of
indigenous cultural networks and among its diverse
children are Indigenous ones who will be part of the next
century. Thus, the indigenous ought to be addressed
positively and consciously.
Our children are the collective purpose of our pedagogy
and our inherited culture is its foundation. In Nahuatl,
our native language, our pedagogy is named To tlamachiliz
machtihlotl. Ours is a pedagogy that asserts that
teaching and learning is a human vocation inescapably
grasped by the lived reality and historical relations of
all integrands. To tlamachiliz machtihlotl is an
autochthonous pedagogy that celebrates our Indigeneity and
the Indigeneity of all Native peoples on this continent.
We believe that education should be a tool that enables
communities to transform their realities. Our students
are the children of real families in real communities that
………………………………………………
Page 62
face real challenges – challenges they share as Indigenous
Peoples, as workers, as women - as human beings.
Regenerative Education, our pedagogy, aims to address
these societal needs by preparing our students to succeed
in life as they lead our communities to succeed in meeting
common human needs. Hence our practice as a school
community is much more than a model; it is an organic
system through which a community consciously and
purposefully prepares its next generation of endogenous
leadership. As Indigenous Peoples this social practice,
this most basic human need has been abrogated for
centuries. Academia is one effort to right the past wrongs
committed against Indigenous children everywhere in the
United States of America and Latin America.
Indigenous language is fundamental to Regenerative
Education. As Mark Warford, Ph.D. writes in his report to
the Stabilizing Indigenous Languages Symposium, “Language
is a living thing; it is the very core of our cultural
identity. Sensing its power, colonizers have
systematically sought to control or even eradicate it
among those they colonize, often with great success.
Psycholinguistic pedagogies, rooted in Western Rationalist
thought, have served as a tool in this process by
abstracting and decontextualizing the way we view language
teaching and learning to the point that its inherently
cultural nature has been minimized, if not excised. The
teaching of indigenous languages, as is the case with the
teaching of all languages, cannot and should not ever be
divorced from its vibrant cultural heritage.” 44 Warford
speaks to the importance of Indigenous language survival,
a central tenet to the mission of Academia, and a focus of
our Regenerative Education.
The Academia community has inherited Nahuatl as a mother
language. Parents of Academia students reaffirmed the
importance of teaching and learning Nahuatl in school
through various means, most notably, through a plebiscite
conducted on May 30, 2006. Warford concludes that,
“Narrative Language Pedagogy, with its emphasis on
language learning as an authentic conversation, is a
natural application of a social view of language
instruction. Though the model may not repair centuries of
linguistic colonization, it may serve to open spaces for
deeper levels of linguistic and cultural proficiency that
give equal weight to non-Western ways of speaking and
knowing, one classroom at a time.” 45
44 Narrative Language Pedagogy and the Stabilization of Indigenous
Languages, 2006.
45
ibid
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Inquiry-based Education: The International Program
46
Indigenous education is by definition international. At
Academia, traditional knowledge drawn from the ways of the
hundreds of Indigenous Peoples throughout North and South
America (Cemanahuac and Tawantinsuyo respectively) form
the basis of an International curriculum. Ours is a
curriculum that is not limited to the so-called First
World, but begins with what some Indigenous scholars refer
to tenuously as the Fourth World, the nations of
Indigenous Peoples. In keeping with both Indigenous
worldviews and the IB system, we begin learning of the
world by knowing ourselves.
Through an International curriculum, Academia also seeks
to influence the critical development of the child by
developing a different sense of self and new attitudes
towards self. Academia’s implementation of an
International Curriculum has been integral to the school
program since the school opened. However, in 2006,
Academia chose as a learning community to adopt the
International Baccalaureate Program as a model to expand
upon the foundations already laid. Since then Academia’s
teachers and staff have been trained in I.B. methodologies
as well as in the IBO program models. In particular,
Academia’s community has chosen to work towards full
accreditation in implementing the I.B.O. Primary Years
Program (PYP) for grades K-5, and the Middle Years Program
(MYP) for grades 6-8. The IB Continuum contains shared
features.
Each program:
•
Requires study across a broad and balanced range of
knowledge domains including languages, humanities,
science and technology, mathematics and the arts,
drawing on content from educational cultures across
the world
•
Gives special emphasis to language acquisition and
development
•
Provides opportunities for engaging in
transdisciplinary learning
46
Please see http://www.ibo.org The Charter quotes extensively from IBO
materials to describe both what has already begun and what Academia strives
to implement in the Charter’s next term.
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•
Focuses on developing the skills of learning,
culminating in a study of the Theory of Knowledge in
the Diploma Program
•
Includes, to a varying extent, the study of individual
subjects and of transdisciplinary areas
•
Provides students with opportunities for individual
and collaborative planning, and research
•
Includes a community service component requiring
action and reflection
Academia’s implementation of an International Curriculum
has been integral to the school program since the school
opened. However, in 2006, Academia chose as a learning
community to adopt the International Baccalaureate Program
as a model to expand upon the foundations already laid.
Since then Academia’s teachers and staff have been trained
in I.B. methodologies as well as in the IBO program
models. In particular, Academia’s community has chosen to
work towards full accreditation in implementing the I.B.O.
Primary Years Program (PYP) for grades K-5, and the Middle
Years Program (MYP) for grades 6-8.
The implementation of the international curriculum at
Academia embraces the goal to develop, “inquiring,
knowledgeable and genuinely caring young people who help
in the creation of a better and more peaceful world
through intercultural understanding and respect.” 47 Thus
the IB program utilizes challenging academic programs with
international education and rigorous assessments to ensure
academic success. Giving priority to students knowing and
appreciating their own culture first is essential in
fostering their sense of identity with their own
traditions and customs. In this manner, they develop a
sense of interest to learn about other people’s customs,
traditions and values, which in turn creates respects for
others.
When we equip students with the skills to learn and
acquire knowledge, they see how the impossible is
possible. Developing inquiry and analytical skills is
fundamental in helping students expand their levels of
knowledge and understanding. Students are not only more
likely to be intrigued to engage in new subject areas but
they develop the understanding that they are life long
learners.
47
http://www.ibo.org/mission/
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Learning is best facilitated when students are learning
within a suitable learning environment. As students are
engaged in single subject and transdisciplinary
instruction, students at Academia receive instruction in
an open space environment. This atmosphere engages
everyone to recognize their surroundings and understand
their relationship to the classroom areas. It promotes a
sense of collective learning and instills a communal
responsibility for the shared instruction space.
1. What is the goal of the PYP at Academia?
Through the PYP, we at Academia strive through all that we
do to develop our students as internationally minded
people. This goal drives the entire program and provides
us with an overriding purpose for all learning tasks
undertaken. The aim of the program is that students will
acquire ownership of a deeply rooted set of
characteristics and attributes that will provide the
foundations for all their future endeavors. The PYP
identifies these attributes in its Student Profile. Should
the student change PYP schools during the course of study
or continue to the Middle Years program or an I.B. Diploma
high school, this overriding purpose will remain the same
regardless of the content of the program.
2. What are the cornerstones of the PYP?
In order to encourage the breadth of content necessary in
an international school, without sacrificing common
standards, the PYP is built on five Essential Elements.
The Essential Elements are designed to guide each school
in developing its own balanced Program of Inquiry. The
Program of Inquiry is the course of study across the grade
levels. Students and teachers investigate this program
through a student-centered questioning approach called
inquiry.
These five elements are:
•
Concepts- The driving force in developing the
Program of Inquiry. These powerful ideas have
relevance within and across the disciplines, and are
continuously re-explored.
•
Knowledge- Significant subject matter for students
to explore. This also provides our students with a
shared base of information
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•
Skills- Abilities the students attain in order to
succeed in making sense of their world.
•
Attitudes- Fundamental values, beliefs and feelings
students have regarding learning, their environment,
and other people.
•
Action- Demonstration of deeper learning through
service and positive action.
3. Why Inquiry?
"Learning is a process of finding patterns that connect". 48
If we believe this, we must give our students a chance to
play an active role in focusing the direction of their
learning, and build on their previous experiences and
knowledge. In order to do this, the PYP takes a curricular
approach with inquiry at the center. It is not a method,
but a philosophy that guides program development and
student learning. Students participate in directing their
own learning by questioning the central ideas presented
through the Program of Inquiry. In different ways, all
students at Academia are engaged in open-ended, relevant,
student-centered activities that allow them to explore the
essential elements embedded in the program. The
traditional subject areas, such as math, science, language
arts, and social studies provide students and teachers
with a perspective, but the true and universally
applicable learning will be the ability to ask purposeful
questions, make connections and ultimately to understand
the concepts driving the Unit of Inquiry.
4. Middle Years Program (MYP): A Description
The international education program promotes the
development of knowledge, understanding, attitudes and
skills necessary to create active and responsible global
citizens. The MYP is created for students between the
ages of 11 to 16 years old and thus works with students as
they approach a critical and new developmental phase in
their lives. This period, encompassing early puberty and
mid-adolescence, is a particularly critical phase of
personal and intellectual development and requires a
program that helps students participate actively and
responsibly in a changing and increasingly interrelated
world. Learning how to learn and how to evaluate
information critically is as important as learning facts.
Therefore the goal is to provide a program that promotes
48
Bateson, 1972.
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learning, emphasizing the critical evaluation of
information.
5. Vision and Philosophy
The overall philosophy of the program is created through
three fundamental concepts that support and strengthen all
areas of the curriculum. These concepts are: intercultural
awareness, holistic learning and communication.
The program promotes the education of the whole person,
with an emphasis on intellectual, personal, emotional and
social growth. This can be achieved when one takes into
consideration their own cultural identity and their
values, knowledge, language and customs. From there,
students are more readily able to explore and learn from
the cultural identity of others throughout the world. As
such, through their education they can transform into
critical and compassionate thinkers, lifelong learners and
informed participants of this world.
6. Middle Years Program Methodology
The methodology used for this curriculum employs an
interdisciplinary approach, which interweaves the study of
eight academic subjects through five Areas of Interaction:
These provide the main focus for developing the
connections between the disciplines, so that students will
learn to see knowledge as an interrelated, coherent whole.
•
Approaches to Learning:
> How do I learn best?
> How do I know?
> How do I communicate my understanding?
•
Community and
> How do we
> How can I
> How can I
•
Homo Faber:
> Why and how do we create?
> What are the consequences?
•
Environment:
> Where do we live?
> What resources do we have or need?
> What are my responsibilities?
•
Health and Social Education:
Service:
live in relation to others?
contribute to the community?
help others?
> How do I think and act?
> How am I changing?
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> How can I look after myself and others?
Through the methods used in Approaches to Learning,
students are provided with tools that empower them to take
responsibility for their own learning during the six-week
designated themed units. This process enables them to
create an awareness of their process and learning habits
as they develop an awareness of successful learning
strategies.
The Homo Faber interaction allows students to investigate
a subject matter through various techniques that
demonstrates the processes and outcomes of human
creativity. Methods of implementation include reviewing
films, researching writings on the matter, exploring
visual arts, among other mediums. It incorporates a
holistic method that promotes students learning to
appreciate and develop the capacity to influence,
transform, enjoy and improve the quality of life.
Community and Service is an equally important component of
the student’s education and their awareness and active
participation in the community they are a part of. This
goes hand in hand with the goals of a charter school as it
addresses the specific needs of the community it serves.
As such, students are given the opportunity to not only
examine their local community but they are also given an
opportunity to be responsible citizens of their community
as they partake in building community through service.
Environment also allows students to explore their
relationship to the environment in order to develop an
awareness of their symbiotic relationship with it. In
this manner, they are more likely to understand the ways
they depend on the environment and at the same time see
the consequences of their actions upon the environment.
This then creates recognition of their role and acceptance
of their responsibilities to the environment.
The last Area of Interaction of the MYP curriculum model
is that of Health and Social Education. This area deals
with physical as well as social and emotional health and
intelligence. These are all integral components of
development leading to complete and healthy lives.
Finally, the MYP curriculum model culminates with a
personal project as defined below. In the final year of
the program, each student completes a personal project- a
significant piece of work that is the product of the
student’s own initiative and creativity. Each project must
reflect a personal understanding of the areas of
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interaction. Students apply the skills acquired through
one of the areas as well as approaches to learning.
Textbooks/Instructional Resources
Academia uses a state approved reading program in grades
K-2 and various different state approved reading textbooks
in the remaining grades. Academia uses a state approved
math program in grades K-2 and the LAUSD alternative
standards-based program in grades K-6. Academia uses the
same state adopted program for grades 1-5 and 6-8 in both
R/LA (Reading and Language Arts) and math.
Academia has identified a need for a State-Board Adopted
Reading Intervention Program for grades 4-8 and
opportunities and materials to improve reading achievement
for the lowest scoring students. In the first year of the
renewal charter term Academia will consistently identify
the students who are two or more years below grade level
in grades 4-8. Academia will have an adopted intervention
curriculum designed specifically for the identified
students. In 2008, Academia will have an intervention
program, for the students furthest below their grade level
in grades 4-6. Academia will provide a State-Board
Adopted intervention program and textbooks for all
students in grades 4-8. These plans are subject to
modification based upon actual results.
E. Becoming A World School
Teacher Recruitment
Currently 100% of Academia’s teaching teachers and
paraprofessionals are NCLB Act compliant. For the last
two years, Academia has had great success in recruiting
qualified teachers in applying for teaching positions and
teacher retention. As a result, the school will continue
to rely on the following mechanisms to recruit and
maintain high-quality staff. Ed join, a public education
job search web site will continue to be used to announce
job opportunities to educators across the country. The
school will also continue to participate in job fairs at
the local universities to recruit qualified teachers.
The school has been successful in retaining teachers for
the last three years because of its approach in including
teachers in committees related to curriculum, policy,
governance, and evaluation of personnel.
The teachers
………………………………………………
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will continue to be participants in school and board
committees that decide policy and monitor the
implementation of programs. As a result, teacher buy-in
to the school is high.
Academia will also continue to provide mentoring to the
teachers to support the implementation of new programs and
their professional growth. Last year, the school
supported new and beginning teachers through collaboration
with the Los Angeles County Department of Education in
paying for BTSA for new teachers. Academia’s commitment
to new and credentialed teachers extended to providing
mentoring on an on-going basis. The Director of Education
received training in mentoring teachers and has continued
the training in year 2 of this academic year. All
teachers will not only receive support from the literacy
coach in implementing the new reading program and reading
strategies, but also mentoring from the Director of
Education, coordinator, or experienced teacher. The
mentoring will consist but not limited to at least one
monthly meeting, observation, or professional training for
each teacher.
Professional Development
In order to achieve our academic goals Academia is
committed to providing high quality, research based
professional development. Our professional development is
built upon assessed school wide needs and interests of
teachers as determined through an annual survey or other
measure deemed appropriate by the Professional Development
Educator Committee. This committee will draw upon their
classroom experience, the academic needs of the students,
and the management and reporting responsibilities of the
school to develop a balanced professional development
agenda for the school year.
We draw upon professional experts, LAUSD personnel, as
well as our own teaching staff’s strengths and resources
to lead our professional development. However, instead of
obtaining presenters in different areas in a piecemeal
fashion, Academia has obtained the services of a
curriculum specialist and expert on the Primary Years
Program to assist consistently over a period of time with
Academia’s prioritized needs for professional development.
Our professional development system includes:
•
•
Mentoring by administrator’s
Class release time to observe other teachers within the
school and in other high performing schools
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•
•
•
Professional Development Educator Committee identifies
teacher presenters based on the needs and requests
identified in the annual survey
Participation of lead teachers and administrators in
LAUSD sponsored workshops on topics such as English
Language Learners, Special Education, SocioEconomically Disadvantaged students, STAR testing, and
other key topics
Our collective of teachers meets once a week for school
wide curriculum planning and on-going professional
development based on research validated strategies on
topics such as:
> Literacy, numeracy and science education
> Early Intervention for intensive learners
exhibiting difficulties in specific areas
> English Language Learners
> Socio-economically disadvantaged students
> API labeled ‘Hispanic’ student population
> Advanced Learners (Gifted)
> Students with Special Needs
•
•
•
In addition to this, teachers come together in a study
group to further develop and discuss their knowledge of
educational theories through book study, guest
presenters, and data analysis.
The I.B. requires team collaboration on developing the
program of inquiry and curriculum goal setting, planner
writing, evaluation and teacher reflection.
Considerable professional development is given to
ensure the development on a coherent vertical and
horizontal program of inquiry, the development of the
written planners and a reflection following teaching
planners.
Teachers are given the opportunity to develop their
skills as educational leaders through the ongoing
inclusion in school wide decision-making processes.
Additionally, implementation of the International
Baccalaureate (IB) program provides a clear framework for
continuity of school wide professional development. All
classroom teachers, specialists and heads of school must
attend the IB’s Level 1 Workshop in order to access the
research validated theories and strategies of the program.
One team of teachers has already completed the Level 1
Workshop in both the PYP and MYP. Teams of teachers will
continue to attend these workshops from January 2007 on
until all staff members have been trained at this level.
In the summer of 2007, lead teachers, coordinators, and
heads of school will attend Level 2 and Level 3 workshops,
which will further develop Academia’s capacity in the
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understanding of inquiry based learning as well as some
specific core subjects.
Professional development will provide time for grade
levels to vertically articulate and discuss how learning
builds from one year to another. The school’s curriculum
framework requires for teachers to plan cooperatively
within grade level teams and across the grade levels as
one unified school team. IB provides a framework to
ensure a developmentally appropriate continuum of
knowledge built through transdisciplinary units of
inquiry. The framework provides a structure for ensuring
that transdisciplinary themes are not repeated but that
one understanding builds upon another throughout grade
levels.
Teachers and specialist staff come together across grade
levels to plan the transdiciplinary standards based units
for the entire year. This is done through a collaborative
process to ensure in depth understandings of units of
inquiry that comprehensively incorporate California
standards and comprehensive assessments. These assessments
are planned in advance of teaching the unit. Two things
are key in the PYP approach: collective planning and preplanned assessment. This process ensures a comprehensive
school wide curriculum and professional “ownership” from
teachers. PYP teachers also meet in grade level teams for
detailed planner writing for six week units of inquiry,
lessons, activities, and assessments related to their
respective unit.
Academic Calendar/Sample Daily Schedule
Below is the proposed instructional school calendar:
Instructional School Calendar (2007 – 2008)
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First Day of Instruction
Last Day of Instruction
Holidays
Labor Day
Veteran’s Day
Thanksgiving Holiday
Martin Luther King Jr.
President’s Day
International Workers Day
Memorial Day
September 4, 2007
June 20, 2007
Winter Recess
Spring Recess
Professional Development Days
Dec. 12, 2007 – Jan. 4, 2008
Mar. 17 – 21, 2008
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Sept. 3, 2007
Nov. 9, 2007
Nov. 22 & 23, 2007
Jan. 21, 2008
Feb. 18, 2008
May 1, 2008
May 31, 2008
Aug.
Oct.
Oct.
Dec.
Jan.
Mar.
Apr.
Jun.
20 – 31, 2008
5, 2008
8, 2008
7, 2008
21, 2008
10, 2008
28, 2008
23 – 27, 2008
Sample Weekly Schedule (2006-2007)
MONDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
Tai Chi
Periods
21 students
per subject
Mathematics
(136 minutes)
Mathematics
(75 minutes)
(English)
(English)
Language Arts
(85 minutes)
Language
Arts
(75 minutes)
THURSDAY
Friday
Tai Chi
Inquiry
Teams
I,II,III,IV,
V,VI,
VII, VIII
(English)
(English)
Mathematic
s
(90
minutes)
(English)
Language
Arts
(85
minutes)
Mathematics
(80 minutes)
(English)
Language Arts
(80 minutes)
(English)
(Spanish)
Social
Science
(85 minutes)
Social
Science
(75 minutes)
(English)
(Spanish)
Science
(85 minutes)
Science
(75 minutes)
(English)
(Spanish)
Danza
(63 minutes)
42 students
(Spanish)
(Spanish)
Social
Science
(85
minutes)
(English)
(Spanish)
Science
(90
minutes)
Mandarin
(75 minutes)
(English)
Nahuatl
(75 minutes)
(Spanish)
………………………………………………
Science
(80 minutes)
(English)
(Spanish)
Nahuatl
(52
minutes)
(Spanish)
Social
Science
(80 minutes)
Mandarin
(68 minutes)
(English)
Nepohualtz
itzin
(52
minutes)
(Spanish)
Inquiry teams
(68 minutes)
(English)
Total minutes a week = 2,103
English total minutes a week = 1,087 (51%)
Spanish total minutes a week = 727 (34%)
Nahuatl total minutes a week = 131 (6%)
Mandarin total minutes a week = 158 (8%)
In addition, Academia shall offer, at a minimum, the same
number of minutes of instruction set forth in paragraph
(1) of subdivision (a) of Education Code Section 47612.5
for the appropriate grade levels.
Language Enrichment: Purpose, Goals & Unique
Qualities
The Dual Language Enrichment school wide methodology will
be based upon a 90/10 model of language instruction
whereby Spanish language speakers (ELL's) and English
language speakers (EO's) are integrated in the same
classroom with the goal of academic excellence and
bilingual fluency for both language groups. This model is
based on the research of successful bilingual education
programs that have shown high rates of academic success in
both English and Spanish 49. A theoretical base for the
program stems from the theories delineated in the
California State Department of Education publication
entitled: Bilingual Immersion Education: A program for the
Year 2000 and Beyond (1990). The goals of this school
wide methodology are:
•
•
•
•
To develop high levels of communicative and academic
second language proficiency
To maintain and develop primary language skills
To develop average to superior progress in all
curricular areas
To develop an understanding, positive attitudes and
acceptance of oneself, as well as the diversity of
languages and cultures represented in the community
The Dual Language Enrichment school wide methodology to be
implemented by Academia will logically have unique
elements guiding its implementation. First and foremost
among these unique qualities will be the linguistic
character, history and needs of community we are serving.
49
Tempes, 1985; Krashen and Biber, 1988.
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According to Los Angeles Unified School District school
50
profiles published on their website , most schools in the
East Los Angeles area serve close to or above 60-70%
Spanish language speakers (ELL's). Moreover, based on our
informed judgment and experience we believe that the
majority of the 30-40% English language speakers (EO's)
have family members, often their own parents, who speak
Spanish as a primary language as well. In addition, a
significant number of Mexican families in Los Angeles also
speak a native language as a maternal language, others as
a second language and yet others as their only language.
The presence of this linguistic diversity will add depth
and strength to the Dual Language Enrichment process at
Academia.
Academia embraces this linguistic diversity in several
ways. Our adaptation of the 90-10 model of Dual Immersion
will be modified in order to include English-speaking
students at different levels of fluency. We expect
Chicano (Mexican families with more than one generation of
residency in the U.S.) families will bring a powerful
purpose of our school to the forefront of our work: the
reclamation of forgotten culture and language. We also
plan to include the formal instruction of NahuatlMexicano, the most spoken native language in East L.A. In
addition, we plan to offer Mandarin language instruction
with the goal of furthering our students' preparation for
global citizenry. Nahuatl and Mandarin language and
culture will enrich our students’ education from kinder
through eighth grade. Full-time language teachers will
ensure all students receive this additional daily language
and culture instruction. In sum, the unique elements of
our instructional program provide for a flexible approach
to a diverse community and a plethora of educational
needs.
Gifted and Talented Students (GATE)
At Academia many students demonstrate an ability to
achieve beyond grade level. Teachers provide students
with many opportunities to study the core curriculum with
increased depth and complexity. Through our staff
training, teachers incorporate strategies that emphasize
higher learning thinking skills and promote novelty in
student outcomes. Classroom differentiation allows for
individualized extensions of the curriculum, creative
problem solving activities and acceleration of the
curriculum when appropriate. Students who are identified
50
www.lausd.k12.ca.us
………………………………………………
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as GATE or higher achieving are clustered in academic peer
groups in each class. Our IB coordinator works with
teachers to provide current training on gifted instruction
and differentiation. The coordinator also meets with
parents of identified GATE children to explain what the
gifted program consists of and educational opportunities
for their children.
Students Achieving Below Grade Level
All students who are identified below grade level will
receive the additional support:
1. Parent is notified of student level at the time of
the student learning Path conference
2. Parent is invited and encouraged to participate in
workshops throughout the year that will aid parents
in understanding what things to do to support their
child academically and socially
3. Parents will participate in Colectivas de Enseñanza
(Teaching Collectives) involving parents and
teachers.
4. Student will be invited to participate in additional
experiences after school. The after school program
will consist of an academic, social, and cultural
component. In the academic component trained tutors
(college students, school staff, parent volunteer,
etc.) will specifically work with individuals or
small groups of students. The focus of the sessions
will be to improve an academic weakness.
5. In the classroom, paraprofessionals, parent
volunteers or other teaching assistants will provide
individualized or small group assistance.
6. Student will be paired up with another student to
participate in cross-age tutoring. If this is not
possible, then the student will be paired up with a
student of the same age level.
Special Education
Academia will adhere to the provisions of the Individuals
with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and state special
education laws and regulations to assure that all students
with disabilities are accorded a free, appropriate public
education (FAPE). The Academia will also ensure that no
student otherwise eligible to enroll in their charter
school will be denied enrollment.
Academia will comply with Section 504 of the Federal
Rehabilitation Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act,
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and all Office of Civil Rights mandates for students
enrolled in Academia.
Academia will adhere to all Los Angeles Unified School
District policies and procedures regarding special
education.
Academia will adhere to the requirements of the Chanda
Smith Modified Consent Decree, including compliance with
the Annual Plan, submitting documents and information,
participating in reviews, and attending informational
sessions and meetings.
Academia will use District forms to develop, maintain, and
review assessments and IEPs in the format required by the
District and will enter assessment and IEP data into the
District’s designated data system (Welligent) in
accordance with LAUSD policies and procedures. Academia
will maintain copies of assessments and IEP materials for
district review. Academia will submit to the District all
required reports, including but not limited to SESAC and
Welligent IEPs, in a timely manner as necessary to comply
with state and federal and Modified Consent Decree
requirements. Academia will develop Individual Transition
Plans to help students with disabilities, ages 14 and
older, in transitioning to adult living.
Academia will participate in the state quality assurance
process for special education (i.e., verification reviews,
coordinated compliance self-reviews, complaints,
monitoring, procedural safeguards, and the local plan).
Academia will participate in internal validation review
(DVR).
Academia is responsible for the management of its special
education budgets, personnel, programs and services.
Academia will ensure that its special education personnel
is appropriately credentialed, licensed or on waiver
consistent with California laws and regulations.
Academia will implement the programs and services,
including providing related services, required by the IEPs
of the students enrolled at Academia. Academia may request
related services (e.g., Speech, Occupational Therapy,
Adapted P.E., Nursing, Transportation, etc.) from the
District, subject to availability and on a “fee-forservice” basis, by submitting written requests to the
Charter Office. Academia may also provide related services
by hiring credentialed or licensed providers through
private agencies or independent contractors.
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For students transferring to Academia from District
schools or District affiliated charter schools, Academia
will provide those related services required by the
students’ IEPs upon the students’ enrollment. However, to
allow for a smooth transition to independent charter
schools, the District shall continue to fund services for
those special education students enrolling in independent
charter schools, the District shall continue to fund
services for those special education students enrolling in
independent charter schools who have been receiving nonpublic agency (NPA) services from the District for thirty
(30) days after enrollment. This will allow Academia time
to conduct an IEP team meeting and to execute contracts as
necessary to facilitate the students’ transition to
Academia. When requested by Academia, a representative
from the Local District Special Education Office may
attend a student’s first IEP meeting at the independent
charter school to assist with transition issues.
For students transferring to Academia from other school
districts, Academia shall provide related services
required by the students’ IEPs upon the students’
enrollment regardless of the type of service provider
(school, NPA or private). IEP team meetings for such
students will be held within thirty (30) days of the
student’s enrollment in accordance with state and federal
law.
The referral process shall include Student Success Team
meetings to review prior interventions, accommodations and
modifications and to recommend further interventions as
appropriate. Academia will identify and refer students
with disabilities who demonstrate early signs of academic,
social or behavioral difficulty that may require
assessment for special education eligibility and placement
in a special education program.
Academia will be responsible for the development of
assessment plans for students with suspected disabilities
or, in the alternative, providing appropriate written
notices to parents when a request for assessment is
denied. Academia will make decisions regarding
eligibility, goals, program, placement, and exit from
special education by consensus of the student’s IEP team.
In the event that Academia is unable to provide an
appropriate placement or services for a student with
special needs, Academia will contact the District to
discuss placement and service alternatives. Academia IEP
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teams will ensure participation of a District special
education representative at an IEP team meeting whenever
it is anticipated that special education programs outside
of Academia, including but not limited to placement at a
District school or at a non-public or private school, will
be considered. If an IEP team that includes Charter
School personnel places a student in a special education
program provided by another entity without District
representation on the IEP team, Academia will be fully
responsible for the quality of the program and for any
costs incurred for such a placement. Academia will also
maintain responsibility for monitoring progress towards
IEP goals for the student with special needs.
Academia will support movement of students with
disabilities into less restrictive environments and
increase interactions of students with disabilities with
non-disabled students. Assessment and standardized testing
procedures shall be implemented, including guidelines for
modifications and adaptations, to monitor student
progress.
Academia shall provide planned staff development
activities and participate in available appropriate
District trainings to support access by students with
disabilities to the general education classroom, general
education curriculum, integration of instructional
strategies and curriculum adaptations to address the
diverse learner, and interaction with non-disabled peers.
Academia will ensure that the teachers and other persons
who provide services to a student with disabilities are
knowledgeable of the content of the student’s IEP.
Academia will ensure that student discipline and
procedures for suspension and expulsion of students with
disabilities are in compliance with state and federal law.
Discipline procedures will include positive behavioral
interventions. In accordance with the Modified Consent
Decree, Academia will collect data pertaining to the
number of special education students suspended or
expelled.
Procedural Safeguards/Due Process Hearings
The District may invoke dispute resolution provisions set
out in a charter, initiate due process hearings, and/or
utilize other procedures applicable to Academia if the
District determines that such action is legally necessary
to ensure compliance with federal and state special
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education laws and regulations or the Modified Consent
Decree.
In the event that a parent or guardian of a student
attending Academia initiates due process proceedings, both
Academia and the District will be named as respondents.
Whenever possible, the District and Academia shall work
together in an attempt to resolve the matter at an early
stage (informal settlement or mediation).
During due process proceedings and any other legal
proceedings or actions involving special education,
Academia will be responsible for its own representation.
If Academia retains legal representation for a due process
proceeding or other legal proceeding or action, Academia
will be responsible for the cost of such representation.
Because Academia will manage, and is fiscally responsible
for, its students’ special education instruction and
services, Academia will be responsible for any prospective
special education and related services, compensatory
education and/or reimbursement awarded by a due process
hearing officer, court or settlement based on an
allegation or allegations that Academia failed to fulfill
its responsibilities under state and federal special
education laws and regulations (which include, among other
things, identifying students with disabilities, assessing
students, conducting IEP team meetings, developing
appropriate IEPs, and implementing IEPs).
If parents’ attorneys’ fees and costs are to be paid
because parents are the prevailing party as a result of a
due process hearing or settlement agreement based on
Academia’s alleged failure to fulfill its responsibilities
under state and federal special education laws and
regulations, Academia will be responsible for payment of
those attorneys’ fees and costs.
Complaints
The District will investigate and respond to all special
education complaints the District receives pertaining to
Academia including the District’s Uniform Complaint
Procedures, Office for Civil Rights and California
Department of Education Special Education Compliance
Complaints. Academia will cooperate with the District in
any such investigations and provide the District with any
and all documentation that is needed to respond to
complaints. Academia will be solely responsible for any
and all costs resulting from, arising out of, or
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associated with the investigation and implementation of
appropriate remedies.
Special Education Local Plan Area (SELPA)
The District is approved to operate as a single-district
SELPA under the provisions of the California Education
Code, Section 56195.1(a). Charter schools authorized by
the District are deemed to be public schools within the
District for purposes of special education. The District
will determine the policies and procedures necessary to
ensure that the protections of special education law
extend to students in Academia in the same manner as
students in all District schools.
Funding for Special Education
Academia shall receive its allocated share of AB602
special education funds and shall be fiscally responsible
for the provision of special education services and
instruction to the students they serve. The allocated
amount shall be calculated using a funding model based on
student population (average daily attendance). Academia
shall keep daily attendance for each student that shall be
reported and certified according to District policies and
procedures. Academia may request specific related services
from the District on a fee basis.
The District will collect an equitable encroachment
contribution from independent charter schools for
district-wide costs for special education instruction and
services. District-wide costs include: 1) maintaining a
full continuum of program options; 2) professional
development and training; 3) technical support for
programs; 4) administration of due process proceedings,
excluding any legal representation; 5) investigation of
complaints; and 6) implementation of Modified Consent
Decree.
The annual encroachment percentage collected may vary from
year to year depending on the district-wide encroachment.
The calculation of the encroachment contribution shall be
based upon a formula designed by the District’s Budget
Services Office.
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District Responsibilities Relating to Charter School
Special Education Program
As long as charter schools operate as public schools
within the District, the District shall provide
information to the school regarding District special
education decisions, policies, and procedures to the same
extent as they are provided to other schools within the
District. To the extent that the District provides
training opportunities and/or information regarding
special education to other school site staff, such
opportunities and/or information shall be made available
to Academia staff.
Modifications to Special Education Responsibilities and
Funding
The special education responsibilities of Academia and the
District, and the special education funding model may be
modified, supplemented or clarified through a mutually
agreed upon Memorandum of Understanding (“MOU”). If such
an MOU is executed its provisions shall be incorporated by
reference to this Charter and shall, to the extent
necessary to carry out the intent of the MOU, supersede
the provisions on special education responsibilities and
funding set forth above.
F. The International Curriculum
Why an international curriculum?
"Curriculum" is defined as the program of study that a
school offers. In national systems, this program is
usually mandated through governmental agencies. In
California, the curriculum is mandated by the State,
however, the method of delivery of the curriculum is left
to the school. The obvious question therefore is twofold;
How do we the needs of students while applying the State
of California educational standards? How do we ensure that
we meet internationally accepted high standards?
In searching to find the best answer to this question, a
group of international educators combined their own
expertise with the best practices from the major national
systems, and with this created a new way of developing
curriculum. The result of their effort was the “Primary
Years Program” (PYP), which was adopted by the
International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO) in 1997.
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Academia believes that the PYP supports our school
philosophy and meets the needs of our students and
teachers. Therefore, we have adopted this approach and
will seek authorization to teach the PYP and the MYP.
This provides us with a solid curricular framework, while
still allowing us to meet the unique needs of our
students.
Primary Years Program Curriculum Framework
Middle Years Program Curriculum Framework
The model designed by the MYP concentrates on eight
academic areas and is guided by five areas of interaction
that culminates with an overall personal project. The
curriculum is structured with a designated themed unit
that lasts six weeks. During these six weeks, students
explore the thematic unit through various inquiry based
lesson plans and academic exercises. After the six-weeks
of study and investigation, the students present their
findings through project presentations.
Therefore students study subjects from the following eight
academic areas: humanities, technology, mathematics, arts,
sciences, physical education, and two or more languages.
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This model advances the international curriculum Academia
51
It entails a study
has implemented since its inception.
of the eight academic areas, but ensures to draw on
content from educational cultures across the world. Its
curricular framework is fluid in its trans-disciplinary
approach and it increases students’ capacity to find
correlations in their learning amongst the various
subjects. Overall, the curriculum provides a balanced
education that prepares young people for participation in
society.
Core Subjects – A Transdisciplinary Approach
As a charter school that is part of LAUSD, Academia is
ensuring that the California State standards are being met
as the various subject matters are being covered in
classroom instruction. Academia has structured its
classroom subject instruction in the primary years (K-5)
and the middle years (6-8) to cover the following academic
subjects:
Language Arts
51
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1. Primary Years
Language Arts includes the use of language to learn about
language, the language of other disciplines, and
literature. It is a pivotal subject matter as it informs
all other subject areas. All students will receive
instruction in the four components of language arts:
speaking, listening, writing, and reading.
The instruction in phonics will enhance their listening
and reading fluency and ultimately reading comprehension.
Students will be introduced to the process of writing and
engaged in the brainstorming, drafting, editing and
finalizing stage.
Students will receive primary instruction in English and
Spanish. Our aim is to effectively make all students
academically proficient in both languages. At the same
time, students will have the opportunity to study
additional languages including Mandarin and Nahuatl.
Every student will strive towards the mastery of the
content standards based upon the Reading/Language Arts
52
Framework for California Public Schools.
2. Middle Years
Students will engage in further refining their literary
and writing skills as they engage to explore various
subject matters through this area. Being able to decipher
between different genres of writing and the reason they
employ various techniques will serve the purpose to
decipher what genre and/or writing style is best effective
for them to convey information to others. Students will
be presented with various selections of writings and be
challenged to engage in a critical analysis of their
thesis and identify the supporting evidence used to
support such thesis.
The principle language of instruction implemented is
English known as Language A. It is clearly fundamental to
the curriculum as it crosses the boundaries of the
traditional disciplines. Language A courses therefore
include the study of:
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See Appendix for English Language Arts Benchmarks
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•
•
The instrumental function of a language where
listening, viewing, speaking, reading and writing
skills are emphasized.
Literature, which encompasses a variety of periods
and genres.
The family and students will study Spanish as their
Language B-1. The primary aim of language B-1 is to
encourage students to gain competence in a modern
language, with the long-term goal of balanced
bilingualism. In addition, the study of language B aims
to:
•
Encourage in the student a respect for and
understanding of other languages and cultures
•
Provide a skills base to facilitate further language
learning.
•
Proficiency in a second language gives students:
•
Access to a broader range of input, experiences and
perspectives
•
The enjoyment of being able to communicate in a
language other than their mother tongue
Students in the MYP will also have the opportunity to
select a third language of study, either Mandarin or
Nahuatl. This third language is known as Language B-2.
Learning many languages greatly contributes to the
holistic development of students and is believed to raise
achievement in other subject areas.
content standards based upon the Reading/Language Arts
Framework for California Public Schools. 53
Mathematics
1. Primary Years
Mathematics provides us with a global language through
which we can make sense of our world and solve problems.
For this reason, students at Academia will receive
instruction in the logic and structure of mathematics.
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Classroom instruction will provide ongoing opportunities
for children to solve problems in a variety of ways.
Students will be able to explain their process orally and
in writing. They will apply mathematics to see patterns,
to analyze situations and build confidence in their
ability to learn mathematics.
The main areas covered within the mathematics curriculum
include data handling, measurement, shape and space,
pattern and function, and number.
Problem solving is an integral component in the
mathematics instruction as the students incorporate the
language arts in their studies and learn about the various
ways they can go about solving the problem. Indigenous
mathematics will be taught throughout.
content standards based upon the Mathematics Framework for
California Public Schools 54.
2. Middle Years
Students will build upon the math problem solving
strategies and skills they have acquired from their
primary years. This will be conducted in work group
scenarios that will vary from large and small group
activities. The problems will challenge them to further
explore and develop a variety of thinking strategies. As
such, they will have the opportunity to formulate their
own conclusions and share among their peers their
reasoning process and demonstrate how they came to their
conclusions. Students will develop strategies for problems
in which solutions are not obvious and the acquisition of
mathematical intuition. The Middle Years Program aims to
provide students with an appreciation of the usefulness,
power and beauty of the subject.
One aspect of this is the awareness that mathematics is a
universal language with diverse applications. The Middle
Years Program promotes an understanding of how cultural,
societal and historical influences from a variety of
cultures have shaped mathematical thought.
Teachers will develop schemes of work according to a
framework that includes five branches of mathematics:
•
•
54
number
algebra
See Appendix for Math Benchmarks
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•
•
•
geometry and trigonometry
statistics and probability
discrete mathematics.
The variety of mathematic problems will ensure that they
meet the Mathematics California State Standards.
Indigenous mathematics will be taught throughout in order
to enrich the study of mathematics through culturally
relevant content.
content standards based upon the Mathematics Framework for
California Public Schools 55.
Social Studies
1. Primary Years
Social Studies is the study of people in relation to their
past, their environment and their society. Students will
use the inquiry base as they explore and investigate
issues to create an analysis about certain concepts. All
students will gain knowledge of civics, history, culture
and geography with an international perspective in order
to prepare students to partake in the world.
Students will receive this knowledge through classroom
instruction in language arts, music, dance, math, and
films.
content standards based upon the History/Social Science
Framework for California Public Schools 56.
2. Middle Years
Students will also gain knowledge of civics, sociology,
anthropology, history, culture, psychology, geography and
economics through their involvement in an in-depth,
meaningful study. Through the study of the various areas,
students will excel in their acquisition of research and
reporting skills because they will be challenged to
develop the ability to think critically about information
and resources. This will be conducted as they are
facilitated to set up experiments and to draw conclusions
that will inform their analysis, thus building upon their
knowledge gained in the primary years instruction. In
order to synthesize these skills, students will have
various opportunities to create final presentations (e.g.
55
56
See Appendix for Math Benchmarks
See Appendix for History/Social Science Benchmarks
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PowerPoint presentations, performances, etc). This will
then compliment the community and service component, as
they will be more informed of the historical and social
realities and interactions amongst the people they
encounter.
content standards based upon the History/Social Science
Framework for California Public Schools 57.
Science & Technology
1. Primary Years
The field of science provides students with an area of
study that transcends national and cultural boundaries.
Scientific inquiry is a process that, much like math, is a
universal process. This process allows students to make a
hypothesis and then engage in a process of investigation
to create an informed conclusion.
Through the exploration of science, our students will be
empowered to research and investigate ideas, and to
appreciate and take responsibility for maintaining the
harmonies of the natural world.
The areas covered include living things, earth and space,
materials and matter, and forces and energy. Due to the
fact that science is a field that is very processoriented, much emphasis will be placed on the skills
element of the PYP.
Technological instruction is an important means by which
students obtain new information during their classroom
instruction. Teachers utilize technology in classroom
instruction as a means to share new information. It has
become a valuable and engaging resource in language
instruction. Students will also have the opportunity to
use various technological methods such as video cameras
and audio recorders to transmit their new knowledge to
their peers and parents.
content standards based upon the Science Framework for
California Public Schools.
2. Middle Years
For the Middle Years an integrated science program of
chemistry, physics, and biology instruction will further
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develop students’ ability to understand that science is a
constantly evolving body of knowledge that needs constant
re-thinking and re-evaluation. Therefore, the scientific
method consistently becomes a substantial method that can
be applied in all grade levels. Also included are topics,
concepts and issues from other branches of science, such
as earth and health sciences.
The study of science aims to provide students with both a
body of knowledge and an understanding of the scientific
approach to problem solving. The ability to formulate
hypotheses, design and carry out experiments to test them,
and evaluate results constitutes the framework within
which specific content is presented.
Among other skills, students are expected to:
•
•
•
use basic laboratory equipment safely and
efficiently
make sensible estimates and take accurate
measurements
make scientifically supported arguments
Students are also encouraged to relate the content of the
classroom and laboratory to the realities of life as they
develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills.
An awareness of the increasingly international context of
scientific activity, its impact and limitations as well as
the constant evolution of scientific knowledge and
understanding is also promoted. Students are encouraged to
consider science as a constantly evolving cooperative
venture between individuals and among members of the
international community, influenced by social, economic,
technological, political, ethical and cultural
surroundings.
Technology will be adapted in the various classroom
instruction and students will learn how to engage in
internet research to obtain information for their project
presentations. Students will have the opportunity to
utilize various means such as video cameras and audio
recorders to disseminate valuable information they have
obtained regarding the subject matter at hand. Technology
is also concerned with solving problems in an effort to
stimulate students’ ingenuity and to encourage them to
combine intellectual talents and practical skills.
Each course will provide a balance between three key
areas:
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•
•
•
systems
information
materials
In particular, students are encouraged to display
ingenuity and creativity in devising practical solutions
to given tasks. Students use the design cycle to:
•
•
•
•
•
investigate
design
plan
create
evaluate
This subject area is valuable for reinforcing and
integrating skills learned in other disciplines,
especially in the presentation and handling of data and
the processes involved in the design and manufacture of a
product. At the same time, it fosters awareness of the
social and ethical implications of technological
development.
content standards based upon the Science Framework for
California Public Schools.
Arts
1. Primary Years
It is important to recognize the great importance of
creativity and the arts in human development, not only as
a means to understand oneself and the world, but also as a
means of self-expression. All students will have the
opportunity to use the arts as tools to help them think
more deeply about themselves, and ultimately about their
world. Students will learn to appreciate and critique art
by reading, writing, researching, and experiencing it.
Students will engage in yet another form of communication
and learning as they explore various forms of movement
such as Traditional Aztec Dance, video production, music,
theatre and visual arts. In this respect we aim to teach
children confidence in their own abilities.
content standards based upon the Visual and Performing
Arts Framework for California Public Schools.
2. Middle Years
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Students will be able to continue the development of their
understanding of the arts and its various forms and
mediums. They will become familiar with the various
vocabulary/vernacular that is used in each field as well
as the process of the production of an art piece.
Students will learn to appreciate that every movement,
brush stroke, musical composition, has a story to tell.
Beyond barriers of language, the discovery of the cultural
values of civilizations through their artistic production
is one of the best ways to promote international
understanding.
Students are brought into contact with the art forms and
aesthetic values of other cultures as well as their own,
and are helped to develop perceptions between ideas and
art. They are also encouraged to identify particular
creative abilities and to master techniques appropriate to
that form of expression.
In addition, the course:
•
•
•
Organizes learning around the creative cycle—a
dynamic, ongoing process of sensing, planning,
creating and evaluating art, and one in which all the
senses are involved.
Encourages creative energy, communication, interaction
and reflection.
Aims to help the student become a developing artist—
one who is able to assess the level of skill and
target the areas that need development.
Seeks to acquaint young people with the creations of men
and women whose works have proven to be of enduring worth.
content standards based upon the Visual and Performing
Arts Framework for California Public Schools.
Personal, Social and Physical Education
1. Primary Years
Physical education provides the discipline to experience
harmony. Students at Academia will begin their day by
engaging in Tai Chi warm up exercises and some movement
patterns to mentally and physically prepare themselves for
a rigorous day of instruction. Students will also engage
in learning traditional games from various cultures
throughout the world and by doing so, they will learn
their history and logic behind their techniques. Students
will become familiar with patterns, coordination and have
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an overall balance. Academia will continue to build upon
the solid foundations in Yang style Tai Chi Chuan, QiGung
and Traditional Aztec Dance already laid.
2. Middle Years
Students will build upon what they have learned in their
previous years. They will continue to develop their
discipline and build character development through the
practice of Tai Chi. Simultaneously, they will learn about
the mathematical patterns incorporated in movement, in
various athletic sports and the probability that exists in
competitive sports. The aim of physical education in the
Middle Years Program is to facilitate
Physical intellectual emotional, and social development
The aim of this course is to cultivate a healthy and
active lifestyle for students. It therefore advocates
activities that are not only enjoyable but also contribute
to healthy living. Students are helped to develop the
motor skills necessary to enable them to participate
successfully in a variety of physical activities, and to
learn about the nature of physical fitness.
This subject area also serves to promote intercultural
awareness, since physical education is a reflection of
elements of history, culture and values. It also enables
students to establish links between different areas of
experience and provides opportunities for different forms
of self-reflection, communication and teamwork.
Participants
Academia will accept all students whose parents make a
commitment to participating for a minimum of 5-7 years.
Parents will sign an Acuerdo y Plan Educativo (Educational
Accord and Plan) every year to reaffirm their commitment
to the program and clarify any concerns. Parental
participation in school and at home will be expected
through various activities and methods aimed at maximizing
language acquisition by the children. English language
speaking students admitted after third grade will be
provided with specially designed instruction in Spanish
(SDAIS), until they achieve a level of Spanish fluency
acceptable for full immersion.
Alignment to State Standards
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All students in Academia will receive a daily balanced
curriculum that is reflective of the California State
Department of Education's Standards and Frameworks.
Materials used to teach reading in Spanish will include
those that are State approved Spanish Language Arts
series.
English Language Development
The focus of instruction in the target language is on
developing grade level literacy addressing the Language
Arts Standards. As described in the instruction matrix,
at the fifth grade, 50% of the instruction is delivered in
English. For ELL students, in addition to the literacy
block, ELD standards are used to guide instruction as
students gradually add subject areas in English as they
progress towards the 50/50 matrix after the 5th grade.
Promotion and Retention of Students
All students will be promoted regardless of academic
performance on the Spanish standardized test, parentteacher assessment committee or STAR. Students who are
not performing at grade level will get assistance through
the school student learning Path. The student's
portfolio, any available classroom assessments,
standardized test results, teacher observations and
recommendations, parent observations and recommendations,
and student recommendations will be used to develop a
strong student learning Path to assist the student in
reaching grade level performance. Our goal is to assist
the students as much as needed to reach grade level
standards appropriate for their age.
Students with Exceptional Needs
All new students to Academia will be assessed upon
admission. The assessment will consist of a school design
test with an English and Spanish component. If any prior
test scores are available, they will be considered in the
assessment. Once assessment results have been evaluated,
the classroom teacher will begin to develop the student’s
unique educational and learning ‘Path’. The purpose of
the Path is to identify student abilities, needs and
talents as well as assist school personnel in meeting each
student’s needs and educational aspirations.
The Academia student learning Path will follow this
process:
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•
•
•
•
Teacher collects all assessment materials and test
scores available
Teacher collects all completed and in-progress work
performed thus far
Teacher determines if any further or more appropriate
assessment is needed
Teacher conferences with the parents and students
about the assessment
During the conference, the teacher, parent, and student
identify the strengths and weaknesses of the student. The
plan will contain objectives, strategies, a timeline for
meeting the objectives and future dates of conferences.
The teacher will suggest ways that the parent can help
their child meet the objectives of the student-learning
Path.
School Core Qualities: How Does Learning Best Occur?
Academia adopted and adapted the National Council of La
Raza’s ‘School Core Qualities’. In the spring of 2005, the
NCLR recruited our school to join a National Affiliate
Charter School CORE QUALITIES TASK FORCE made up of five
charter school principals from NCLR affiliate charter
schools across the nation. As members of this Task Force,
we contributed to the clarification and definition of core
qualities our communities should expect of all public
schools and, in particular of NCLR affiliate schools. We
have adapted these Core Qualities at Academia to reflect
our school vision. Quality schools prepare students to
acquire wisdom and become critical thinkers and principled
bilingual adults. They prepare students to succeed in
post-secondary education and employment and to contribute
to society as leaders in their communities. The school
community — teachers, students, parents, families and
community — focuses on the goals for achievement in
learning and teaching. Achievement is defined to include
academic and intellectual growth, social and cultural
development and linguistic competency.
Achievement is a
result of reciprocal processes that engage all members of
the school community in the vocation of learning and
teaching.
Academia Charter School believes all successful schools
should have the following Core Qualities:
•
Schools are cultural institutions that ought to
strive for cultural competence in the communities
they serve.
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•
Schools ought to promote multilingualism and
literacy in several languages, especially heritage
and mother languages.
•
Schools ought to sustain high expectations and high
support for all students.
•
Schools ought to engage all community members in
meaningful, respectful and sustainable relationships
that support student learning.
•
Schools ought to value and promote collaborative
leadership to sustain a collective commitment to
school wide success.
•
Schools ought to organize and promote family and
community engagement in student learning.
•
Schools ought to define, work toward, and assess
their progress based on clear goals for students,
educators, families and community.
G. A Profile of an International
Baccalaureate Program Student-A 21
Centry Learner
58
The PYP defines the characteristics of students who are
aware of and sensitive to the experiences of others. These
create a profile of the PYP student, which helps teachers
and students to establish goals, plan units of inquiry,
and assess performance:
Inquirers - Their natural curiosity has been nurtured. They
have acquired the skills necessary to conduct purposeful,
constructive research. They actively enjoy learning and
their love of learning will be sustained throughout their
lives.
Thinkers - They exercise initiative in applying thinking
skills critically and creatively to make sound decisions
and to solve complex problems.
Communicators - They receive and express ideas and
information confidently in more than one language,
including the language of mathematical symbols.
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Risk takers - They approach unfamiliar situations without
anxiety and have the confidence and independence of spirit
to explore new roles, ideas and strategies. They are
courageous and articulate in defending those things in
which they believe.
Knowledgeable - They have spent time in school exploring
themes which have global relevance and importance. In
doing so, they have acquired a critical mass of
significant knowledge.
Principled - They have a sound grasp of the principles of
moral reasoning. They have integrity, honesty and a sense
of fairness and justice
Caring - They show sensitivity towards the needs and
feelings of others. They have a sense of personal
commitment to action and service.
Open-minded - They respect the views, values and traditions
of other individuals and cultures, and they are accustomed
to seeking and considering a range of points of view.
Well-balanced - They understand the importance of physical
and mental balance and personal well-being.
Reflective They give thoughtful consideration to their own
learning and analyze their personal strengths and
weaknesses in a constructive manner.
Student Attitudes
In Academia, we aim to support all of our students, in
developing a strong sense of self-discipline. We believe
that if young children have healthy self-esteem and feel
respected and valued for who they are, they will be less
likely to enter into conflict situations. We therefore
work to create a school environment that supports this
thinking, and helps the child to develop self-confidence
and a positive self-image. The 4 R's of the School guide
us:
Rigor, Resilience, Respect, and Regeneration.
At the beginning of the school year students and teachers
work together in their class groups to set up agreements
regarding behavioral expectations. They discuss each
individual's right to learn in a peaceful environment and
consider ways to support one another in this. These
agreements are then posted in the classroom and referred
to throughout the year. Student conflicts are resolved
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through dialogue and discussion with the students
concerned. Respect, tolerance and strategies for conflict
resolution are explored in class meeting time. In cases of
persistent behavioral issues the Academia Discipline
policies are referred to. We believe that in order for our
students to become well-rounded internationally-minded
people, we must actively focus on fostering positive
attitudes towards people, towards the environment and
towards learning. The PYP requires that these attitudes be
fostered consciously, professionally and explicitly. We do
this by designing learning activities that promote
positive attitudes and by considering these attitudes when
we are planning our assessment.
World Schools encourage the following students’ attitudes:
Appreciation - of the wonder and beauty of the world and its
people
Commitment - to learning and developing self-discipline and
responsibility
Confidence - in their ability as learners, having the
courage to take risks, applying learning and making
appropriate choices and decisions
Cooperation - cooperating, collaborating or leading as the
situation demands
Creativity - being creative and imaginative in their
thinking and approaches to problems and dilemmas
Curiosity - about the nature of learning, the world, its
people and cultures
Empathy - being able to project themselves into another
person's situation
Enthusiasm - enjoying learning
Independence - thinking and acting independently, making
their own judgments based on reasoned principles and being
able to defend judgments
Integrity - having integrity and a firm sense of fairness
and honesty
Respect - respecting themselves, others and the world
around them
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Tolerance - feeling sensitivity towards differences and
diversity in the world and being responsive to the needs
of others
Modifications to the Educational Program
The Council of Trustees of Academia reserves the right to
modify, supplement or clarify the educational program to
the extent necessary to carry out the intent of the
charter and the mission of Academia to best address
student learning, assessment results and/or strategic
program development.
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Element 2.
Measurable Student
Outcomes
59
At Academia, every student will strive toward mastery of
essentials skills including: reading, writing, speaking,
listening, English Language proficiency, quantitative
skills, reasoning and problem solving, and technology
skills. These essentials skills will be measured through
teacher-developed tests, school-wide assessments, and
statewide assessments. All students will work towards
mastery of state standards and the criteria set forth in
the No Child Left Behind Act.
A. Attendance requirements including
length of school day and year
Academia will follow the state requirements for the number
of instructional days and minutes, but reserve the right
to make modifications as agreed on by our Council of
Trustees. We will consider the LAUSD single-track yearly
calendar for instructional days, pupil free days,
holidays, and beginning and ending dates. Because daily
attendance is important to student success, we continue to
encourage daily student attendance. Although our average
daily attendance rate of over 95% is exceptional we will
strive to improve this achievement.
Beginning in 2002, with the granting of our Charter, we
initiated time-banking to facilitate common planning,
meeting times and professional development. Four days a
week, students attend school longer and on Wednesdays
students are dismissed one hour and twenty minutes
earlier. Tuesdays are set aside for meetings. Fridays have
been earmarked for grade-level meetings, conferencing,
record keeping, sub-committee meeting and Council of
Trustees meetings. This has enabled us to establish an
infrastructure that has moved our Charter forward as we
59 The measurable pupil outcomes identified for use by the charter school.
‘Pupil outcomes,’ for purposes of this part, means the extent to which all
pupils of the school demonstrate that they have attained the skills,
knowledge, and attitudes specified as goals in the school’s educational
program.” Ed. Code § 47605 (b)(5)(B)
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seek new areas of reform. Time banking will continue as we
enter the next five-year timeline for our new Charter.
B. Academic Growth and Achievement
According to the dual immersion methodology for a 90/10%
program, formal English should begin in the beginning of
fourth grade. Since learning two languages or more,
requires building a larger vocabulary, students need more
time to perform English at the same standard as native
English speakers. Therefore, we expect students to be at
or near grade level in 4-7 years of instruction in a dual
immersion program. Students who start Kinder or first
grade in a dual immersion program will be at or near grade
level in fifth grade. Several studies indicate that dual
immersion students improve and achieve similar scores to
other students in bilingual programs, but after sixth
grade, dual immersion students outperform native
60
In a national study, Thomas and Collier
speakers.
(2001,p.52) found that a two-way bilingual education has
61
the highest long-term academic success . Additionally
scholars report that, “Bilingually schooled students
outperform comparable monolingually schooled students in
academic achievement in all subjects, after 4-7 years of
62
dual language schooling,”
The Academia will use objective measures to determine the
student's ability to process information and demonstrate
mastery of subject matter knowledge. Initially, each
student will be evaluated to establish an individual
student profile. This baseline level of performance will
also assist in tailoring learning plans to meet individual
student needs and help to gauge their progress throughout
the school year.
C. Baseline Assessment and Planning
At the beginning of each academic year, teachers will
conduct informal assessments of student skills and
knowledge in each core academic area (literacy, math,
social studies and science). Teachers will work in grade
level teams to construct these assessments, which will
60
Mary T. Cazabon, Elena Nicoladis, and Wallace E. Lambert, "Becoming
Bilingual in the Amigos Two-Way Immersion Program" (January 1, 1998).
Center for Research on Education, Diversity & Excellence. Research Reports.
Paper rr03. http://repositories.cdlib.org/crede/rsrchrpts/rr03
61
Thomas, W.P. and Collier, V.P., “A National Study of School Effectiveness
for Language Minority Students’ Long-Term Academic Achievement” (July 1,
1996-June 30, 2001). Center for Research on Education, Diversity &
Excellence. http://www.crede.ucsc.edu/research/llaa/1.1_final.html
62
ibid., p.7
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also be used to assess student progress toward meeting
outcomes.
Academia will use the student learning profiles and
informal academic assessments to develop IEPs for students
eligible for special education services, and school
learning Paths for all other students who attend the
school. The learning Paths will be developed annually by a
team consisting of the student's teacher, parent(s),
specialists as appropriate (e.g., speech therapist), the
principal or his or her designee, and, if appropriate, the
student. The IEP process and content for students with
disabilities will conform to all State and Federal
regulations. IEPs and learning Paths for all students will
include specific benchmarks for determining whether
students meet their individual goals related to
achievement of State standards in the core academic areas.
D. Process by which curriculum,
materials and instructional activities
are to be selected
The Curriculum Sub-committee researches curriculum
materials and makes recommendations to the Council of
Trustees for final approval. The Curriculum Sub-committee
may choose texts, methods and curriculum according to
charter goals and mission. The Sub-committee shall select
and implement its own curriculum, instructional materials,
assessments, and instructional methodology in accordance
with the educational program of the Charter and aligned to
the State standards. This Sub-committee is comprised of
certified staff and parents who oversee curriculum and
professional development. Representation from each grade
level and special education will be encouraged.
E. Delineation of when and how pupil
outcomes will be assessed
Academia believes that assessments are an ongoing process
that allows teachers to make adjustments in their daily
teaching to meet the needs o all student based on their
strengths and weaknesses. Our goal is to meet the
requirements of No Child Left Behind Act, which directs
that each subgroup of students will reach proficiency
levels in language arts and mathematics. Over the next
five years, we will strive to achieve at or above our
growth targets on the state’s Academic Performance Index
(API).
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We will use a variety of authentic assessments that can
better evaluate the child over time and in a variety of
settings. Authentic assessment may include, but are not
limited to:
1. Portfolios
2. Teacher observation/anecdotal records
3. Student Journal
4. Work Samples
5. Homework assignments
6. Checklist
7. Rubric/Scoring Scales
8. Teacher-devised test
9. Publisher-provided criterion reference test
10. Projects collected throughout the year
Standardized assessments may include, but are not limited
to:
1. CAT 6 test
2. CST test
3. CELDT test
Data from these different sources will be collected and
analyzed by the teachers at grade level meetings and by
the administration in an ongoing manner throughout the
year. Daily informal assessments from observations, weekly
quizzes and test, project assignments, periodic
assessments, and yearly summative assessments will be used
to direct instruction and identify immediate areas of
concern to be addressed.
Students’ progress will be reported to parents via
progress reports and/or conferences at least three times
during the school year. Currently, we use a report card
created by our teachers. We reserve the right to further
modify our report cards. New report cards, if/when
developed, will report student progress as it relates to
the mastery of State Standards and the IB Learner Profile.
F. Identification of who will be
accountable for student progress
The assessment Sub-committee comprised of certificated
staff and parents, will review, select and distribute
assessment instruments. The Sub-committee will also
oversee and distribute the state assessment. This Subcommittee also reviews test results and works with the
Curriculum Sub-committee to provide professional
development to improve instruction. The Sub-committee
informs staff about upcoming assessments and provides
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information about available resources to help students
prepare for assessments.
Modifications to Measurable Student Outcomes
modify, supplement or clarify the plans included in this
element to the extent necessary to carry out the intent of
the charter and the mission of Academia to best address
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Element 3 .
Methods of
Assessment
63
Assessment is seen as an integral and closely related part
of the planning, teaching and learning process. It is not
an isolated element. It informs each stage of the
learning cycle and leads to effective planning, teaching
and learning. The elements that define curriculum at
Academia are:
•
The written curriculum or “What do we want to learn?”
The learning outcomes, concepts, skills,
attitudes and actions we have identified in the
school’s written curriculum.
•
The taught curriculum or “How best will we learn?”
The teaching and learning strategies that best
support the types of learning identified in the
written curriculum.
•
The learned curriculum or “How will we know what we
have learned?”
Approaches to assessment, recording and
reporting
The assessment component in the school’s curriculum can be
subdivided into four closely related areas:
•
Planning – how we plan to incorporate assessment into
our year-long plans, unit long plans and daily
teaching.
•
Assessing – how we discover what children have learned
•
Recording – how we record this evidence of learning
•
Reporting – how we pass this information on to
students, parents, teachers and external
organizations.
This manual outlines and clarifies the school’s approaches
to each of these important areas of assessment. It also
63
“The method by which pupil progress in meeting those pupil outcomes is to
be measured.” Ed. Code § 47605 (b)(5)(C)
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provides practical support for teachers faced with the
challenge of incorporating good assessment practices into
the classroom environment.
A. Perspective on Assessment
Assessment at Academia is defined as the process of
collecting, analyzing and reporting data. It is the
gathering and analysis of information about student
performance and program effectiveness.
Assessment is integral and crucial to the curriculum and
to all teaching and learning. It is the means by which we
analyze student learning and the effectiveness of our
teaching. Assessment acts as a foundation on which to
base our future planning and practice. It is central to
our goal of guiding the child, from novice to expert,
through the learning process. This can be seen in the
following diagram:
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What do we want to learn?
The written curriculum
Page 108
Learners
Constructin
g
How will we know what we
have learned?
The learned curriculum
How best will we
learn?
The taught
Everyone concerned with assessment – children, teachers,
parents, administrators – must have a clear understanding
of the reasons for the assessment, what is being assessed,
the criteria for success and the method by which the
assessment is made.
Standardized Testing and Traditional Tests
Traditionally paper and pencil tests were used as the main
way of assessing and evaluating children. However,
according to Kohn, “...research shows that schools using
traditional grading produce kids for whom three things are
true: (1) they think less critically; (2) they prefer
easier tasks if given the choice and will go out of their
way to avoid challenge; and (3) they’re less interested in
learning.” 64 Research has also proved that standardized
testing alone cannot be counted on to give a valid
assessment of each student even though they continue to
have a significant impact on educational policy making. 65
Scholars further stress that standardized tests perpetuate
a narrow and prejudicial view of what is important to know
and serve only to sort and rank students not to help
them. 66
However, at Academia, we have to remain accountable to the
standardized tests that our students participate in.
While we philosophically agree with the above research,
our students are eventually measured by external
examinations. Therefore, traditional testing will have a
place in the range of assessment strategies and tools
incorporated at Academia as required by federal and state
law.
64
65
66
See Kohn, 1999
See Blount 1996, Barr 2000 and Archibald and Newmann 1992
ibid., 2000
………………………………………………
Utilizing a range of assessment strategies
As we are concerned with assessing a wide range of
learning outcomes and expectations, it is obvious that we
need a range of assessment strategies and this is
consistent with current thinking on assessment.
Assessments should be both formative and summative and
viewed as authentic, essential, rich, engaging and
feasible, allowing the student to become part of the
evaluative process. Formative assessment is interwoven
within the daily learning and helps teachers and students
find out what they already know in order to plan the next
stage of learning. Formative assessment and teaching are
directly linked; neither can function effectively or
purposefully without the other. Summative assessment
takes place at the end of the teaching and learning
process and gives students the opportunity to demonstrate
what has been learned.
When both teachers and students are actively engaged in
assessing student progress it helps develop their wider
critical thinking and self-evaluation skills. It also
provides teachers with evidence on which to evaluate the
efficacy of the school curriculum. Authentic assessment
can be defined as “a valid assessment system that provides
information about the particular tasks on which students
succeed or need reinforcement, but more important, it also
presents tasks that are worthwhile, significant and
meaningful”.67 Authentic assessments include a variety of
procedures from observations, journals, oral explanations,
rubrics and portfolios.
According to Wiggins first class assessment is a daily and
local affair. 68 There are three steps to assessment tasks:
(a) define outcomes (knowledge, skills, attitudes); (b)
design the task (what will I hear and see the student
doing that will convince me that they know/ can perform
with knowledge); (c) set up criteria for success and
present to students prior to task.
Therefore in conclusion to this perspective section of the
manual, effective assessment practices are:
•
•
•
•
67
68
Planned for and built into the program
Have criteria that are known and understood in advance
Allow students to demonstrate their range of
understanding, knowledge and skills
Focus on big ideas and transdisciplinary skills
Archibald and Newmann 1992
Wiggins, 1989
………………………………………………
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•
•
•
•
•
Based on real life experiences and can lead to other
questions
Allow students to express different points of view and
interpretations
Continuous and cumulative
Able to promote self and peer evaluation
Able to produce evidence that can be reported and
understood by students, parents, teachers and
administrators.
Purposes of assessment
The main purposes of assessment are to promote student
learning, to provide information about student learning
and to contribute to the efficacy of the program. The
following section outlines why we assess work at Academia
School.
1. Student learning is promoted through:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Assessing the student’s prior knowledge and experience
brought to the topic or task
Planning the teaching and learning in order to meet
individual or group needs
Building a profile of student understanding by
providing evidence concerning the strengths and
weaknesses of the individual student
Engaging students in their reflection on their
learning and in the assessment of their work and the
work of others.
Providing positive motivation and reinforcement for
students who strive to reach their personal best
Providing future targets and realistic goals as well
as to amend teaching methods
2. Information about student learning is provided by:
•
•
•
•
Examples of student work or performance
Statistics based on explicit benchmarks and/or rubrics
Test results
Formative and summative assessments to show us the
process as well as the product.
3. Program evaluation uses a variety of student
assessments to:
•
•
•
•
Assess student performance in relation to the general
and specific learning outcomes of the program
Assess group performance in relation to other classes
or groups both internally and externally
Inform others, including students, colleagues and
parents
Assist us in comparing ourselves locally and
internationally against benchmarks
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•
•
•
Provide evidence of teaching effectiveness and
methodology in meeting the needs of the individual
student
Promote higher standards for the pupils and improve
performance
Support continuity and progression throughout the
school
Principles of assessment
Effective assessments allow the student to:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Have criteria that are known and understood in advance
Analyze their learning and helps the student and the
teacher to understand what needs to be improved
Demonstrate the range of their understanding, their
knowledge and their skills
Synthesize and apply their learning, not merely recall
facts
Base their learning on real-life experiences that can
lead to further inquiry
Focus on producing a quality product or performance
Highlight their strengths and demonstrate mastery and
expertise
Express different points of view and interpretations
Promote reflection, self and peer evaluation
The faculty at Academia also believes that assessment
should be:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Honest, accurate, fair and reliable
Modified to suit individual students
User-friendly for both teachers and students
Ongoing, cumulative, consistent and valid
Aesthetically pleasing
Clear, concise and culturally unbiased
Significant, engaging, relevant and challenging
Positive
Able to cover a broad spectrum of understanding,
knowledge and skills
Effective assessments should allow the teacher to:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Plan them and build them into the learning, not add
them on after the fact
Identify what is worth knowing and assess it
Include collaboration between the student, other
students and the teacher
Take into account different cultural contexts and
different learning strategies
Use scoring that is both holistic and analytical
Produce evidence that can be reported and understood
by students, teachers, parents, administrators and
board members
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•
•
Inform every stage of the teaching and learning
process
Plan further activities
In the earliest stages of curriculum planning, good
assessment practice requires the teacher to build
assessment in from the start and link assessment tasks to
the central idea of the unit under study or the curriculum
learning outcome. The quality of any assessment depends
first and foremost on the clarity and appropriateness of
the purpose. With these outcomes, central ideas and
assessment tasks in mind, activities and resources can be
selected.
According to Covey in Seven Habits of Highly Effective
People, “To begin with the end in mind means to start with
a clear understanding of your destination. It means to
know where you are going so that you better understand
where you are now so that steps that you take are always
in the right direction.” 69
Continuous assessment provides insight into student
understanding, knowledge, skills and attitudes. It is
also a means of exploring the learning styles and
individual differences of the students in order to
differentiate instruction. Feedback from assessment
further allows us to develop and improve our program as it
evaluates the strengths and weaknesses of the overall
curriculum.
The following are some PYP strategies that may be used to provide
Formative and Summative Assessments:
Strategies
•
•
Multiple observations,
focused on the whole class and
on individual students.
Observations focus on skills,
processes, and attitudes.
Performance assessments,
which are students’
representations of learning
about authentic challenges and
problems. Performance
assessments incorporate a
variety of skills and
concepts, reflect high-level
thinking skills, and are
expressed in several media
such as oral presentations,
art, charts, models, drama,
writing, audio, and video.
•
Public exhibitions of
student work, e.g., projects,
69
Tools of Measurement
•
A system of note taking and
record keeping such as: check
lists, inventories, and narrative
descriptions will be employed to
minimize writing and recording
time.
•
Standards based rubrics
created by teachers and students
that are available prior to the
commencement of said performance
assessment.
•
Work is assessed by self, peers,
teachers, and when appropriate,
Covey. Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. 1989
………………………………………………
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•
•
•
•
visual art, inventions, and
plays.
Selected responses such as
tests and quizzes.
Open-ended tasks, in which
students are presented with a
stimulus and asked to
communicate an original
response.
Portfolios, which are
collections of student work
that are designed to
demonstrate successes, growth,
higher order thinking skills,
creativity, and reflection.
Student-led conferences in
which students demonstrate
progress towards identified
outcomes by sharing work
portfolios that reflect growth
over the academic year.
others outside the school
community.
•
Criterion referenced.
•
The answer may be a brief
written answer, a drawing, a chart,
a diagram, or a calculation that
verifies understanding.
•
Students will select their
portfolio work and provide a
reflection. Student work will also
contain teacher comments.
•
Students, parents, and teachers
will be involved in evaluating
these presentations.
Grading Policy
Academia uses a formal quarterly reporting system that
communicates student progress in core and non-core
curriculum areas as well as student character development.
Academia’s progress report follows a similar structure as
that of LAUSD’s and is aligned with state standards. The
progress report is reflective of the dual language
curriculum and clearly communicates the student’s academic
development in both the primary language instruction and
in the developing language instruction. Progress reports
involve parent, student, and teacher conferencing that
will occur 1-3 times per year. The Academia Progress
Report will be updated and modified as deemed necessary by
the collective group of Academia teachers and
administrators.
Progress is reported using the following four point metric:
4
Above Standard
3
At Standard
2
Approaching
Standard
Consistently meets the standard. Has
strong knowledge and understanding of
the standard. Uses a wide range and
variety of books, tools, and materials.
Demonstrates originality, initiative,
and independence.
Regularly meets standards. Has
knowledge and understanding of the
subject areas standards. Can draw
information from a variety of sources.
Can utilize problem-solving skills. Has
good working vocabulary in subject
area.
Partially meets standards. Has a
developing knowledge of the standard.
Is developing independence but requires
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1
Below Standard
some teacher guidance. Uses an adequate
vocabulary.
Not meeting the standard. More time,
practice, effort is needed to meet
subject standard. Frequently requires
assistance.
Academia’s curriculum integrated with the implementation
of the International Baccalaureate’s PYP and MYP has
created a comprehensive assessment model that strives to
develop and strengthen students’ natural ability to think
creatively and critically, as well as to give them the
tools necessary to promote a higher order of thinking and
questioning. The implementation of the MYP will further
this rich intellectual pursuit. Assessments are intended
to be an on-going reflection for students, teachers,
parents, and administrators. Through purposeful planning,
teachers generate data analysis reports 2-3 times per year
that are used to continually inform and influence
curricular development, teacher practice and school
pedagogy.
Academia uses a variety of tools to assess and measure
student progress and will incorporate assessment
strategies and policies from the world renowned
International Baccalaureate Primary Year’s Program. The
assessment based student progress will be reported using
Academia’s quarterly progress reports, parent conferences,
student conferences, and teacher created data analysis
reports.
The following formal assessments will take place three times a
year:
Fall & Winter:
•
•
•
•
California Reading and Literature Project (CRLP)
RESULTS test or other state academic content
standards based tests that measures literacy
components 70
Criterion-referenced tests, based on state academic
content standards, of mathematics skills and
concepts (K-8)
Writing samples scored with standards based rubrics
created by grade level teacher teams
California English Language Development Test (CELDT)
as needed
70 Such tests include: phonemic awareness (K-1), decoding and word
recognition (K-3), concepts about print (K-1), reading fluency (K-8) and
reading comprehension (K-8)
………………………………………………
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Spring:
In addition to the aforementioned tests, the following
will also be administered:
STAR Testing, including California Standards Tests &
•
CAT6, the California Alternative Performance
Assessment (CAPA) as needed, the Spanish Assessment
of Basic Education, 2nd edition (SABE/2) as needed
California Writing Assessment (Gr. 4)
•
California Physical Fitness Test (Gr. 5 & 7)
•
CELDT as needed
•
State testing will be verified and updated as
•
necessary
In addition to the tri-annual formal assessments, teachers
will assess students on an on-going basis using Formative
and Summative assessments. Formative assessments are the
on-going measures of growth that immediately informs
classroom instruction. It enables teachers and students
to identify what skills and concepts have been mastered
and which ones need further development. They also
provide a scaffold method of instruction that promotes
student success of the Summative Assessment. The
Summative Assessment typically takes place at the end of a
thematic unit and enables the students to demonstrate the
concepts and skills that have been learned. These
assessments may include any combination of the following:
acquisition of data, synthesis of information, application
of knowledge and processes.
Multiple language development is an integral part of every
student’s academic experience at Academia. In order to
provide a clear and systematic way of documenting and
reporting progress in language development for English and
Spanish, LAUSD’s standards based English Language
Development (ELD) Portfolio’s are used. They are also
used as a foundation for a Spanish Language Development
(SLD) portfolio.
These portfolio’s are updated a minimum of 2-3 times per
year, and aide in determining the appropriate
developmental level for each student. Students are given
the opportunity to provide evidence that shows mastery of
language thus enabling them to move through the 5 levels
of development with the ultimate goal of achieving
proficiency.
Teachers will use all assessment data to generate Data
Analysis Reports that will then be used to guide
instruction and ensure that all students meet school and
………………………………………………
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state standards. After each assessment period, teachers
will come together during professional development
meetings to examine their self-generated Data Analysis
Reports, STAR test results, and other assessment data to
identify goals that will further student achievement. The
analysis of data will shape instruction for individual
students, and it will also guide the school in program
development. Progress towards these goals will be
frequently measured during classroom instruction and by
the aforementioned methods. Instruction will focus on
enhancing the areas of strength and supporting student
achievement in the areas of need. Students will also be
involved in formative self-assessment of their progress,
and they will be guided to reflect on their own approaches
to learning. Teachers will use all assessment data to
develop and refine the school’s curriculum as well as
teaching strategies, instructional materials and texts,
share best practices, and collaborate in planning
curriculum during professional development meetings.
Academia will examine and refine the tools used to assess
student performance over time to reflect the school’s
mission and any changes to state or local standards that
support such mission.
Student Assessment Methods in the IB Middle Years
Program
Teachers create continuous assessment accounting for
specific criteria that correspond to the objectives set
forth for each subject. At the same time, there is also an
emphasis on self-assessment and peer-assessment. Teachers
are responsible for structuring diverse assessment tasks
in order for students to demonstrate their academic
achievement and understanding of the subject explored.
Some of the methods include: open-ended questions,
problem-solving activities and investigations, organized
debates, organized individual or group presentations that
demonstrate analysis and reflection.
The assessments measure both qualitative and quantitative
achievements that provide insight on the process students
took to achieve their final project as well as their
overall mastering of the subject. The Personal Project in
the final year also provides a means of assessment through
which a deeper real life application of the program is
demonstrated. Students are expected to choose their
project, which can take many forms, and take the process
through to completion under the supervision of a teacher
in the school. This involves planning, research, and a
high degree of personal reflection. The Personal Project
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is assessed by teachers against a set of IBO developed
assessment criteria.
Modifications to Methods of Student Assessment
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Element 4 .
Governance
71
72
Establishing an honest, accountable and harmonious
organism of governance for Academia is a fundamental
element of our pedagogy. All integrands in the
teaching/learning dialectic of our school are active
participants. The comprehensive design of our school
reflects a model that allows for the full participation of
working people. Accountability is ensured by every child,
parent, and teacher of the school through town-hall type
gatherings called Asambleas Comunitarias. The Academia
governance design provides for fair and participatory
school governance. We draw from traditional indigenous
forms of social organization in building a collective
responsibility for school governance. Specifically,
Academia governance is modeled after the indigenous
Mexican political form and traditions known as the
Calpulli. Indigenous governance begins with the
principles of serving collective interests, assembling an
informed polity, and honestly administering and executing
collective decisions in practical and effective methods.
The Academia governance model is guided by indigenous
traditions, which emphasize community-based decisionmaking. Academia Charter School is operated by Academia,
an IRS-designated 501 (c) (3) nonprofit organization and
has been chartered as a Local Education Agency (LEA) by
LAUSD since 2002. Academia will be governed by volunteers
that will simultaneously compose the Academia Council of
Trustees. The Academia Council of Trustees have assigned
day-to-day administration of Academia to a principal, who
will be charged with managing academic operations, and an
executive director, who will be charged with managing
nonprofit development operations. Community stakeholders,
such as charter school parents and local elders, engage
charter school administrators through regular dialogue to
advise and provide input in Academia’s decision-making
processes called Community Assemblies.
71
“The governance structure of the school, including, but not
limited to, the process to be followed by the school to ensure
parental involvement” Ed. Code § 47605 (b)(5)(D)
72
Governing Law: The governance structure of the school, including, but
not limited to, the process to be followed by the school to ensure parental
involvement. - California Education Code Section 47605(b)(5)(D)
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A. Key Elements of ASDP Charter School
Governance
The Council of Trustees has fiduciary and policy oversight
responsibilities for the non-profit organization and
charter school.
Council of Trustees Composition
The Council of Trustees will consist of no less than five
nor more than nine voting members, which include charter
school founders, community stakeholders, and charter
school parents. The voting members may be joined by a
non-voting member who is a district representative.
Council of Trustees Powers & Duties
The Council of Trustees, including the LAUSD
representative, is charged with executing the mission and
vision of Academia, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization, as
well as adhering to its Articles of Incorporation and
bylaws, and charter, which deems Academia a Local
Education Agency (LEA)73.
It shall be the duty of the Council of Trustees to:
Assume the responsibilities assigned to them
•
collectively or individually by law, by the nonprofit Articles of Incorporation, and this charter.
Consider proposals and initiatives generated by
•
community stakeholders in general, and Academia
parents and children in particular.
Term of Office
Each member of the Council of Trustees is elected to a
term of two years, which begins July 1 and ends June 30 of
the second year. There is no limit as to the number of
terms each member of the Council of Trustees can serve
over a lifetime. Terms shall be scaled so that no more
than 30% of the Council of Trustees seats are vacant on
any given year.
Elections
Council of Trustees members are elected through the
process of Consensus of the voting members at the annual
meeting of the Council of Trustees for elections. New
73
See Addenda for Articles of Incorporation and bylaws.
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candidates must be nominated by active members of the
Council of Trustees prior to being considered for
election. If consensus cannot be reached, the candidates
with highest vote will be elected to the Council of
Trustees.
The nomination of candidates for new members of the
Council of Trustees shall be announced at least one month
prior to the election. The elections of Council of
Trustees members shall be held during the Council of
Trustees monthly meeting held in June. Council of
Trustees members shall be elected during the June meeting.
Voting by proxy shall be accepted by mail, e-mail or fax
prior to the election meeting. At the end of the election
meeting, the election results will be finalized. Newly
elected Council of Trustees members must be ready to
assume their powers and duties by July 1 of the same year.
Each candidate must be nominated for consideration by a
voting member of the Council of Trustees.
Meetings of the Council of Trustees
Meetings of the Council of Trustees are held at least once
per month. These meetings shall be held each month at an
Academia, unless otherwise indicated during the previous
month’s meeting. Each Council of Trustees meeting notice
is posted in plain sight at the Academia main office in
English and Spanish no less than two weeks in advance of
each meeting. Each Council of Trustees meeting agenda is
provided in hardcopy format upon request. Actions that
are taken during monthly Council of Trustees meetings are
recorded, and are also available in hardcopy format upon
request.
Quorum of the Council of Trustees
A quorum shall consist of a majority of Council of
Trustees members, one of whom must be the chair or vice
chair. The Council of Trustees members present at a duly
called and held meeting at which a quorum is initially
present, and subsequently lost, may not continue to do
business. The meeting shall be adjourned prior to the
loss of quorum and any unfinished business shall be
postponed to the following meeting.
Majority Action
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Every act or decision done or made by a majority of the
Council of Trustees members present at a meeting duly held
at which a quorum is present is the act of the Council of
Trustees. A majority vote is defined as fifty present of
Council of Trustees members present plus one (50% + 1).
Officers of the Council of Trustees
A majority of Council of Trustees members shall elect
officers during the July monthly meeting. The Council of
Trustees shall elect a chair, vice chair, secretary and
treasurer.
Council of Trustees Members
Please see attachments for each Council of Trustees
member’s resume and questionnaire responses. The
following list Council of Trustees members currently
serving a term from July 1, 2006 to June 30, 2007:
Dr. Juan Gomez-Quiñones, Chair
•
Salomon Zavala, Esq., Vice Chair
•
Marcos Aguilar, Secretary
•
Minnie Ferguson, Treasurer
•
Dr. Irene Vasquez, Member at Large
•
Sandee Ayala, Member at Large
•
Edmundo Perez, Member at Large
•
Julio Martinez, Member at Large
•
Erica Villarreal, Member at Large
•
Academia Administration
The Council of Trustees assigns day-to-day administration
of Academia to a principal, who will be charged with
managing academic operations, and an executive director,
who will be charged with managing non-profit development
operations. The principal and executive director manage
charter school staff and other personnel using policies
approved by the Council of Trustees.
Both charter school officials work along side community
stakeholders, and in particular, with Academia’s students,
parents, and other staff members to administer day-to-day
operations.
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CHART OF ORGANIZATION
Page 122
COUNCIL OF TRUSTEES
Marcos Aguilar
Executive Director
Development Specialist
Minnie Ferguson
Principal
Senior Administrative Asst.
Business Manager
IB Program Coordinator
Educational Consultants
Office Manager
Administrative Support Staff
Food Services Mgr.
Plant Manager
Food Services Staff
Operations Staff
Literacy Coach
RSP Teacher
Paraeducators
Volunteers
Community Assembly
Community Based School
Model
The Community Assembly is the regular and scheduled
meeting of all community stakeholders, a process by which
………………………………………………
Lead Teachers
LEARNING CADRES
Parents & Teacher
community members learn of important issues and dialogue
in order to reach decisions and generate proposals to the
Council of Trustees. The Assembly will meet at least four
times each calendar year. The purpose of assemblies is to
actively organize community dialogues and consciously plan
governance training for parents and staff. This dual
purpose of the assemblies – dialogue and trainings –
ensures accountability across all sectors of Academia.
Moreover, quarterly reports on fiscal and student progress
will be prepared by Academia administration (e.g.,
principal and executive director) to present to the
assemblies.
The teaching faculty will be represented in
the Assembly by a committee, which is charged with making
curricular recommendations and generating proposals for
the Council of Trustees.
B. Legal Status-Independent Charter
Academia, a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit organization and a Local
Education Agency (LEA) public school, will comply with all
applicable federal, state, and local laws. Academia is an
independent charter school that has all appropriate and
necessary liability insurance for non-profit organizations
and charter schools.
C. Insurance requirements
No coverage shall be provided to Academia by the District
under any of the District’s self-insured programs or
commercial insurance policies. Academia shall secure and
maintain, as a minimum, insurance as set forth below with
insurance companies acceptable to the District [A.M. Best
A-, VII or better] to protect Academia from claims which
may arise from its operations. The following insurance
policies are required:
1.
2.
Workers’ Compensation Insurance in accordance with
provisions of the California Labor Code, adequate to
protect Academia from claims under Workers’
Compensation Acts which may arise from its operations,
including Employers Liability limits of
$1,000,000/$1,000,000/$1,000,000.
Commercial General Liability coverage of not less than
$5,000,000 for each occurrence. The policy shall be
endorsed to name the Los Angeles Unified School
District and the Board of Education of the City of Los
Angeles as additional insurers and shall provide
specifically that any insurance carried by the
District which may be applicable to any claims or loss
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3.
4.
5.
6.
shall be deemed excess and Academia’s insurance
primary despite any conflicting provisions in
Academia’s policy. Coverage shall be maintained with
no self-insured retention above $25,000 without
approval of the LAUSD.
Commercial Auto Liability coverage with limits of
$1,000,000 combined single limit unless Academia
operates student bus services; if providing student
bus services coverage limits not less than $5,000,000
combined single limit shall be required.
Fidelity Bond coverage shall be maintained by Academia
to cover all charter school employees who handle,
process, or otherwise have responsibility for charter
school funds, supplies, equipment or other assets.
Minimum amount of coverage shall be $50,000 per
occurrence, with no self-insured retention.
Professional Educators Errors and Omissions liability
coverage including sexual molestation and abuse
coverage [if that coverage is not afforded elsewhere
in the Commercial General Liability policy by
endorsement or by separate policy] with minimum limits
of $3,000,000 per occurrence.
Excess/umbrella insurance with limits of not less than
$10,000,000 required of all high schools and any
school which participates in competitive
interscholastic or intramural sports programs.
Evidence of Insurance
Academia shall furnish to the District’s Office of Risk
Management and Insurance Services within 30 days of all new
policies inceptions, renewals or changes, certificates or such
insurance signed by authorized representatives of the insurance
carrier. Certificates shall be endorsed as follows:
The insurance afforded by this policy shall
cancelled, reduced in coverage or limits or
after thirty (30) days prior written notice
return receipt requested, has been given to
not be suspended,
non-renewed except
by certified mail,
the District.
Facsimile or reproduced signatures may be acceptable, however,
the District reserves the right to require complete certified
copies of the required insurance policies.
Should Academia deem it prudent and/or desirable to have
insurance coverage for damage or theft to school, employee or
student property, for student accident, or any other type of
insurance coverage not listed above, such insurance shall not be
provided by the District and its purchase shall be the
responsibility of Academia.
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D. Hold Harmless/Indemnification
Provision
To the fullest extent permitted by law, Academia does hereby
agree, at its own expense, to indemnify, defend and hold
harmless the LAUSD and the Board of Education and their members,
officers, directors, agents, representatives, employees and
volunteers from and against any and all claims, damages, losses
and expenses including but not limited to attorney’s fees,
brought by any person or entity whatsoever, arising out of, or
relating to this charter agreement. Academia further agrees to
the fullest extent permitted by law, at its own expense, to
indemnify, defend, and hold harmless the LAUSD and the Board of
Education and their members, officers, directors, agents,
representatives, employees and volunteers from and against any
and all claims, damages, losses and expenses including but no
limited to attorney’s fees, brought by any person or entity
whatsoever for claims, damages, losses and expenses arising from
or relating to acts or omission of acts committed by Academia,
and their officers, directors, employees or volunteers.
In addition, to the fullest extent permitted by law, LAUSD does
also hereby agree, at its own expense, to indemnify, defend and
hold harmless Academia and the Council of Trustees and their
members, officers, directors, agents, representatives, employees
and volunteers from and against any and all claims, damages,
losses and expenses including but not limited to attorney’s
fees, brought by any person or entity whatsoever, arising out
of, or relating to this charter agreement. LAUSD further agrees
to the fullest extent permitted by law, at its own expense, to
indemnify, defend, and hold harmless Academia and the Council of
Trustees and their members, officers, directors, agents,
representatives, employees and volunteers from and against any
and all claims, damages, losses and expenses including but no
limited to attorney’s fees, brought by any person or entity
whatsoever for claims, damages, losses and expenses arising from
or relating to acts or omission of acts committed by the LAUSD,
and their officers, directors, employees or volunteers.
E. Title I / State Compensatory
Education
If Academia chooses to apply for Title I funding, it will
establish a compensatory education advisory committee (CEAC)
that complies with state Education Code. Currently the Council
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of Trustees carries the role of CEAC as well for purposes of
Title I Accountability.
Modifications to Governance
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Element 5.
Employee
Qualifications
Page 127
74
A. Highly Qualified Teacher
Academia teaching staff must hold a Bachelors Degree from
a degree granting institution, and a valid authorization
from the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing
(“CCTC”) to serve as a California Credentialed teacher.
All core subject teachers are also required to hold a CLAD
certificate and prove Spanish language competence or a
BCLAD which includes proof of Spanish language competence.
All teachers shall also meet the highly qualified
requirements of the NCLB Accordingly, a teacher of core
academic subjects must have:
1. a bachelor’s degree;
2. a State credential or have an Intern
Certificate/Credential for no more than three years
while actively working toward completion of their
State credential, and
3. demonstrated core academic subject matter
competence.
Demonstrating core academic subject competence for
elementary grades is done through CCTC’s approved subject
matter examination or by completing the California High
Objective Uniform State Standard of Education (“HOUSSE”)
depending upon the teacher’s experience level.
Middle school teachers teaching in multiple subjects are
subject to the same requirements.
Middle school teachers
in specific subject matter areas are held to the
Middle/High school requirements of the NCLB. In order to
demonstrate core academic subject matter competence, a
Middle school teacher must:
1. Pass a CCTC approved subject matter examination
74
Governing Law: The qualifications to be met by individuals to be
employed by the School -- California Education Code Section 47605(b)(5)(E)
………………………………………………
2. Complete a coursework option such as:
> a CCTC approved subject matter program
> a major
> a major equivalent (32 semester units), or
> possess a graduate degree in the core academic
subject area
3. California Commission on Teacher Credentialing
(CCTC) certification in the core academic subject
taught or
4. Complete the HOUSSE (depending on length of
experience)
Copies of all teacher credentials will be kept on file and
available for the LAUSD’s inspection upon request.
Teachers of special education students are required to
have appropriate special education credentials and/or
licenses.
In addition, core teachers must be bilingual in English
and Spanish, agree with the Mission and Vision of Academia
as set forth in this Charter. These teachers will
instruct the core academic classes of mathematics,
language arts, science, and history/social studies. These
teachers will be responsible for overseeing the students’
academic progress and for monitoring grading and
matriculation decisions as specified in the school’s
operational policies.
Academia will not discriminate against any employee on the
basis of race, color, creed, age, sex, national origin,
disability, or marital status.
Academia will adhere to the existing state of California
laws regarding fingerprinting and drug testing of
employees. Academia staff will adhere to school policy
pertaining to the safety and health of all employees and
students. The staff will participate as mandated or nonmandated child abuse reporters.
B. Non-core teacher policy
All employees must furnish or be able to provide:
•
Medical clearance including proof of medical exam
and tuberculosis (TB) testing
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•
•
•
Fingerprinting and the service fee to the Department
of Justice for criminal record check. Applicants
will be required to provide a full disclosure
statement regarding prior criminal record.
Documents establishing legal status.
Qualifications and demonstration of skills or
abilities to be rendered.
C. Process for Staff Recruitment,
Selection, and Evaluation
Academia will select its own staff. Job applicants for
positions at Academia will be considered through an open
process, and if hired, will enter into a contractual
agreement with the school. Prior to the hiring of the
principals, acting Council of Trustees will be responsible
for the selection of certificated and classified staff
members. Once the principals are hired, they will be
responsible for the selection of certificated and
classified staff. Unless the employees elect to be
represented by an organization for bargaining purposes,
all employees will be individually contracted rating in at
a level competitive to the district's salary schedules.
The individual contract will address, among other issues,
salary, health and welfare benefits, work schedules and
responsibilities, accountability measurements, and
standards for performance evaluations. Employee contracts
are year-to-year, renewable each July 1.
D. Procedures for Background Checks
Academia will comply with the provisions of Education Code
Section 44237 and 45125.1 regarding the fingerprinting and
background clearance of employees, contractors and
volunteers prior to employment, volunteering, or contract
services or any unsupervised contact with pupils of
Academia. The Director or designee shall review Department
of Justice reports on prospective employees, contractors
and volunteers to determine whether an employee may be
employed in accordance with Education Code Section 44237
or 45125.1, except with respect to her or himself, in
which case the President of the Board will review. The
Director or designee shall monitor compliance with this
policy and report to the Board of Directors on a quarterly
basis.
E. Key Positions
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Executive Director
1. Job Purpose
Serves as the organization’s Chief Executive Officer;
provides educational and management leadership in
developing and implementing Academia’s goals, priorities,
guiding principles, standards and accountabilities, and
educational reform to ensure student achievement to high
standards of excellence.
2. Responsible to Council of Trustees
3. Subordinates Executive/senior management personnel and
other staff, as designated
4. Functions
Focuses Academia priorities on improving the academic
achievement for all students to high standards of
excellence by providing leadership and support in:
Identifying and implementing Academia standards for
•
student achievement and ways of measuring the
progress of schools and students.
Expanding the implementation of educational
•
principles and efforts such as those embodied in the
charter of Academia
Ensuring effective use and equitable allocation of
•
and accountability for money and other resources.
Ensuring student safety, enhancing inter-group
•
relations, and fostering the value of diversity.
Fostering increased parent involvement in student
•
learning and achievement.
Developing and implementing a delivery system to
•
provide coordinated services addressing student
health, emotional, and social needs.
Implementing performance benchmarks/accountabilities
•
for executive/senior management, school-site
administrators, and central office employees.
Establishes policies and procedures that will
•
attract, promote, and retain high caliber employees,
provide for fair and equitable working conditions,
and facilitate employee productivity, welfare, and
morale.
Promotes effective communication and builds
•
strategic partnerships among diverse constituencies
to achieve a common vision of and to meet District
goals.
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•
•
•
•
•
•
Oversees addresses and resolves facility
maintenance, renovation, and construction needs.
Plans, develops, and administers an organization
that provides for appropriate delegation of
responsibility and authority, optimum span of
control, and effective channels of communication.
Promotes a program of effective advocacy with
legislative bodies, and effective response,
consistent with Academia goals and priorities, to
court and legislative mandates.
Informs and advises the Council of Trustees
regarding Academia educational programs and
services.
Advises and makes recommendations to the Council of
Trustees about employer- employee relations and
collective bargaining activities.
Performs other duties as assigned by the Council of
Trustees.
5. Qualifications
Education Required
•
•
•
An earned master’s degree or advanced degree of at
least equivalent standard from an accredited college
or university.
At least two semester units of specific and two
semester units of general coursework in
multicultural education or equivalent study.
At least two semester units each (six semester units
total), or the equivalent, of coursework in culture,
language, and methodology.
Experience Required
•
•
•
•
At least five school years of successful full-time
service in a certificated position(s).
Knowledge. Skills. Abilities, and Personal
Characteristics
Ability to provide educational and administrative
leadership at the executive level and to perform
complex administrative functions in a large
organizational setting.
Ability to deal effectively with and be responsive
to stakeholders who are representative of many and
varied points of view; ability to establish and
maintain effective public communication/relations
and community rapport with a diverse population.
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•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Ability to comprehend and apply educational theory
and practice (including educational reform
principles), California laws and regulations
relating to education, school finance, and related
school procedures to the administration of a major
school system and to perform successfully as its
chief executive officer.
Knowledge of the unique issues and challenges facing
urban public schools.
Personal characteristics necessary to work
constructively and effectively with the elected
Council of Trustees and all stakeholders: qualities
of integrity, good character, and judgment.
Ability to make formal, public presentations.
Ability to communicate effectively with stakeholders
both individually and as a group. (Ability to
communicate in a language other than English is
desirable).
Ability to compose and comprehend written
communication on complex issues.
Ability to cope effectively with crisis situations.
Ability to render immediate decisions on urgent
issues and to cope with a high volume of complex
projects.
6. Health
Physical and mental fitness to engage in executive
management service.
7. Credentials
A Preliminary California General Administration
Credential, Standard Administration Credential, or Service
Credential with specialization in administrative services
preferable.
Principal
1. Typical duties:
•
•
•
•
•
Serve as ex-officio member of the Council of
Trustees
Have the responsibility of hiring and firing (with
cause) all other employees according to the mission,
philosophy, and obligations of the school as spelled
out in the Charter.
Oversee the day-to-day operations of the school.
Oversee the instructional program.
Provide opportunities for professional growth.
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•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Facilitate communication among staff, parents, and
community.
Assist with student discipline.
Assist with scheduling when necessary.
Report to the Council of Trustees on the progress of
the school in achieving educational Success.
Abide by the School Regulation developed by the
principal and the Board.
Monitor processing of credentials when required.
Commit to Academia’s mission and vision.
School Business Manager
1. Typical Duties:
Plans, coordinates and provides general supervision over
non-instructional related activities such as:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
School site budgetary development, monitoring and
implementation
Financial activities related to the school budget,
payroll and student body activities
Food services functions
Purchasing, inventory, receiving functions and the
distribution of supplies and materials
Plant management and maintenance of buildings,
grounds and equipment
Sets priorities for subordinate supervisors
reviews and inspects school facilities and business
operations to determine the need for possible change
or improvement
Develops classified personnel policies and
procedures with the school site and assures that
personnel programs and transactions conform to
District collective bargaining and Personnel
Commission policies and requirements.
Communicates with community, parent, and union
representatives, employees and District
administrators and staff regarding business-related
functions of the school.
Interprets laws, regulations, district rules and
policies and communications.
Prepares reports related to the areas of
responsibility assigned to the position
Presents written and oral reports to school staff
concerning overall non-instructional program
Performs related duties as assigned.
2. Supervision
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The Business Manager receives administrative direction
from the Chief Financial Officer and, through the Deputy
Business Manager, provides administrative direction to
branch directors and the staff of the Business Manager's
Office.
3. Class Qualifications
Knowledge of:
Administrative organization of the Los Angeles
•
Unified School District
Legal bases and sources of finances of California
•
public education
Basic principles of school business administration,
•
budget preparation, contract law, public purchasing,
research, cost analysis, accounting, and meritsystem personnel administration
Collective bargaining law and labor agreements in
•
the District
Basic concepts and applications of electronic data
•
processing
Principles of training, employee evaluation,
•
employee relations, and progressive discipline
Principles of public relations
•
Ability to:
Administer heterogeneous activities through
•
subordinate managers
Analyze and evaluate the effectiveness of plans,
•
policies, programs, and organizations
Explain policies and goals and delegate their
•
implementation
Analyze and evaluate the analysis of data on a wide
•
variety of matters
Make and review decisions objectively
•
Speak effectively before a variety of groups
•
Remain calm under stress
•
4. ENTRANCE QUALIFICATIONS
Education:
The ideal candidate will have graduated from a recognized
college or university, preferably with a major in business
or public administration, school business administration,
or a related field.
Experience:
For Business Manager, four years, or for Deputy Business
………………………………………………
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Manager three years of executive or administrative
experience in the Los Angeles Unified School District or
in a public or private organization that included multiple
business functions. Experience is required in a variety of
the following areas: accounting; budgeting; contract
administration; data processing; food services; personnel
administration; procurement of materiel; transportation;
and warehousing.
Experience in presenting reports in public meetings of a
governing board, such as a board of education, commission,
or board of directors is desirable.
Special:
A valid California Driver License.
•
Use of an automobile.
•
The class description is not a complete statement of
essential functions, responsibilities or requirements.
Requirements are representative of the minimal level of
knowledge, skill and/or abilities. Management retains the
discretion to add or change typical duties of a position
at any time.
Modifications
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Element 6.
Health and Safety
Procedures
75
A. Health and Safety Policies
Academia has adopted and implemented a comprehensive set
of health, safety, and risk management policies that were
developed in consultation with our school insurance
carriers and our attorneys.
We are committed to providing a safe, nurturing, healthy,
and protective atmosphere in which every member of the
community will grow and prosper. Academia will ensure the
safety of the students and staff by complying with the
current LAUSD independent charter school standards and
policies for health and safety as well as all state and
federal laws, including Education Code Section 44237.
Each new employee or non-parent volunteer who will work in
contact with students must submit to a fingerprint scan
for the purpose of obtaining a criminal record summary.
This requirement is a condition of employment. Also,
employees hired by Academia will be required to have a
Mantoux tuberculosis test.
The school health and safety policy will be annually
updated and reviewed, in consultation with staff and the
specified Sub-Committee. This policy will be distributed
to all staff and parents. The policy will cover the
following points:
A requirement that each employee of the school
•
submit to a criminal background check and furnish a
criminal record summary as required by California
Education Code section 44237
safe use, maintenance, and sanitation of school
•
equipment and facilities
emergency drill procedures and schedule (earthquake,
•
fire and other)
A policy for reporting child abuse, acts of
75
Governing Law: The procedures that the school will follow to ensure the
health and safety of pupils and staff. These procedures shall include the
requirement that each employee of the school furnish the school record
summary as described in Section 44237. -- California Education Code Section
47605(b)(5)(F)
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•
•
•
•
violence, and other improprieties as mandated by
federal, state, and local agencies
Compliance with all health and safety laws and
regulations that apply to non-charter public
schools, including those regarding auxiliary
services (food services, transportation, custodial
services, hazardous materials, etc.) and those
required by CAL/OSHA, the California Health and
Safety Code, and EPA.
emergency site plan
health screening procedure (vision, hearing and
scoliosis)
A requirement that all enrolling students and staff
provide records documenting immunizations to the
extent required by law. Records of student
immunizations will be maintained, and staff will
honor County requirements for periodic Tuberculosis
(TB) tests.
procedures expected of staff and parents in the case
of a sudden illness or injury occurring at school
procedures for administration of medication at
school
suggestions for families as to good nutrition for
their children
explanation of the necessity of physical education
for the child's health
legal obligation of reporting contagious conditions
prevention of drug, tobacco and alcohol use,
violence, and early sexual activity
B. Facility Safety
Fire Drills
Fire drills will be held at least twice a semester.
Office personnel will maintain a record of fire drills
held and total required time for complete evacuation.
When the fire drill signal sounds, teachers will lead the
students in their room along the route indicated on the
evacuation map posted for that purpose. Before leaving
the room, teachers will see that all windows and doors are
closed and that they have their class attendance roster
with them. Students who are not in a classroom at the
time the fire drill signal is given will attach themselves
to the nearest teacher exiting the building for purposes
of getting to the designated evacuation site.
Once at the designated evacuation site, teachers and other
staff will ensure that all students find their respective
teachers. Teachers will then take roll to ensure that all
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students are accounted for. The names of any missing
students will be given to the office personnel and the
administrative staff will attempt to locate missing
students. Students will remain with their teachers at the
designated evacuation site until the administrative staff
gives the “all clear” signal.
Disaster Drills (i.e. Earthquake)
Disaster drills will be conducted at least twice a year.
Students will be made familiar with the “duck and cover”
routine. A disaster drill commencing with the “duck and
cover” routine will be initiated by an announcement.
Staff and students will hear “This is an emergency drill.
Duck and cover.” During the “duck and cover” routine in
the classroom, teachers will turn off the lights and have
students get under a desk or table or against the wall
away from the windows. Students must remain quiet and
orderly so they will be able to hear additional
instructions when given. All drills will be concluded
with an “all clear” announcement, or a visible signal from
the administrative staff.
In the event of a real earthquake, everyone must engage in
the “duck and cover” routine immediately and remain in
position until the teacher determines that it is safe to
leave the building. If remaining in the room becomes
dangerous, or when the shaking stops, teachers will
proceed with their students to the evacuation site or
another safety zone. If students are on the playground or
other outdoor area when a disaster drill is called or
during an actual earthquake, students are to drop
immediately to the ground, away from trees and power
lines, and cover their heads with their hands. They are
to remain in that position until given additional
instructions.
In the event of disasters other than earthquakes, the
administrative staff will contact each room, advise staff
of potential dangers, and give further directions or
orders. Teachers and students will remain in their
classrooms until instructions are received for an all
clear or an evacuation. If there has been a chemical
spill, the teacher must make sure that all doors, windows,
and vents remain closed. The school site maintenance
staff will turn off the gas. All unassigned staff will
report to the office for assignments such as searching
offices, bathrooms, and all other common areas, including
outdoor facilities.
Teachers will stay with their classes for the duration of
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the emergency. In the event of an earthquake or other
national disaster, all school employees are immediately
designated “Civil Defense Workers” and are not allowed to
leave school until they are given official clearance to do
so by the administrative staff.
Bomb Threats
The person receiving the call or letter will note the time
of day, wording of the message, background noises, and
quality of the voice to try to determine if it is a young
child or an adult. This person will delay the caller as
long as possible, while they alert another adult to the
crisis. That adult will immediately notify the telephone
company to trace the call and immediately thereafter,
notify the police using 911.
Based on the information at hand, the administrative staff
will make a decision whether an immediate evacuation is
warranted. If so, the evacuation code word “safe school
drill” will be given and evacuation procedures will be
followed. The office personnel will coordinate information
requests to and/or from law enforcement, the telephone
company, and parents.
If an immediate evacuation is not warranted, the
administrative staff will notify teachers to inspect their
room for any suspicious materials or unknown packages,
without alarming students. All unassigned staff will
report to the office for assignments such as searching
offices, bathrooms, and all other common areas, including
outdoor facilities.
Evacuation Plan
A disaster of a significant nature may require the
evacuation of the school. Immediately upon notification
by outside authorities that the school must be evacuated,
the administrative staff will verify the name and position
of the person placing the alert. Once the source is
confirmed, the administrative staff will give the
evacuation code word “safe school drill”. Teachers will
proceed with their students to the nearest school exit.
Before leaving the room, teachers will make sure they have
their class attendance roster with them. Students who are
not in a classroom at the time the intercom signal is
given will attach themselves to the nearest teacher
exiting the building for purposes of getting to the
designated evacuation site.
Prior to evacuation, offices, bathrooms, and all other
common areas, (including outdoor facilities) will be
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searched by unassigned staff members designated by the
principal.
Once at the designated evacuation site, teachers and other
staff will ensure that all students find their respective
teachers. Teachers will then take roll to ensure that all
students are accounted for. The names of any missing
students will be given to the office personnel and an
individual will be assigned the task of finding any
missing students. Teachers will work together to take
care of students with injuries, respiratory problems, or
other medical conditions.
Teachers will stay with their classes for the duration of
the emergency. In the event of an evacuation, all school
employees are immediately designated “Civil Defense
Workers” and are not allowed to leave school until they
are given official clearance to do so by the
administrative staff.
Students will remain with their teachers at the designated
evacuation site until the administrative staff gives the
“all clear” signal. In the event students cannot return
to the school site, the administrative staff will notify
parents and/or the media as to where students can be
picked up. The office personnel will sign out students as
they are being picked up by a parent or other adult listed
on the emergency information card.
C. School Site
Academia is comprised of two campuses. The main campus is
located at 4736 Huntington Drive South. The second campus
is located at 4990 Huntington Dr. in Los Angeles (Los
Angeles City Council District 14. Originally built in
1954 as a Masonic Hall, the Academia facilities comprise
10,000 square feet of well lighted and appropriately
located building space. The school will be housed in
facilities that have received state Fire Marshal approval
and comply with state building codes, the federal ADA
accessibility requirements, and other fire, health,
structural safety requirements. A qualified structural
engineer will evaluate all school facilities for seismic
safety. Academia will maintain on file readily accessible
records documenting such compliance.
D. Traveling Students
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Traveling students have an option to choose to attend
Academia within the same criteria as all other students in
LAUSD and the state of California. Academia will not
provide transportation at this time. Other than to provide
the option to attend a school within their community, the
attendance policy will have no impact on traveling
students who choose to attend Academia.
E. Site Compliance
Academia will comply with the Uniform Building Codes,
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), access
requirements, and fire, health and structural safety
requirements. The Certificate of Occupancy and other
pertinent records will be kept on file by Academia.
A District-approved site for Academia must be fully usable
without conditions. The Academia facility for students and
staff shall comply with all building code standards and
regulations adopted by the city and/or county agencies
responsible for building safety standards of the city
and/or county in which Academia is located. These code
requirements shall also apply to the construction,
reconstruction, alteration of or addition to any charter
school building. In the event Academia is cited by any
agency, e.g., Cal OSHA or the Fire Marshal, for failure to
comply with regulations, the District’s Charter Office
will be notified immediately.
The District will be provided a Certificate of Occupancy,
allowing Academia to use and occupy the site 45 days prior
to the date the school is scheduled to open. A temporary
certificate of occupancy will be acceptable as long as
there is a plan to complete the work to obtain the final
Certificate of Occupancy.
As needed, Academia will contract out with private
companies to provide the following services as needed:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Routine Maintenance
Building Equipment Operations (e.g., air filter
changes)
Major or Deferred Maintenance
Alterations and Improvements
Custodial Services
Gardening
Landscaping
Tree Trimming
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•
•
Pest Management (including methods Academia will use
to comply with the Healthy Schools Act)
Utilities
F. Asbestos Management
The Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act (AHERA) 40 CFR
part 763 requires that any building leased or acquired
that is to be used as a school or administrative building
be initially inspected for asbestos-containing materials
by an accredited inspector. Additionally, Academia will
comply with all other AHERA requirements, such as
performing re-inspections and maintaining an asbestos
management plan.
Modifications
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Element 7.
Racial and Ethnic
Balance
76
Academia has established a student recruitment strategy
that strives to ensure a racial and ethnic balance among
students that is reflective of the community and district.
The timeline for the school recruitment process allows for
broad-based recruiting and application.
Promotional and informational materials have been
developed to appeal to racial and ethnic groups
represented in the district. Academia’s promotional and
informational materials are published in languages other
than English including Spanish and Nahuatl, to ensure
interest among limited English proficient populations.
Furthermore, these materials will continue to be
distributed among a variety of community groups. In 2002,
promotional flyers were mailed via U.S. post to all
residents in the 90032 zip code. Subsequently, flyers have
been distributed on a monthly basis in community events
throughout the East Los Angeles area.
Court-Ordered Integration Funding
The Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) does not
guarantee availability of court-ordered Integration
funding. LAUSD does not receive Average Daily Attendance
(ADA) for charter schools, and therefore, does not receive
court-ordered Integration fund reimbursement for students.
The charter will comply with and maintain the District’s
court-ordered Integration policy set forth in Crawford vs.
Board of Education, City of Los Angeles. The policy
applies to all schools within or schools chartered through
LAUSD.
Academia shall submit the ethnic survey information
annually both Budget Services and Financial Planning
76
Governing Law:
The means by which the school will achieve racial and
ethnic balance among its pupils that is reflective of the general
population residing within the territorial jurisdiction of the school
district to which the charter petition is submitted—California Education
Code Section 47605 (b)(5)(G)
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Division and the Office of Student Integration Services
will use the information listed below for compliance:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Norm Day Classification
Total School Enrollment
Number of Students by Grade Levels
Number of Students by Ethnicities and Grade Levels
List of Register-Carrying Teachers in Classrooms
List of All Certificated Personnel (Show the cost of
any teachers funded by court-ordered Integration.)
List of Emergency Credentialed Teachers
Unfilled Classroom Teacher Positions
Fiscal Year-End Financial Report
Number of Students Living Outside LAUSD Attendance
Area
The charter will provide to LAUSD all requested
information, including the ethnic survey. Any
modification to the court-ordered Integration Program must
first be approved by the Office of Student Integration
Services in the Specially Funded & Parent/Community
Programs Division of LAUSD.
Modifications
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Element 8.
Admission
Requirements
Page 145
77
Academia will not discriminate against any student on the
basis of ethnicity, race, color, age, gender, national
origin, sexual orientation, or disability. In accordance
with Education Code Section 47605(d), Academia is
committed to admitting all pupils who wish to attend the
school subject only to capacity. The school will adhere to
entrance and enrollment age requirements set by the
District. Academia will be non-sectarian and nondiscriminatory in all its programs, admission policies,
employment practices, and all other areas of operation and
will not charge tuition.
Academia actively recruits students from the district and
surrounding communities. Academia educates the community
regarding the school’s mission and operational pedagogies
in order for parents to make an informed decision about
applying for admission. Particularly, parents must agree
that their child(ren) will participate in the DUAL
LANGUAGE PROGRAM. Further, parents must agree in written
form that a goal of the Dual Language Program is for
students to become academically bilingual and bi-literate
Spanish and English and that this program requires a longterm commitment of participation of 5-7 years.
A. Non-Discrimination:
1. Academia will not discriminate against any student
on the basis of ethnicity, national origin, gender
or disability.
2. Academia will establish a student recruitment
strategy that ensures a racial and ethnic balance
among students that is reflective of the community
and district {CSA Sec. 47605(G)}.
3. Admission policies will be nondiscriminatory, nonsectarian, and open to any resident of the State of
California.
77
Governing Law: Admission requirements, if applicable. California
Education Code Section 47605 (b) (5) (H)
………………………………………………
B. Admission & Public Drawing:
Page 146
1. Children of founding parents will be given priority
in admission although these will constitute a small
percentage of total student enrollment.
2. Children of employees of the School and siblings of
enrolled students will also be given priority in
admission.
3. Children considered educationally disadvantaged by
the State of California because of their public
school of attendance will also be granted priority
in enrollment.
4. In the event the School is enrolled to capacity, a
public drawing will be used to determine enrollees
only for vacancies which exist before the time and
date of the public drawing.
5. The parents of all interested enrollees must attend
and complete a School Orientation to be held
immediately before the public drawing in order to
participate in the drawing.
6. All enrollees must complete all enrollment
requirements at the time of the drawing in order to
enroll. Failure to do so will result in a
forfeiture of enrollment, and the next Publicly
Drawn Candidate will be enrolled.
C. Publicly Drawn Candidates List:
1. At times, Academia may choose to create a list of
Publicly Drawn Candidates.
2. All participants who satisfactorily comply with
school orientation requirements and who participate
in a public drawing will be drawn so as to create a
randomly drawn list of Publicly Drawn Candidates in
the event that new enrollees drop or fail to comply
with enrollment requirements.
3. The list of Publicly Drawn Candidates will only
serve to fill enrollment slots available before the
time and date of the public drawing.
4. Academia will notify Publicly Drawn Candidates in
the order of their drawing.
Notification
1. The parents of Publicly Drawn Candidates will be
contacted by phone and assigned an appointment time
and date to complete the enrollment process.
………………………………………………
2. Parents will be required to bring an original birth
certificate, proof of residence, and proof of
vaccinations.
3. Parents will also complete a lunch application and
all legal releases required by the school.
4. Our school will call the parent/guardian twice and
expect a response by the following day.
5. If the parent/guardian fails to respond to our calls
by the third day, we will drop that student from the
list.
6. Parents/guardians will have thirty calendar days
from their enrollment appointment to submit any
required physical exam forms.
7. Any future vacancies will require a new parent
orientation and lottery.
8. Academia will give one-week notice of the vacancy on
the bulletin board in the main hall. Specific date,
time and location will be posted.
9. Academia may provide one courtesy call to any parent
who may have expressed an interest in enrolling
their child in the school.
Applications will be accepted during a publicly advertised
open enrollment period each Spring for enrollment in the
following school year. Following the open enrollment
period each year applications shall be counted to
determine whether any grade level has received more
applications than availability. In the event that this
happens, the school will hold a public random drawing to
determine enrollment for the impacted grade level, with
the exception of existing students who are guaranteed
enrollment in the following school year.
Enrollment preferences in the case of a public random
drawing shall be allowed in the following order:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Children of Academia’s founding members;
Children of employees of Academia;
Siblings of currently enrolled students;
All other applicants
Admission policies will be nondiscriminatory, nonsectarian, and open to any resident of the State of
California.
There will be no charge for tuition nor will
any child be required to attend our charter school.
Academia will not enroll pupils over 19 years of age
unless continuously enrolled in public school and making
satisfactory progress toward high school diploma
requirements.
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Parents and students will be oriented regarding the
school’s curriculum and pedagogies. Parents and student
will be given a copy or summary of the schools studentrelated policies.
Upon enrollment, the District agrees to forward to
Academia all cumulative file information regarding any
pupil who previously attended the district and who has
enrolled in Academia, including but not limited to
information regarding special education and related
services, in order to ensure that Academia is able to
identify students with exceptional needs.
Modifications
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Element 9.
Annual Independent
Financial Audit
78
Academia will retain State of California approved auditor
firm to conduct ongoing and annual, independent financial
audits.
The firm will be selected from the list of
approved firms eligible to conduct audits of California
public school systems and one fully cognizant of the
requirements of California charter schools.
The audit will be in accordance with generally accepted
auditing standards and the audit guide issued by the
Controller of the State of California and as applied to
charter schools within the California Code of Regulations.
The audit will verify the accuracy of the School's
financial statements, attendance and enrollment accounting
practices and review the school's internal controls. It is
anticipated that the annual audit will be completed within
four months after the close of the fiscal year and that a
copy of the auditor’s findings will be forwarded to the
District, the County Superintendent of Schools, the State
Controller and to the CDE by December 15th each year.
The audit will be made public and will be presented to the
Council of Trustees of Academia at a regularly scheduled
meeting open to the public. Audit exceptions and
deficiencies shall be resolved in conference with the
auditors. Academia agrees to resolve outstanding issues
from the audit prior to the completion of the auditor's
final report.
The Executive Director of Academia will be responsible for
addressing and resolving in writing any exceptions and/or
deficiencies that are cited in the annual auditor’s
report. These written responses will be presented at the
above stated meeting of the Academia Council of Trustees
and at the same time will be submitted to the Los Angeles
Unified School District. In accordance with Education
78
Governing Law: The manner in which an annual, independent financial
audit shall be conducted, which shall employ generally accepted accounting
principles, and the manner in which audit exceptions and deficiencies shall
be resolved to the satisfaction of the chartering authority. -- California
Education Code Section 47605(b)(5)(I)
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Code Section 47604.3, Academia shall promptly respond to
any reasonable inquiries of the District, County
Superintendent of Schools, or Superintendent of Public
Instruction including but not limited to inquiries
regarding its financial records.
Modifications
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Element 10.
Suspension or
Expulsion
79
Academia has developed a comprehensive set of student
procedure (discipline) policies in the form of Acuerdos de
Comunidad (Accords of Community) with the participation of
parents, students and teachers. The Acuerdos de Comunidad
will be reviewed, and evaluated every year. These
policies will be printed and distributed as part of the
schools student handbook. Each student and parent will be
required to verify that they have reviewed, understood and
agreed with the Acuerdos de Comunidad prior to enrollment.
Expectations regarding student attendance, mutual respect,
substance abuse, violence, safety, and work habits are
addressed as part of Acuerdos de Comunidad. Any student
who repeatedly violates behavioral or academic
expectations will be required to attend a meeting with
school staff and the student’s parent or guardian.
Remediating agreements outlining future student conduct
expectations, timelines, and consequences for failure to
meet the expectations will be utilized in cases of
students who fail to comply with the Acuerdos de
Comunidad.
The current suspension and expulsion policy of the School
is follows:
This Pupil Suspension and Expulsion Policy has been
established in order to promote learning and protect the
safety and well being of all students at the School. When
the Policy is violated, it may be necessary to suspend or
expel a student from regular classroom instruction. This
policy shall serve as Academia’s policy and procedures for
student suspension and expulsion and it may be amended
from time to time without the need to amend the charter so
long as the amendments comport with legal requirements.
School staff shall enforce disciplinary rules and
procedures fairly and consistently among all students.
This Policy and its Procedures will be printed and
79 Governing Law: The procedures by which pupils can be suspended or
expelled. -- California Education Code Section 47605 (b)(5)(J)
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distributed as part of the Student Handbook and will
clearly describe discipline expectations.
Discipline includes but is not limited to advising and
counseling students, conferring with parents/guardians,
detention during and after school hours, use of
alternative educational environments, suspension and
expulsion.
Corporal punishment shall not be used as a disciplinary
measure against any student. Corporal punishment includes
the willful infliction of or willfully causing the
infliction of physical pain on a student. For purposes of
the Policy, corporal punishment does not include an
employee's use of force that is reasonable and necessary
to protect the employee, students, staff or other persons
or to prevent damage to school property.
Academia administration shall ensure that students and
their parents/guardians are notified in writing upon
enrollment of all discipline policies and procedures. The
notice shall state that these Policy and Administrative
Procedures are available on request at the Principal's
office.
Suspended or expelled students shall be excluded from all
school and school-related activities unless otherwise
agreed during the period of suspension or expulsion.
A student identified as an individual with disabilities or
for whom the School has a basis of knowledge of a
suspected disability pursuant to the Individuals with
Disabilities in Education Act ("IDEIA") or who is
qualified for services under Section 504 of the
Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (“Section 504”) is subject to
the same grounds for suspension and expulsion and is
accorded the same due process procedures applicable to
regular education students except when federal and state
law mandates additional or different procedures. The
School will follow Section 504, the IDEIA, and all
applicable federal and state laws including but not
limited to the California Education Code, when imposing
any form of discipline on a student identified as an
individual with disabilities or for whom the School has a
basis of knowledge of a suspected disability or who is
otherwise qualified for such services or protections in
according due process to such students. Academia shall
notify the District of the suspension of any student
identified under the IDEIA (or for whom there may be a
basis of knowledge of the same) or as a student with a
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disability under Section 504 and would grant the District
approval rights prior to the expulsion of any such student
as well.
A. Grounds for Suspension and Expulsion
of Students
A student may be suspended or expelled for prohibited
misconduct if the act is related to school activity or
school attendance occurring at the School or at any other
school or a School sponsored event at anytime including
but not limited to: a) while on school grounds; b) while
going to or coming from school; c) during the lunch
period, whether on or off the school campus; d) during,
going to, or coming from a school-sponsored activity.
B. Enumerated Offenses
Students may be suspended or expelled for any of the
following acts when it is determined the pupil:
1. Caused, attempted to cause, or threatened to cause
physical injury to another person or willfully used
force of violence upon the person of another, except
self-defense.
2. Possessed, sold, or otherwise furnished any firearm,
knife, explosive, or other dangerous object unless,
in the case of possession of any object of this
type, the students had obtained written permission
to possess the item from a certificated school
employee, with the Principal/Administrator or
designee’s concurrence.
3. Unlawfully possessed, used, sold or otherwise
furnished, or was under the influence of any
controlled substance, as defined in Health and
Safety Code 11053-11058, alcoholic beverage, or
intoxicant of any kind.
4. Unlawfully offered, arranged, or negotiated to sell
any controlled substance as defined in Health and
Safety Code 11053-11058, alcoholic beverage or
intoxicant of any kind, and then sold, delivered or
otherwise furnished to any person another liquid
substance or material and represented same as
controlled substance, alcoholic beverage or
intoxicant.
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5. Committed or attempted to commit robbery or
extortion.
6. Caused or attempted to cause damage to school
property or private property.
7. Stole or attempted to steal school property or
private property.
8. Possessed or used tobacco or any products containing
tobacco or nicotine products, including but not
limited to cigars, cigarettes, miniature cigars,
clove cigarettes, smokeless tobacco, snuff, chew
packets and betel.
9. Committed an obscene act or engaged in habitual
profanity or vulgarity.
10. Unlawfully possessed or unlawfully offered,
arranged, or negotiated to sell any drug
paraphernalia, as defined in Health and Safety Code
11014.5.
11. Disrupted school activities or otherwise willfully
defied the valid authority of supervisors, teachers,
administrators, other school officials, or other
school personnel engaged in the performance of their
duties.
12. Knowingly received stolen school property or private
property.
13. Possessed an imitation firearm, i.e.: a replica of a
firearm that is so substantially similar in physical
properties to an existing firearm as to lead a
reasonable person to conclude that the replica is a
firearm.
14. Committed or attempted to commit a sexual assault as
defined in Penal Code 261, 266c, 286, 288, 288a or
289, or committed a sexual battery as defined in
Penal Code 243.4.
15. Harassed, threatened, or intimidated a student who
is a complaining witness or witness in a school
disciplinary proceeding for the purpose of
preventing that student from being a witness and/or
retaliating against that student for being a
witness.
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16. Unlawfully offered, arranged to sell, negotiated to
sell, or sold the prescription drug Soma.
17. Engaged in or attempted to engage in hazing of
another.
18. Aiding or abetting as defined in Section 31 of the
Penal Code, the infliction or attempted infliction
of physical injury to another person.
19. Made terrorist threats against school officials
and/or school property.
20. Committed sexual harassment.
21. Caused, attempted to cause, threatened to cause, or
participated in an act of hate violence.
22. Intentionally harassed, threatened or intimidated a
student or group of students to the extent of having
the actual and reasonably expected effect of
materially disrupting class work, creating
substantial disorder and invading student rights by
creating an intimidating or hostile educational
environment.
Alternatives to suspension or expulsion will first be
attempted with students who are truant, tardy, or
otherwise absent from assigned school activities.
c. Suspension Procedure
Suspensions shall be initiated according to the following
procedures:
1. Conference
Suspension shall be preceded, if possible, by a conference
conducted by the Principal or the Principal's designee
with the student and his or her parent and, whenever
practical, the teacher, supervisor or school employee who
referred the student to the Principal. The conference may
be omitted if the Principal or designee determines that an
emergency situation exists. An "emergency situation"
involves a clear and present danger to the lives, safety
or health of students or school personnel. If a student is
suspended without this conference, both the
parent/guardian and student shall be notified of the
student's right to return to school for the purpose of a
conference.
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At the conference, the pupil shall be informed of the
reason for the disciplinary action and the evidence
against him or her and shall be given the opportunity to
present his or her version and evidence in his or her
defense.
This conference shall be held within two school days,
unless the pupil waives this right or is physically unable
to attend for any reason including, but not limited to,
incarceration or hospitalization.
No penalties may be imposed on a pupil for failure of the
pupil's parent or guardian to attend a conference with
school officials. Reinstatement of the suspended pupil
shall not be contingent upon attendance by the pupil's
parent or guardian at the conference.
2. Notice to Parents/Guardians
At the time of the suspension, an administrator or
designee shall make a reasonable effort to contact the
parent/guardian by telephone or in person. Whenever a
student is suspended, the parent/guardian shall be
notified in writing of the suspension and the date of
return following suspension. This notice shall state the
specific offense committed by the student. In addition,
the notice may also state the date and time when the
student may return to school. If school officials wish to
ask the parent/guardian to confer regarding matters
pertinent to the suspension, the notice may request that
the parent/guardian respond to such requests without
delay.
3. Suspension Time Limits/Recommendation for
Placement/Expulsion
Suspensions, when not including a recommendation for
expulsion, shall not exceed five (5) consecutive school
days per suspension.
Upon a recommendation of Placement/Expulsion by the
Principal or Principal’s designee, the pupil and the
pupil's guardian or representative will be invited to a
conference to determine if the suspension for the pupil
should be extended pending an expulsion hearing. This
determination will be made by the Principal or designee
upon either of the following determinations: 1) the
pupil's presence will be disruptive to the education
process; or 2) the pupil poses a threat or danger to
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others. Upon either determination, the pupil's suspension
will be extended pending the results of an expulsion
hearing.
D. Authority to Expel
A student may be expelled either by the Board following a
hearing before it or by the Board upon the recommendation
of an Administrative Panel to be assigned by the Board as
needed. The Administrative Panel should consist of at
least three members who are certificated and neither a
teacher of the pupil or a Board member of the School’s
governing board. The Administrative Panel may recommend
expulsion of any student found to have committed an
expellable offense.
E. Expulsion Procedures
Students recommended for expulsion are entitled to a
hearing to determine whether the student should be
expelled. Unless postponed for good cause, the hearing
shall be held within thirty (30) school days after the
Principal or designee determines that the Pupil has
committed an expellable offense.
In the event an administrative panel hears the case, it
will make a recommendation to the Board for a final
decision whether to expel. The hearing shall be held in
closed session unless the pupil makes a written request
for a public hearing three (3) days prior to the hearing.
Written notice of the hearing shall be forwarded to the
student and the student's parent/guardian at least ten
(10) calendar days before the date of the hearing. Upon
mailing the notice, it shall be deemed served upon the
pupil. The notice shall include:
1.
2.
The date and place of the expulsion hearing;
A statement of the specific facts, charges and
offenses upon which the proposed expulsion is based;
3.
A copy of the School's disciplinary rules which relate
to the alleged violation;
4.
Notification of the student's or parent/guardian's
obligation to provide information about the student's
status at the school to any other school district or
school to which the student seeks enrollment;
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5.
The opportunity for the student or the student's
parent/guardian to appear in person or to employ and
be represented by counsel or a non-attorney advisor;
6.
The right to inspect and obtain copies of all
documents to be used at the hearing;
7.
The opportunity to confront and question all witnesses
who testify at the hearing;
8.
The opportunity to question all evidence presented and
to present oral and documentary evidence on the
student's behalf including witnesses.
F. Special Procedures for Expulsion
Hearings Involving Sexual Assault or
Battery Offenses
The School may, upon a finding of good cause, determine
that the disclosure of either the identity of the witness
or the testimony of that witness at the hearing, or both,
would subject the witness to an unreasonable risk of
psychological or physical harm. Upon this determination,
the testimony of the witness may be presented at the
hearing in the form of sworn declarations which shall be
examined only by the School or the hearing officer.
Copies of these sworn declarations, edited to delete the
name and identity of the witness, shall be made available
to the pupil.
1.
The complaining witness in any sexual assault or
battery case must be provided with a copy of the
applicable disciplinary rules and advised of his/her
right to (a) receive five days notice of his/her
scheduled testimony, (b) have up to two (2) adult
support persons of his/her choosing present in the
hearing at the time he/she testifies, which may
include a parent, guardian, or legal counsel, and (c)
elect to have the hearing closed while testifying.
2.
The School must also provide the victim a room
separate from the hearing room for the complaining
witness' use prior to and during breaks in testimony.
3.
At the discretion of the person or panel conducting
the hearing, the complaining witness shall be allowed
periods of relief from examination and crossexamination during which he or she may leave the
hearing room.
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4.
The person conducting the expulsion hearing may also
arrange the seating within the hearing room to
facilitate a less intimidating environment for the
complaining witness.
5.
The person conducting the expulsion hearing may also
limit time for taking the testimony of the complaining
witness to the hours he/she is normally in school, if
there is no good cause to take the testimony during
other hours.
6.
Prior to a complaining witness testifying, the support
persons must be admonished that the hearing is
confidential. Nothing in the law precludes the person
presiding over the hearing from removing a support
person whom the presiding person finds is disrupting
the hearing. The person conducting the hearing may
permit any one of the support persons for the
complaining witness to accompany him or her to the
witness stand.
7.
If one or both of the support persons is also a
witness, the School must present evidence that the
witness' presence is both desired by the witness and
will be helpful to the School. The person presiding
over the hearing shall permit the witness to stay
unless it is established that there is a substantial
risk that the testimony of the complaining witness
would be influenced by the support person, in which
case the presiding official shall admonish the support
person or persons not to prompt, sway, or influence
the witness in any way. Nothing shall preclude the
presiding officer from exercising his or her
discretion to remove a person from the hearing whom he
or she believes is prompting, swaying, or influencing
the witness.
8.
The testimony of the support person shall be presented
before the testimony of the complaining witness and
the complaining witness shall be excluded from the
courtroom during that testimony.
9.
Especially for charges involving sexual assault or
battery, if the hearing is to be conducted in the
public at the request of the pupil being expelled, the
complaining witness shall have the right to have
his/her testimony heard in a closed session when
testifying at a public meeting would threaten serious
psychological harm to the complaining witness and
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there are no alternative procedures to avoid the
threatened harm. The alternative procedures may
include videotaped depositions or contemporaneous
examination in another place communicated to the
hearing room by means of closed-circuit television.
10. Evidence of specific instances of a complaining
witness' prior sexual conduct is presumed inadmissible
and shall not be heard absent a determination by the
person conducting the hearing that extraordinary
circumstances exist requiring the evidence be heard.
Before such a determination regarding extraordinary
circumstance can be made, the witness shall be
provided notice and an opportunity to present
opposition to the introduction of the evidence. In
the hearing on the admissibility of the evidence, the
complaining witness shall be entitled to be
represented by a parent, legal counsel, or other
support person. Reputation or opinion evidence
regarding the sexual behavior of the complaining
witness is not admissible for any purpose.
G. Record of Hearing
A record of the hearing shall be made and may be
maintained by any means, including electronic recording,
as long as a reasonably accurate and complete written
transcription of the proceedings can be made.
H. Presentation of Evidence
While technical rules of evidence do not apply to
expulsion hearings, evidence may be admitted and used as
proof only if it is the kind of evidence on which
reasonable persons can rely in the conduct of serious
affairs.
A recommendation by the Administrative Panel to
expel must be supported by substantial evidence that the
student committed an expellable offense.
Findings of fact shall be based solely on the evidence at
the hearing. While hearsay evidence is admissible, no
decision to expel shall be based solely on hearsay and
sworn declarations may be admitted as testimony from
witnesses of whom the Board, Panel or designee determines
that disclosure of their identity or testimony at the
hearing may subject them to an unreasonable risk of
physical or psychological harm.
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If, due to a written request by the expelled pupil, the
hearing is held at a public meeting, and the charge is
committing or attempting to commit a sexual assault or
committing a sexual battery as defined in Education Code
Section 48900, a complaining witness shall have the right
to have his or her testimony heard in a session closed to
the public.
The decision of the Administrative Panel shall be in the
form of written findings of fact and a written
recommendation to the Board who will make a final
determination regarding the expulsion. The final decision
by the Board shall be made within ten (10) school days
following the conclusion of the hearing. The Decision of
the Board is final.
If the expulsion hearing panel decides not to recommend
expulsion, the pupil shall immediately be returned to
his/her educational program.
I. Written Notice to Expel
The Principal or designee following a decision of the
Board to expel shall send written notice of the decision
to expel, including the Board's adopted findings of fact,
to the student or parent/guardian. This notice shall also
include the following:
1.
Notice of the specific offense committed by the
student
2.
Notice of the student's or parent/guardian's
obligation to inform any new district in which the
student seeks to enroll of the student's status with
the school.
The Principal or designee shall send a copy of the written notice
of the decision to expel to the District.
This notice shall include the following:
a)
The student's name
b)
The specific expellable offense committed by the
student
J. Disciplinary Records
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The school shall maintain records of all student
suspensions and expulsions at the School. Such records
shall be made available to the District upon request.
K. No Right to Appeal
The pupil shall have no right to appeal the expulsion from
Academia, as Academia Board’s decision to expel shall be
final.
L. Expelled Pupils/Alternative Education
Pupils who are expelled shall be responsible for seeking
alternative education programs including, but not limited
to, programs within the County or their school district of
residence.
M. Rehabilitation Plans
Students who are expelled from the School shall be given a
rehabilitation plan upon expulsion as developed by the
Board at the time of the expulsion order, which may
include, but is not limited to, periodic review as well as
assessment at the time of review for readmission. The
rehabilitation plan should include a date not later than
one year from the date of expulsion when the pupil may
reapply to the School for readmission.
N. Readmission
The decision to readmit a pupil or to admit a previously
expelled pupil from another school district or charter
school shall be in the sole discretion of the Board
following a meeting with the Principal and the pupil and
guardian or representative to determine whether the pupil
has successfully completed the rehabilitation plan and to
determine whether the pupil poses a threat to others or
will be disruptive to the school environment. The
Principal shall make a recommendation to the Board
following the meeting regarding his or her determination.
The pupil's readmission is also contingent upon the
School's capacity at the time the student seeks
readmission.
Modifications
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Element 11.
Retirement System
Page 164
80
Retirement Rights
A. State Teachers Retirement System
All full-time certificated employees who are eligible will
participate in the State Teachers Retirement System
(STRS). Employees will contribute the required percentage
(currently 8.0% of salary), and Semillas del Pueblo will
contribute the employer's portion (currently 8.25%),
required by STRS. All withholdings from employees and
Academia will be forwarded to the STRS Fund as required.
Employees will accumulate service credit years in the same
manner as all other members of STRS.
B. Public Employees Retirement System
All classified employees who are eligible will participate
in the Public Employees Retirement System (PERS).
Employees will contribute the required percentage as
designated by PERS and Semillas del Pueblo will contribute
the employer's portion as required by PERS. All
withholdings from employees and Academia will be forwarded
to the PERS Fund as required. Employees will accumulate
service credit years in the same manner as all other
members of PERS. Social Security payments will be
contributed for all qualifying PERS members.
C. Public Agency Retirement System
Public Agency Retirement System and others. Semillas del
Pueblo will participate in the Public Agency Retirement
System for non-PERS/STRS eligible part-time employees.
The Council of Trustees retains the option to consider any
other public or private retirement plans and to coordinate
such participation with existing programs, as it deems
80
Governing Law: The manner by which staff members of Academia will be
covered by the State Teachers’ Retirement System, the Public Employee’s
Retirement System, or federal social security. -- California Education Code
Section 47605(b)(5)(K)
………………………………………………
appropriate. Written notification will be sent to LAUSD
should there be any change to the retirement plan.
Modifications
student learning, assessment results and/or strategic program
development.
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Element 12 .
Public School
Attendance
Alternatives
81
Academia will not require any child to attend Academia.
Students who choose not to attend Academia may attend
other district schools or pursue an inter-district
transfer in accordance with existing enrollment and
transfer policies of their district or county of
residence.
81
“The public school attendance alternatives for pupils residing within the
school district who choose not to attend charter schools.” Ed. Code § 47605
(b)(5)(L)
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Element 13.
Employee Rights
Page 167
82
Employees of the District/County who choose to leave the
employment of the District/County to work in Academia
shall have no automatic rights of return to the
District/County after employment at Academia unless
specifically granted by the District/County through a
leave of absence or other agreement or policy of the
District/County as aligned with the collective bargaining
agreements of the District/County.
A. Relationship Between The Teachers And
The District/County Bargaining Unit
Academia will be the exclusive public employer of all
employees of Academia for collective bargaining purposes.
As such, Academia will comply with all provisions of the
Educational Employment Relations Act (EERA), and will act
independently from LAUSD for bargaining purposes. Under
the EERA, all covered Academia employees may join and be
represented by an organization of their choosing in their
professional and employment relationships after the first
year of operation is completed.
B. Salaries and Benefits
The Council of Trustees will set salaries tables and
benefit packages annually. Salaries and benefits will be
commensurate with those offered employees in similar
positions in the LAUSD, LACOE or comparable non-profit
organizations at the discretion of the Council of
Trustees.
C. Work Basis
The Principal will work for the calendar year with
appropriate vacation time as determined in the individual
employee contract. All teachers and teachers' assistants
will work a calendar year of 11 months, including 200
82 Governing Law: A description of the rights of any employee of the
school district upon leaving the employment of the school district to work
in a charter school, and of any rights of return to the school district
after employment at a charter school. – Education Code Section
47605(b)(5)(M)
………………………………………………
instructional days and 5-15 days of training. Office and
maintenance will work a calendar year of 12 months with
appropriate vacation time as determined in their
individual employee contract.
Employee hours per day will be based on individual
contracts. The standard day for administrative and
operational staff is 8.0 hours per day. The standard day
for teaching staff is 7.0 hours per day. The teaching
staff is also required to attend 2.0 hour/week, not to
exceed 10.0 hours per month for meetings, 2-3 evening
parent conference sessions a semester, and maintain
communication with parents through actively leading the
Teaching Collectives and organizing at least one meeting
per month.
All school employees will be required to furnish a
criminal record summary as required by E.C. 44237. All
school employees will be considered mandated child abuse
reporters. All school employees will have current and
appropriate TB tests as mandated by E.C. 47605 (b) (5)
(F).
D. Benefits
Release days will be provided for each full-time employee
to the extent of ten (10) paid release days per year
(illness, personal necessity, etc.) Full time employees
will earn release days at the rate of one-half day per
biweekly pay period. Part-time personnel will be provided
with a portion of the release days that corresponds to the
number of hours worked.
Each full-time employee will be provided with three unpaid
bereavement days (within California) or five unpaid
bereavement days (outside of California) for immediate
family members, not to exceed five days per year. Family
members will be defined as members of the employee's or
spouse's immediate family, which means the parents,
grandparents, child, or grandchild, brother, sister (step
or foster) or any other relative living in the immediate
household of the employee.
All employees will earn paid legal holidays not less than
currently offered by the sponsoring district for a work
year of comparable length.
Mandatory benefits such as, workers compensation,
unemployment insurance, Medicare, and social security (for
non STRS members) will be provided by Academia. Life,
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health, and related benefits will also be provided to all
full-time employees at the cost of the school. Employees
on charter school leave from the sponsoring district will
elect to give up district offered coverage during the term
of their employment with Academia.
E. Process for Resolving
Complaints/Grievances
All staff members will follow state and federal laws for
reporting alleged improprieties as well as adhere to
Academia policies. These Regulations are published in the
Administrative Handbook and are subject to annual review
by the Council of Trustees.
The following process will apply to staff members filing a
complaint/grievance.
1. Schedule appointment with the principals to discuss
the incident/problem. The principals will determine
if a grievance exists, and if so, will take the
grievance to a panel of representatives appointed by
the Council of Trustees. Should the grievance
include the principal, the grievant may choose to
submit a written request to the panel of
representatives appointed by the Council of Trustees
to determine if a grievance exists.
2. If the determination is made that no grievance
exists, the grievant may choose to follow the
mediation process by requesting the necessary
paperwork from the principals. The mediation
process begins with a conference including the party
being grieved, two board members or their
representatives, and a self-selected representative.
3. A conference with persons in item #2 above and the
principals will be held. Decisions will be binding
and conference memo will be issued. Nonparticipation in the process will result in issuance
of a conference memo or a notice of unsatisfactory
to remain in personnel file and will be forwarded
upon request.
4. Similar infraction or continuous non-participation
will result in moving to the next step which
includes #2, #3, and #4 listed under the
consequences below.
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F. Consequences for Unprofessional
Conduct
1. Issuance of notice of unsatisfactory action to
remain in personnel file and can be forwarded upon
request.
2. One day suspension without pay.
3. Five day suspension without pay.
4. Dismissal.
All staff members have the right to due process during any
step of the above.
G. Process for Ensuring Due Process
All staff members will have due process rights that
include:
•
•
•
•
Right to just cause discipline and dismissal
Right to mediation and a fair hearing if necessary
Right to appeal before a free state arbitrator
(offered to small school districts)
Right to binding arbitration conducted by a paid
arbitrator
The principals will be notified in writing of any Council
of Trustees concerns and must respond within two weeks,
both in writing and orally, his or her views or
resolutions to the Council of Trustees’ concerns.
Academia will act independently from LAUSD for bargaining
purposes. Any district union employee who is offered
employment and chooses to work at Academia will not be
covered by his or her respective collective bargaining
unit agreement, although the school may extend the same
protections and benefits in individual employee contracts.
All provisions pertaining to leave and return rights for
district union employees will be granted to certificated
and classified employees in accordance with current
collective bargaining agreements. Currently, district
union employees who are offered employment and who choose
to work at Academia will be given unpaid charter school
leave from the sponsoring district with return rights for
the duration of the initially approved charter. Return
rights would be offered with neither loss nor gain of
status or seniority with the sponsoring district, at the
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salary and benefit rate in current use by the district for
employees in the same classification who remained with the
district as specified. Once the contracted leave has
expired, staff would be forced to resign from the district
or return to a traditional district school. This is
subject to change per changes in the collective bargaining
agreement.
All personnel will abide by the Academia School
Regulations developed by the Council of Trustees and
commit to Academia mission and vision.
All employees' job description and work schedules will be
reviewed and modified as necessary to meet the needs of
the school and its students. The job descriptions will be
based on the job duties and work basis as outlined in the
charter. Academia expects a high level of professionalism
from its staff including self-monitoring of higher
education development. Academia will offer a salary
comparable to LAUSD, to be determined by the Council of
Trustees.
H. Evaluations
Evaluations will be performed annually. Performance
measures will be used to evaluate all school personnel.
Performance measures and assessment will be developed with
the participation of the given and appropriate staff
members. Peer assessment will be an important component
of the performance measure.
The Council of Trustees will evaluate the Principal and
the Executive Director on:
1. Maintaining a fiscally sound charter school
including a balanced budget.
2. Overall successful school academic program and
achievement of educational goals.
3. High parental and community involvement.
4. Creation of a school atmosphere of enthusiasm,
warmth, and cooperation among all parties.
The Principal will evaluate the teachers on:
1. Student progress as referenced from school designed
norms at the end of each year.
2. Effectiveness of teaching strategies as evaluated by
the Principals through classroom visitation, and
long-term observations.
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3. Leadership in school design, governance and
curricular development.
4. Performance of job duties.
The Principal will evaluate classified and other personnel
based upon completion of assigned job duties and regular,
punctual attendance.
Good performance will be acknowledged, and staff may earn
performance pay in the form of bonuses. Poor performance
may result in probationary status, whereupon the employee
will receive professional development and peer mentoring.
Progress of probationary employees will be reviewed after
30 days and after 60 days.
Modifications
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Element 14.
Dispute Resolution
Page 173
83
Any controversy, claim, or dispute arising out of or
relating to the charter agreement shall be handled first
through and informal process in accordance with the
procedures set forth below.
Any controversy, claim, or dispute arising out of or
relating to the charter agreement, or the breach thereof,
must be submitted in writing (“Written Notification”).
The Written Notification must identify the nature of the
dispute. The Written Notification may be tendered by
personal delivery, by facsimile, or by certified mail.
The Written Notification shall be deemed received (a) if
personally delivered, upon date of delivery to the address
of the person to receive such notice if delivered by
5:00pm, or otherwise on the business day following
personal delivery; (b) if by facsimile, upon electronic
confirmation of receipt; or (c) if by mail, two (2)
business days after deposit in the U.S. Mail. Written
Notifications shall be addressed as follows:
To Director of Academia
Academia
4736 Huntington Dr. So.
L.A., CA 90032
To Director of Charter Schools
LAUSD Charter Schools Unit
333 S. Beaudry Avenue,
25th Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90017
A written response (“Written Response”) shall be tendered
to the other party within twenty (20) business days from
the date of receipt of the Written Notification.
The
parties agree to schedule a conference to discuss and
resolve the controversy, claim, or dispute at issue
(“Issue Conference”). The Issue Conference shall take
place within fifteen (15) business days from the date the
Written Response is received by the other party. The
Written Response may be tendered by personal delivery, by
83 Governing Law: The procedures to be followed by Academia and the entity
granting the charter to resolve disputes relating to provisions of the
charter—California Education Code Section 47605(b)(5)(N)
………………………………………………
facsimile, or by certified mail. The Written Response
shall be deemed received (a) if personally delivered, upon
date of delivery to the address of the person t receive
such notice if delivered by 5:00pm, or otherwise on the
business day following personal delivery; (b) if by
facsimile, upon electronic confirmation of receipt; or (c)
if by mail, two (2) business days after deposit in the
U.S. Mail.
If the controversy, claim, or dispute cannot be resolved
by mutual agreement at the Issue Conference, then either
party may request that the matter be resolved by
mediation. Each party shall bear its own costs and
expenses associated with the mediation. The mediator’s
fees and the administrative fees of the mediation shall be
shared equally among the parties. Mediation proceedings
shall commence within 120 days from the date of the Issue
Conference. The parties shall mutually agree upon the
selection of a mediator to resolve the controversy or
claim at dispute. The mediator may be selected from the
approved list of mediators prepared by the American
Arbitration Association. Mediation proceedings must be
administered in accordance with the mediation rules or
guidelines of the American Arbitration Association.
If mediation is not successful, then the parties agree to
settle the controversy, claim, or dispute the arbitration
conducted by a single arbitrator in accordance with the
rules or guidelines of the American Arbitration
Association. The arbitrator must be an active member of
the California State Bar or a retired judge of the state
or federal judiciary of California. Each party shall bear
its own costs and expenses associated with the
arbitration. The arbitrator’s fees and the administrative
fees of the arbitration shall be shared equally among the
parties.
Any party who fails or refuses to submit to arbitration
shall bear all costs and expenses incurred by such other
party in compelling arbitration of any controversy, claim,
or dispute.
Either party’s failure to comply with the prescribed
timelines set forth in Paragraph’s One and Two of this
Section shall result in the parties proceeding forward
with mediation. Mediation proceedings shall commence
within 160 days from the date the Written Notification was
tendered.
Modifications
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student learning, assessment results and/or strategic program
development.
………………………………………………
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Element 15 .
Labor Relations
84
Academia shall be deemed the exclusive public school
employer of the employees of Academia for the purposes of
the Education Employment Relations Act.
84 “A declaration whether or not the charter school shall be deemed the
exclusive public school employer of the employees of the charter school for
the purposes of the Educational Employment Relations Act (Chapter 10.7 (
commencing with Section 3540) of division 4 of Title 1 of the Government
Code).” Ed. Code § 47605 (b)(5)(O)
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Element 16.
Other Elements
A. The Charter Procedures to be used if
the charter school closes 85
The following are closing procedures that abide by Cal.
Educ. Code §47605(b)(5)(P), should the school close for
any reason. The decision to close Academia either by
Academia governing Board or by the LAUSD Board will be
documented in a Closure Action. The Closure Action shall
be deemed to have been automatically made when any of the
following occur: the charter is revoked or non renewed by
the LAUSD Board of Education; Academia board votes to
close the school; or the charter lapses. In the event of
such a Closure Action, the following steps are to be
implemented:
1. Written notification to parents/guardians/caregivers
of the enrolled students of Academia will be issued
by Academia within 72 hours after the determination
of a Closure Action. A sample copy of the language
used in the written notification is also to be made
to LAUSD within the same time frame.
2. The written notification will also include
information on assistance in transferring each
student to another appropriate school, and a process
for the transfer of all student records.
3. The process for transferring student records to the
receiving schools shall be in accordance with LAUSD
procedures for students moving from one school to
another.
4. Parents will also be provided with student
information that includes closure notice, grade
report, discipline records, immunization records,
completed coursework and credits that meet
graduation requirements.
85
Governing Law: A description of the procedures to be used if Academia
closes. --Education Code Section 47605(b)(5)(p)
………………………………………………
Page 177
5. Written notification to LAUSD of the list of
returning students and their home schools, to be
made within 72 hours of the determination of the
Closure Action.
6. Transfer of student records to the receiving
schools, within seven calendar days from the
determination of an Action to Close.
7. Written notification to the California Department of
Education and the Los Angeles County Office of
Education of the Closure Action shall be made by
Academia by registered mail within 72 hours of the
decision to Closure Action.
8. Academia shall allow LAUSD access, inspection and
copying of all school records, including financial
and attendance records, upon written request by
LAUSD.
9. A financial closeout audit of the school will be
paid for by Academia to determine the disposition of
all assets and liabilities of Academia, including
plans for disposing of any net assets. The final
independent audit shall be completed within six
months after the closure of the school. This audit
will be conducted by a neutral, independent licensed
CPA who will employ generally accepted accounting
principles. Any liability or debt incurred by
Academia will be the responsibility of Academia and
not LAUSD. Academia understands and acknowledges
that Academia will cover the outstanding debts or
liabilities of Academia. Any unused monies at the
time of the audit will be returned to the
appropriate funding source. Academia understands
and acknowledges that only unrestricted funds will
be used to pay creditors. Any unused AB 602 funds
will be returned to the District SELPA, and other
categorical funds will be returned t the source of
funds.
10. For six calendar months from the Closure Action or
until budget allows, whichever comes first,
sufficient staff as deemed appropriate by Academia
Board, will maintain employment to take care of all
necessary tasks and procedures required for a smooth
closing of the school and student transfers.
11. Academia Board shall adopt a plan for wind-up of the
school and, if necessary, the corporation, in
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Page 178
accordance with the requirements of the Corporations
Code.
12. In addition to the final audit Academia will also
submit any required year-end financial reports to
the California Department of Education and LAUSD, in
the form and time frame required.
13. If Academia is a nonprofit corporation, the
corporation does not have any other functions than
operation of Academia, the corporation will be
dissolved according to its bylaws.
14. The corporation’s by laws will address how assets
are to be distributed at the closure of the
corporation.
15. A copy of the corporation’s by laws containing the
information on how assets are to be distributed at
the closure of the corporation, are to be provided to LAUSD prior
to approval of this Petition.
B. Budgets And Cash Flow
Attached, as Addenda please find the following documents:
•
•
•
•
•
A projected budget for upcoming school year
Cash flow and financial projections for the next
three years of operation.
Process for investment procedures and deposit of
funds
Procedure for ensuing adequate cash flow.
Attendance requirements including length of school
day and year
These documents are based upon the best data available to
the Petitioners at this time.
C. Financial Reporting
Academia shall provide reports to the District as follows,
and shall provide additional fiscal reports as requested
by the District:
The following reports will be submitted to LAUSD:
1. By July 1, a preliminary budget for the current
fiscal year. For the first year of operation, the
financial statements submitted with this charter
………………………………………………
Page 179
petition pursuant to Education Code 47605(g) shall
satisfy this requirement.
2. By December 15, an interim financial report for the
current fiscal year reflecting changes through
October 31. Additionally, on December 15, a copy of
Academia’s annual, independent financial audit
report for the preceding fiscal year shall be
delivered to the District, State Controller, State
Department of Education and County Superintendent of
Schools.
3. By March 15, a second interim financial report for
the current fiscal year reflecting changes through
January 31.
4. By September 15, a final unaudited report for the
full prior year. The report submitted to the
District shall include an annual statement of all
Academia’s receipts and expenditures for the
preceding fiscal year.
Reports shall be in the format requested by the District,
shall utilize any forms requested by the District, and
shall contain any data requested by the District.
D. Liability Of District To Handle
Payments If Charter School Defaults
Academia shall be operated as a California non-profit
public benefit corporation. This corporation is organized
and operated exclusively within the parameters of Section
501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and California
Revenue and Taxation Code Section 23701d.
Pursuant to Education Code Section 47604(c), an entity
that grants a charter to a charter school operated by or
as a non-profit public benefit corporation shall not be
liable for the debts or obligations of Academia or for
claims arising from the performance of acts, errors or
omissions by Academia if the authority has complied with
all oversight responsibilities required by law. Academia
shall work diligently to assist the District in meeting
any and all oversight obligations under the law, including
regular meetings, reporting, or other requested protocol
to ensure the District shall not be liable for the
operation of the School.
………………………………………………
Page 180
With the exception of special education claims,
liabilities or legal proceedings which are handled in
accordance with the terms of this charter and any
supplementary MOU between the parties, Academia does
hereby agree, at its own expense, to indemnify, defend,
and hold the LAUSD, its officers, employees, and agents
harmless from and against any and all claims, liabilities,
or legal proceedings brought by any person or entity
whatsoever, arising from or relating to the action or
inaction of Academia, its Board, officers, employees, or
agents in implementing this charter agreement. Academia
further agrees to indemnify, defend, and hold the LAUSD,
its officers, employees, and agents harmless from and
against claims, liabilities, or legal proceedings brought
by any person or entity arising from or relating to acts
or omissions for acts committed by Academia, its officers,
employees, or students.
E. Maximum Enrollment
In order to ensure the advantages of small school size,
maximum enrollment at any one Academia school-site will
not exceed 600 hundred.
F. Renewal Term of Charter
This charter for Academia will be renewed for five years.
The original charter began August 1, 2002 and would have
expired on August 1, 2007; the renewal charter term shall
be July 1, 2007 through June 30, 2012.
G. Amendments
Any material additions, alterations, or amendments to the
Academia charter must be approved by Academia’s Council of
Trustees and LAUSD’s Board of Education. Material changes
proposed subsequently must be approved by written consent
of Board of Education of Los Angeles and the Council of
Trustees of Academia.
Modifications
………………………………………………
Page 181

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Transcription

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