Ed Committee Data Packet Minus Turnaround Office Docs

! www.conncan.org (203) 772-4017 85 Willow St. New Haven CT 06511

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TO: Connecticut General Assembly Education Committee FROM: Jennifer Alexander, ConnCAN SUBJECT: Information and Data on Connecticuts Public Charter Schools DATE: 3/19/15

The following packet contains information about Connecticuts public charter schools, including student performance, enrollment, graduation as well as policy information and data. Please contact me at [email protected] if you have any questions. As always, we welcome the opportunity to work with you to ensure that all children in our state get the great public education they need and deserve.

PACKET CONTENTS

State-Reported School Performance Index (SPI) and District Performance Index (DPI) Data (2012-2013): All Public Charter Schools and Host Districts

Four-Year Cohort Graduation Rates (2013): All Public Charter High Schools and Host Districts

College Enrollment, Persistence, Completion and Remediation (2014): All Public Charter

School High Schools and Select Host District High Schools (including SAT/AP data)

2013-2014 Charter Schools Enrollment in Connecticut

ConnCAN Quick Facts: Public Charter Schools in Connecticut

ConnCAN Summary and Analysis of Public Accountability for Charter Schools: Standards and Policy Recommendations for Effective Oversight, Annenberg Institute for School Reform, Brown University

ConnCAN Analysis: How Does SB 943, An Act Concerning Charter School Modernization

and Reform Stack up Against the NACSA Report On the Road to Better Accountability: An Analysis of State Charter School Policies?


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State-Reported School Performance Index (SPI) and District Performance Index (DPI) Data (2012-2013) All Public Charter Schools and Host Districts

Elementary/Middle Schools (CMT Data)

School Name Host District Overall SPI African American

SPI Latino/ Hispanic

SPI Free/ Reduced

Lunch SPI

English Language Learner

SPI Students with

Disabilities SPI High Needs SPI

Bridgeport* 53.7 51.3 52.4 53.7 32.1 29.0 53.7 The Bridge Academy Bridgeport 65.2 64.6 66.1 66.6 - - 65.9

New Beginnings Inc. Family Academy Bridgeport 68.5 67.9 69.2 66.4 - 40.8 66.1

Park City Prep Charter School Bridgeport 72.9 67.7 78.3 70 - 30.7 69.4

Achievement First Bridgeport Academy Bridgeport 76.7 75.9 77.2 75.8 67.6 50.2 75.7

Hamden* 75.5 62.3 67.7 63.3 53.6 44 61 Highville

Charter School Hamden 77.2 76.9 - 75.8 - - 75.5

Hartford* 58.1 59.7 50.4 54.9 36.7 31.4 54.9 Jumoke

Academy Hartford 80.1 80.2 - 66.7 - 46.4 60.5

Achievement First Hartford Academy Inc. Hartford 76.9 77.6 71.7 76.9 71.4 47.3 76.9

Manchester* 72.3 61.7 62.1 64.5 47.1 42.9 63.4 Odyssey

Community School Manchester 79.5 75.2 80.7 74 - 63.9 73.5


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SPI Free/ Reduced

Lunch SPI English

Language Learner SPI

Students with Disabilities

SPI High Needs SPI New Haven* 60.1 54.4 57.1 54.9 42.8 37.5 54.5

Amistad Academy New Haven 78.6 78.1 78.6 76.9 68.3 51.5 76.3

Elm City College Preparatory School New Haven 79 77.8 81.2 76.3 - 49.7 76.3

New London* 61.4 60.7 58.3 59.5 41.5 28.8 59 Interdistrict School For

Arts And Communication New London 70 65.3 62 62 38.6 44.3 63.2

Norwalk* 78 66.6 73.4 69.2 54.4 46.8 67.6 Side By Side

Charter School Norwalk 68.1 57.9 70.4 61.4 - - 58.9

Norwich* 61.2 48.1 54.3 56 37 29.2 55.5 Integrated Day Charter School Norwich 72.4 48.7 70.5 58.9 - 36.2 55.2

Stamford* 76.6 62.1 69.2 65.8 52.7 45 65 Trailblazers

Academy Stamford 44.1 42.7 44.9 43.7 - 32.1 43.6

ALL CHARTERS* AVERAGE 72.1 68.3 70.9 68.0 61.5 44.8 66.9

ALL SCHOOLS IN STATE* AVERAGE 78.3 62.5 67.4 68.1 48.4 50.3 66.3

Note: Please see page 3 for performance data for high schools (CAPT Data).


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High Schools (CAPT Data)



SPI Free/ Reduced

Lunch SPI English

Language Learner SPI

Students with Disabilities

SPI High Needs SPI Bridgeport 38.4 35.9 38.1 38.2 20.1 12.5 37.9

The Bridge Academy Bridgeport 60.1 57.3 - 61.1 - - 61.5

Achievement First Bridgeport Academy Bridgeport 77.6 77.3 - 78.3 - - 78.3

New Haven 53.3 46.9 47.8 47.2 25.3 30.7 46.3 Common Ground

High School New Haven 73.8 - - 65.7 - - 66.1

Amistad Academy New Haven 81.1 80 - 80.4 - - 80.4

Elm City College Preparatory School New Haven 73.2 - - - - - -

Stamford 68.8 49.6 62.5 57.4 36.5 40.1 56.1 Stamford Academy Stamford 34.2 - - 34.2 - - 34.2

Winchester No data available.

Explorations Charter School Winchester No data available.

ALL CHARTERS* AVERAGE 66.7 71.5 - 63.9 - - 64.1

ALL SCHOOLS IN STATE* AVERAGE 73.4 56.5 60.0 61.2 26.9 46.3 60.5


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Notes and Resources: 1. Unavailable data: To protect student identities, the state only reports a score for a group of more than 20 students. SPIs are also not available in schools without tested grades (grades 3-8 and 10). In this document, if no data was reported, it is noted with a dash (-) or the phrase No Data Available. 2. School and District Performance Index (SPI and DPI): The SPI or DPI is a score numbered from 0 to 100 that represents student performance across all tested grades and subjects within a school or district. It is a number from 0-100 that explains how well students are performing on one of two standardized tests: The Connecticut Mastery Test (CMT) or the Connecticut Academic Performance Test (CAPT). The state calculates that SPI for a given school or DPI for a given district by averaging all of the scores received by students at the school for a given year in all tested grades and subjects. Students receive 100 points for reaching the Goal or Advanced benchmarks on either of these tests, 67 points for reaching Proficient, 33 points for reaching Basic, and zero points for reaching Below Basic in each tested subject. The State Department of Education has set the goal for all schools at an SPI of 88 as an ultimate target to attain by 2024. In most cases, schools have one SPI, based on either CMT or CAPT scores. For schools with students in both lower and upper grades, which must therefore administer both tests, the state reports separate SPIs for CMT and CAPT. CAPT data is also reported separately for Amistad Academy, Elm City College Preparatory School, and Achievement First Bridgeport Academy; however, all of these students attend Amistad High School in New Haven. The distinction represents the elementary/middle school of origin. More comprehensive and/or detailed information is available from Achievement First. SPIs and DPIs are reported for overall performance as well as some specific student groups based on race/ethnicity and student need: Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, English Language Learners, Free/Reduced Lunch Eligible, Students with Disabilities, and High Needs. High Needs is defined as follows: A student is a member of the High Needs group if that student is a member of any of the following subgroups: students with disabilities, English Language Learners, or students who are eligible for free or reduced lunch. More information on SPI and DPI is available through the Conn. State Dept. of Educ. Source: Conn. State Dept. of Educ., School and District Performance Reports. 2012-2013. Hyperlink: http://www.csde.state.ct.us/public/performancereports/reports.asp 3. Year of Data Used: Data in this document is reported for the 2012-2013 school year because it is the most recent publicly available data available with SPIs and DPIs calculated for all schools, subjects, and districts. The Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE) received approval from the U.S. Department of Education (USED) to offer districts the choice, for 2013-14, to administer the Smarter Balanced Field Test (SB-FT) in lieu of the Connecticut Mastery Test (CMT) and/or the Connecticut Academic Performance Test (CAPT) in English Language Arts and Mathematics. Pursuant to this field-test flexibility, about 90 percent of Connecticut school districts administered the SB-FT. Only those districts that administered the CMT and/or CAPT in English Language Arts and Mathematics will receive district school performance reports in 2013-14. Source: Conn. State Dept. of Educ., 2013-2014 School/District Performance Notes. 2014. Hyperlink: http://www.csde.state.ct.us/public/performancereports/Reports/2014/DPR_SPR_Report_Notes_for_201314.pdf !

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Four-Year Cohort Graduation Rates (2013) All Public Charter High Schools and Host Districts

Public Charter School

Host District

% All

Students %

Hispanic %

Asian

% Indian or Alaska Native

% Black or African

American

% Hawaiian or Pacific Islander

% White

% Two or More Races

% English

Language Learners

% Eligible for Free Lunch

% Eligible for Reduced

Lunch %

Special Education

Bridgeport 67.3% 61.3% 86.8% 86.5% 70.9% * 64.8% * 58.2% 66.6% 76.4% 50%

The Bridge Academy Bridgeport 88.6% 100% - - 88.2% - - 66.7% - 100% 50% 66.7%

New Haven 71.4% 62.4% 92.9% * 72.0% - 83.1% * 52.9% 68.1% 83.4% 53.4%

Common Ground

High School New Haven 89.5% 82.4% * - 100.0% - 85.7% * * 80.0% 100.0% *

Amistad Academy New Haven 69.6% * - - 77.8% - - - * 61.1% * *

Elm City College

Preparatory New Haven 61.5% * - - 66.7% - - - - 60.0% * -

Stamford 88.9% 81.2% 93.8% - 87.6% - 95.0% * 72.7% 82.2% 86.3% 82.2%

Stamford Academy Stamford 27.0% 23.5% - - 31.6% - * - * 29.0% * 33.3%


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Winchester No data available. sks

Explorations Charter School

Winchester 65.6% * - - * - 70.4% - * 55.6% * 37.5%

ALL CHARTERS AVERAGE 67.0% 68.6% - - 72.9% - 78.1% 66.7% - 64.3% 75.0% 45.8%

STATE TOTAL 85.5% 70.2% 93.2% 81.8% 75.7% 89.0% 91.4% 82.3% 63.8% 68.6% 84.2% 64.7% Notes and Resources: 1. Unavailable Data: In order to protect individual student identities, the State Department of Education uses an asterisk (*) to denote a group of less than 5 students. In this document, if no data was reported by the state for a category, it is noted with a dash (-) or the phrase No Data Available. Because Winchester Public Schools does not have a public high school within its district, and the town of Winchester is not part of a public regional school district, there is no host district comparison included for Explorations Charter School in Winchester. 2. Definition of Four-Year Cohort Graduation Rate: The Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE) introduced the four-year cohort graduation rate with the graduating class of 2009. This approach was created when Connecticut and 49 other states signed an agreement with the National Governors Association to develop a uniform system for tracking students. The four-year cohort graduation rate is calculated by tracking an individual cohort, or group of students, from their initial entrance into Grade 9 through to graduation. The four-year cohort graduation rate represents the percentage of students who earn a standard high school diploma within four years. The calculation uses individual student-level data from the state's Public School Information System (PSIS) that school districts submitted and superintendents certified. Data in this document includes all subgroups reported by the CSDE, with the following exceptions: male, female, non-Hispanic, non-ELL, non-Special Education, and not eligible for lunch. Source: Office of Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, Gov. Malloy: Graduation Rate Increases for Fourth Consecutive Year. May 14, 2014. Hyperlink: http://www.governor.ct.gov/malloy/cwp/view.asp?A=4010&Q=545016 3. Amistad Academy: Data is reported separately for Amistad Academy and Elm City College Preparatory School; however, both sets of students attend Amistad High School in New Haven. The distinction represents the elementary/middle school of origin. More comprehensive and/or detailed graduation rate information is available from Achievement First. All data reported in this document is from the Conn. State Dept. of Education. 4. Additional Data Source: Files with graduation rates available by state, district, and school for 2013 and prior years are also available at the following website. Source: Conn. State Dept. of Educ., Four Year Cohort Graduation Rate Data by State, District, and School (2013). May 14, 2014. Hyperlink: http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/cwp/view.asp?a=2758&q=334898 !


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College Enrollment, Persistence, Completion and Remediation (2014) All Public Charter School High Schools and Select Host District High Schools

City School Type School Name

Enrollment: Persistence: Completion: Remediation:

% Enrolled in College First Year after Graduation

(Class of 2012)

% Freshman to Sophomore Persistence Rate

(Class of 2011)

% Completed Postsecondary Degree

Within 6 Years (Class of 2007)

% Enrolled in CT Public College/Univ. Taking Remedial

Coursework (Class of 2010)

Bridgeport Charter The Bridge Academy 67% 77% 37% 33%

Traditional Central High School 64% 82% 27% 74%

Traditional Bassick High School 44% 71% 11% 83% New

Haven Charter Amistad Academy

High School 100% 100% - 29%

Charter Common Ground

High School 70% 89% 7% 80%

Traditional Wilbur Cross High

School 55% 67% 16% 76%

Traditional Hillhouse High School 59% 79% 15% 78%

Stamford Charter Stamford Academy 33% 29% 8% >95%

Traditional Stamford High School 75% 87% 43% 68%

Traditional Westhill High School 74% 89% 41% 61%

Winchester Charter Explorations Charter School 39% 44% 13% *

CHARTER AVG. 62% 68% 16% 59%

STATE TOTAL 72% - 46% 48%


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Advanced Placement (AP) Exam Data (2014) All Public Charter School High Schools and Select Host District High Schools

City School Type School Name Number of

Exams Taken Number of Exams

Scoring 3-5 % Exams

Scoring 3-5

Bridgeport Charter The Bridge Academy 0 0 -

Traditional Central High School 235 115 48.9%

Traditional Bassick High School 91 7 7.7%

Hartford Charter Achievement First Hartford High School 38 11 28.9% Traditional Classical Magnet School 26 7 26.9% Traditional Bulkeley High School 37 11 29.7%

New Haven Charter Amistad Academy High School 133 58 43.6%

Charter Common Ground 46 13 28.3% Traditional Wilbur Cross High School 250 95 38.0% Traditional Hillhouse High School 138 22 15.9% Stamford Charter Stamford Academy 0 0 -

Traditional Stamford High School 651 397 61.0% Traditional Westhill High School 948 648 68.4%

Winchester Charter Explorations Charter School 0 0 -

CHARTER AVG. 36 21 56.7% STATE TOTAL 45,908 32,686 71.2%


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SAT Data (2013) All Public Charter High Schools and Host Districts

School Name Host District Average

Composite Score

% Scoring Above 600 on Any Test

Participation Rate

Bridgeport 1195.3 6% 62%

The Bridge Academy Bridgeport 1158.1 6% 97%

New Haven 1186.2 7% 97%

Amistad Academy High School New Haven 1472.3 23% 100%

Common Ground High School New Haven 1320 16% 100%

Stamford 1472.5 29% 68%

Stamford Academy Stamford 812.5 * *

Winchester No data available.

Explorations Charter School Winchester * * *

CHARTER AVG. 1190.7 15% 99% STATE TOTAL 1507.0 33% 73%


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Notes and Resources:

1. Unavailable data: In this document, if no data was reported, it is noted with a dash (-) or the phrase No Data Available. An asterisk (*) means that there were too few students to report data. Because Winchester Public Schools does not have a public high school within its district, and the town of Winchester is not part of a public regional school district, there is no host district comparison included for Explorations Charter School in Winchester. 2. College enrollment, persistence, and completion: These figures were collected from the Connecticut State Department of Education in reports generated by the National Student Clearinghouse. Data is available on the individual high school and statewide level. According to the state, These reports provide the most complete data about college going, persistence, and graduation that currently exist for Connecticuts public high schoolsThey provide information about students who graduated from Connecticut Public High Schools in 2006-07 through 2011-12 and subsequently enrolled in postsecondary institutions nationally at any point between June 2007 and November 14, 2014. Freshman to Sophomore Persistence is defined as the percentage of students enrolled in postsecondary education the first year after high school who remained enrolled at any postsecondary education the following year. Six-year completion rates include associates, bachelors, and advanced degree completion at two and four-year institutions but does not include certificates. If no data was reported, it is noted with a dash (-). Source: Conn. State Dept. of Educ. and National Student Clearinghouse, High School Reports on College Enrollment, Persistence, and Graduation. July 21, 2014. Hyperlink: http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/cwp/view.asp?a=2758&Q=33528 See also Conn. State Dept. of Educ., College Enrollment, Persistence, and Graduation: Statewide Results. 2014. Hyperlink: http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/lib/sde/pdf/evalresearch/college_enrollment_persistence_graduation_statewide_results.pdf 3. College remediation: Remediation rates are based on the percentage of students who attended public high school in Connecticut, enrolled in a Connecticut State University or Community College, and enrolled in at least one remediation course. This data is the most recent, publicly available and is from the high school graduating class of 2010. Source: Conn. State Dept. of Educ., College Entrance, Remediation, and Credit Earning: Results from P20WIN for the Graduation Cohort of 2010. 2014. Hyperlink: http://www.ct.edu/files/pdfs/p20win/RemediationReport-Classof2010-P20WIN.pdf 4. Postsecondary data comparisons: Data on college enrollment, persistence, and completion is currently only available on a statewide and individual school level. In order to provide comparison between charter high school and host district high schools, two high schools were selected from each host district. The two schools were selected were the largest two high schools in the host district based on 2013-2014 total school enrollment. Data was included on a school level for remediation although it is available on a district level in the primary source to maintain consistency in this document. Source: Conn. State Dept. of Educ., Public District Enrollment by Race and Gender. 2013-2013. Hyperlink: http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/cwp/view.asp?a=2758&q=334898 5. AP Exam Data (2014): According to the College Board, a score of 3 on the AP exam is the Qualified level, at which a candidate is capable of doing introductory-level coursework in college. AP data for 2014 is the most recent publicly available and is currently only available on a statewide and individual school level. AP state total data includes only public school candidates. In order to provide comparison between charter high school and host district high schools, two high schools were selected from each host district. The two schools were selected were the largest two high schools in the host district based on 2013-2014 total school enrollment. ConnCAN calculated the percentage of exams scoring 3 or higher based on the numbers for total exams taken and exams scoring a 3 or higher. Sources: Conn. State Dept. of Educ., Score Summary by High School Class of 2014. 2014. Hyperlink: http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/lib/sde/pdf/evalresearch/cthsdata201314.pdf. See also College Board, Connecticut Summary. 2014. Hyperlink: http://research.collegeboard.org/programs/ap/data/participation/ap-2014 See also College Board, About AP Scores. 2014. Hyperlink: https://apscore.collegeboard.org/scores/about-ap-scores 6. SAT Test Data (2013): SAT data for 2013 is the most recent publicly available that includes information regarding participation rates and college readiness benchmark data by state, district, and school. According to the College Board, the college-readiness benchmark for the SAT is 1550. However, the number of students at this level is not available by high school. Instead, the percentage of students scoring above 600 on any SAT section is included here as a proxy for this benchmark. Participation rate refers to the participation rate refers to the percentage of seniors taking the SAT. All 2013 SAT data is available in a series of data tables from the source cited for the 2012-2013 school year. Sources: Conn. State Dept. of Educ., Connecticut Education Data and Research (CEDaR). 2012-2013. Hyperlink: http://sdeportal.ct.gov/Cedar/WEB/ct_report/CedarHome.aspx Table names: SAT Composite Scores; SAT Over 600; Percent of Seniors by District and School.


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Public Charter School Enrollment (2013-2014) All Public Charter School Schools and Host Districts

School Name Host District Total

Enrollment

% Free or

Reduced Priced Lunch

% Special

Education

% English

Language Learners

% American

Indian

% Asian

American

% Black or African

American %

White

% Hispanic or Latino

% Pacific

Islander

% Two or More Races

Bridgeport 20,710 99.9% 12.6% 13.0% 0.4% 2.8% 37.5% 10.1% 48.7% 0.1% 0.4% The Bridge Academy Bridgeport 277 77.6% 13.0% * * * 55.2% * 36.8% * 4.0%

New Beginnings Inc. Family Academy

Bridgeport 402 83.1% 7.7% * 0.0% 0.0% 70.6% 2.0% 25.1% * 2.0%

Park City Prep Charter School Bridgeport 260 55.4% 8.1% * 0.0% * 53.8% 5.0% 39.6% 0.0% *

Achievement First Bridgeport Academy

Bridgeport 835 78.9% 6.9% 12.1% * 0.8% 56.3% 1.3% 40.7% 0.0% 0.7%

Hamden 5,745 40.6% 12.6% 4.1% 0.1% 8.1% 29.3% 41.6% 16.8% * 4.0% Highville

Charter School Hamden 361 72.0% 4.2% 0.0% 0.0% * 94.2% * 3.3% 0.0% *

Hartford 21,250 84.7% 13.4% 16.7% 0.3% 3.2% 31.2% 12.4% 49.5% 0.2% 3.3% Jumoke

Academy Hartford 704 63.8% 5.3% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 97.0% 0.0% 2.7% 0.0% *

Achievement First Hartford Academy Hartford 871 99.8% 8.8% 3.4% * * 83.0% * 15.4% * 1.1%

Manchester 6,210 54.9% 12.8% 5.7% 0.4% 8.2% 22.0% 40.3% 24.8% * 4.4%


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Enrollment

% Free or


% Special

Education

% English

Language Learners

% American

Indian

% Asian

American

% Black or African

American %

White


% Pacific

Islander

% Two or More Races

Odyssey Community

School Manchester 325 33.5% 8.6% 0.0% * 10.2% 22.2% 47.7% 16.6% 0.0% 3.1%

New Haven 21,304 65.9% 11.3% 12.7% 0.2% 2.1% 42.9% 15.1% 39.3% 0.0% 0.4% Amistad Academy New Haven 937 84.5% 5.4% 10.9% * 0.0% 59.9% 1.7% 36.3% 0.0% 1.8%

Common Ground High School New Haven 180 57.2% 16.7% * 0.0% * 32.2% 21.7% 41.7% 0.0% 3.9%

Elm City College Preparatory

School New Haven 624 77.7% 6.9% 7.2% * * 75.6% 1.1% 21.8% 0.0% *

New London 3,068 70.6% 17.1% 19.2% 0.6% 1.2% 23.7% 17.9% 49.5% 0.2% 6.9% Interdistrict

School For Arts And

Communication New London 246 62.2% 15.9% 15.4% * * 15.9% 29.3% 47.6% 0.0% 4.1%

Norwalk 11,091 49.2% 10.8% 11.5% 0.1% 4.8% 19.3% 35.0% 39.2% 0.1% 1.5% Side By Side

Charter School Norwalk 235 49.4% 5.5% 6.8% 0.0% 7.7% 26.4% 18.3% 40.9% * 6.0%

Norwich 3,740 73.4% 14.7% 12.4% 0.8% 7.1% 18.1% 35.6% 28.0% 0.3% 10.1% Integrated Day Charter School Norwich 330 35.5% 9.7% 8.5% * 9.4% 8.5% 60.6% 12.7% 0.0% 8.5%

Stamford 15,811 46.3% 9.9% 11.8% 0.1% 8.5% 19.2% 33.8% 37.3% * 1.1%


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Enrollment

% Free or


% Special

Education

% English

Language Learners

% American

Indian

% Asian Am

erican

% Black or African

American %

White


% Pacific

Islander

% Two or More Races

Stamford Academy Stamford 149 96.6% 16.8% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 61.1% * 35.6% 0.0% *

Trailblazers Academy Stamford 162 88.3% 24.7% 0.0% 0.0% * 54.9% 3.7% 38.9% 0.0% *

Waterbury 18,611 82.4% 16.6% 11.4% 0.4% 1.5% 23.9% 21.3% 49.4% 0.1% 3.3% Brass City

Charter School Waterbury 115 63.5% 5.2% 0.0% 0.0% * 30.4% 17.4% 40.9% 0.0% 10.4%

Winchester 626 55.6% 17.4% 3.7% * * 2.2% 91.9% 4.2 % * * Explorations

Charter School Winchester 83 32.5% 32.5% 0.0% * * * 91.6% * 0.0% *

ALL CHARTERS TOTAL 7,096 73.2% 8.6% 5.1% * 1.3% 60.6% 9.4% 25.8% * 1.9%

STATE TOTAL 545,614 37.1% 12.1% 5.7% 0.3% 4.7% 12.9% 58.5% 21.2% 0.1% 2.4% Notes and Resources: 1. Unavailable data: In order to protect individual student identities, the Conn. State Dept. of Educ. uses an asterisk (*) to denote a group of less than 5 students. 2. Total enrollment and demographic data: The data is reported for the 2013-2014 school year because it is the most recent publicly available enrollment data. Data for all racial/ethnic groups reported by the Conn. State Dept. of Educ. is included in this document. Since this dataset did not include percentages for student group enrollment, ConnCAN calculated percentages using the numbers reported in the primary source for student group enrollment and total enrollment for the schools and districts included in this document. Percentages for individual school, all charters, and total state enrollment are as accurate as possible without factoring in additional student enrollment denoted as asterisks by the Conn. State Dept. of Educ. This document also includes all student subgroups reported in the primary source with the exception of male and female.

Sources: Conn. State Dept. of Educ., Public District Enrollment by Race and Gender. 2013-2014. Hyperlink: http://www.csde.state.ct.us/public/performancereports/reports.asp For percentages of total student group enrollment for all charter schools and all public school students in the state of Connecticut, see also Conn. State Dept. of Educ. presentation to Conn. State Board of Educ., Turnaround Office Update. December 11, 2014. Hyperlink: http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/cwp/view.asp?a=2683&Q=335558


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3. Enrollment by student need indicator: The data is reported for the 2013-2014 school year because it is the most recent publicly available enrollment data by district. This dataset contains counts and percentages counts and percentages of special education students, English Language Learners (ELL), and students eligible for free or reduced price meals by district for the 2013-14 school year. In order to protect individual student identities, the Conn. State Dept. of Educ. uses an asterisk (*) to denote a group of less than 5 students. Source: Conn. Open Data, Indicators of Educational Need by District. 2013-14. Hyperlink: https://data.ct.gov/Education/Indicators-of-Educational-Need-by-District-2013-14/ufj7-82t7 4. New charter schools not included: Since the data reported in this document is from the 2013-2014 school year, it does not include enrollment for the four charter schools that opened in the 2014-2015 school year: Path Academy (state charter, Windham), Elm City Montessori (local charter, New Haven), Booker T. Washington Academy (state charter, New Haven), or Great Oaks Bridgeport (state charter, Bridgeport).

Sources: Conn. State Dept. of Educ., State Board of Education Approves 4 New Charter Schools. April 4, 2014. Hyperlink: http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/lib/sde/pdf/pressroom/state_board_of_education_approves_4_new_charter_schools.pdf See also Conn. State Dept. of Educ., State Board of Education Takes Action: Approves Two Commissioner's Network Plans and One Local Charter Application; Authorizes Flexibility Requests Concerning State Standardized Tests for 2013-14. July 16, 2013. Hyperlink: http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/lib/sde/pdf/pressroom/state_board_of_education_takes_action_071613.pdf

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!Quick Facts: Public Charter Schools in Connecticut Charter schools are non-profit, tuition-free, public schools of choice under Connecticut law. They are approved by the State Board of Education and are subject to renewal every five years. Charter Performance Charter schools provide high-quality options for minority and high-needs students. At least 75% of charter

schools exceed state averages for African American, Hispanic/Latino, and English Language Learner student performance at the elementary/middle school level.

Connecticuts charter schools are also preparing students for college and career. A number of charter high schools report college acceptance rates between 90% and 100%, with similarly high college persistence rates.

Student Enrollment Charter schools cannot restrict student enrollment in any way. If demand is higher than the number of

available seats, enrollment is determined through a random lottery. Charter schools serve a predominantly low-income and minority population. More than 85% of students in

Connecticut's charter schools are African American or Hispanic, and more than 70% of charter school students are low-income.

On average, 9% of charter school students qualify for special education and 5% are English Language Learners. There are currently 22 public charter schools serving more than 8,200 students. This accounts for 1.3% of the

states student population. Two more schools are approved to open in the 2015-2016 school year. Charter Policy and Funding 21 of the 22 charter schools in Connecticut are funded entirely by the state. There is no required contribution

from cities or towns for state charter schools. Connecticuts charter law is among the most outdated and lowest rated in the U.S., ranking 35th out of 43

states that have charter school laws. Connecticuts charter authorizing policies are among the countrys weakest, ranking 21st out of 21 states that

have few authorizers. Charter schools receive significantly less funding per pupil than similar traditional public schools - often

several thousands of dollars less. Evidence demonstrates an equity gap in funding between district and charter students of greater than 30%.

Demand for Charters Exceeds Growth The demand for charter schools in Connecticut is high. In 2013-2014, the number of students on waiting

lists for charter schools was more than 3,600. Charter growth has not kept pace with parent demand. Between 2010 and 2014, the number of total charter

school seats available has increased by 37%, while the number of students on waiting lists for charter schools has only decreased by only 13%.

Prior to the approval of seven charter schools between 2013 and 2014, Connecticut had not expanded charter school growth in five years.

Charters serve our highest-need students. All of the existing and approved charter schools are located within the states lowest performing districts. Some charter schools have a specialized focus for underserved student populations, including English Language Learners and over-aged, under-credited youth.

!Notes and Resources 1. Charter school law: Conn. Gen. Stat. 10-66aa (2014) http://www.cga.ct.gov/2013/pub/chap_164.htm#sec_10-66aa See also Conn. Gen. Stat. 10-66bb (2014) http://www.cga.ct.gov/2013/pub/chap_164.htm#sec_10-66bb See also Conn. Gen. Stat. 10-223f (2014) http://www.cga.ct.gov/2014/sup/chap_170.htm#sec_10-223f See also Conn. Gen. Stat. 10-66ee(d)(1) (2014) http://www.cga.ct.gov/2014/sup/chap_164.htm#sec_10-66ee See also Public Act 12-116 32 (f)(2) http://cga.ct.gov/2012/ACT/PA/2012PA-00116-R00SB-00458-PA.htm Notes: 1) Local charter schools require approval from the local Board of Education before State Board of Education approval. 2) Although state charter schools receive their funding from the state, one exception to this law is where a charter school and its host district enter into a voluntary agreement by which the charter schools student performance data may be calculated in the host district performance index, in exchange for in-kind contributions or other arrangements pursuant to this agreement. 3) Connecticut state law requires that two of the first four state charter schools approved between July 2012 and July 2017 must have a dual language or English Language Learner focus. 2. Enrollment and performance data: Conn. State Dept. of Educ., Charter School Accountability & 2015 Renewal. Presentation to the Conn. State Board of Educ. January 2015. http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/cwp/view.asp?a=2683&q=322228 See also Conn. State Dept. of Educ., Biennial Report on the Operation of Charter Schools. 2014. http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/lib/sde/pdf/equity/charter/report_on_the_operation_of_charter_schools.pdf See also Conn. State Dept. of Educ., School & District Performance Reports 2012-2013. http://www.csde.state.ct.us/public/performancereports/20122013reports.asp Notes: All student enrollment, performance, and wait list figures are the most recently available from the CSDE and based on data available for all charter schools in that year. Student subgroup enrollment figures are based on 2013-2014 data. The definition of low-income in this document is the percentage of students who qualify for free/reduced price lunch. Total enrollment figures are based on 2014-2015 student data. Performance figures are based on 2012-2013 School Performance Index (SPI) data for all subgroups with available data within each charter school; SPIs were reported for 14 charter schools on the CMT (elementary/middle school) and 6 charter schools on the CAPT (high school). Wait list totals are based on 2013-2014 and 2009-2010 data. In 2009-2010, the number of students on wait lists was 4,186 and the number of students enrolled in charters was 5,170. In 2013-2014, the number of students on wait lists was 3,633 and the number of students enrolled in charters was 7,085. 3. National-level research reports: National Alliance for Public Charter Schools (NAPCS). Measuring Up to the Model: A Ranking of State Charter School Laws - Connecticut. January 2015. http://www.publiccharters.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/model_law_2015.pdf See also The National Association of Charter School Authorizers (NASCA). On The Road to Better Accountability: An Analysis of State Charter School Policies. December 2014. http://www.qualitycharters.org/assets/files/Documents/Policy/NACSA_014_SLR_FINAL_1-15-15.pdf See also University of Arkansas. Charter School Funding: Inequity Expands. April 2014. http://www.uaedreform.org/wp-content/uploads/charter-school-funding-report.pdf Notes: In the NAPCS report, Connecticut ranks in the lowest tier of states. In the NASCA report, Connecticut earns only four points out of a possible 30 points in an evaluation that measured authorizer performance and evaluation, management, and school default closure proceedings. 4. Recent approvals and openings: All Conn. State Dept. of Education press releases on charter school approvals listed below link to the approved applications and may be found at this hyperlink: http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/cwp/view.asp?a=2604&Q=320362 See Conn. State Dept. of Educ., State Board of Education Approves 4 New Charter Schools. April 2, 2014. See also Conn. State Dept. of Educ., State Board of Education Takes Action: Approves Two Commissioners Network Plans and One Local Charter Application; Authorizes Flexibility Requests Concerning State Standardized Tests for 2013-14. July 16, 2013. See also Conn. State Dept. of Educ., New State Charter Schools Approved by State Board of Education. June 6, 2013. Notes: The first of these new schools opened in Waterbury at the start of the 2013-14 school year. All seven schools are expected to open by the start of the 2015-16 school year. The applications for Great Oaks Charter School in Bridgeport and the Path Academy in Windham both indicate an ELL specialization. Path Academy also serves over-aged, under-credited youth. Both schools opened in the fall of 2014.

5. College acceptance and persistence: Conn. State Dept. of Educ., High School Reports on College Enrollment, Persistence, and Graduation. July 2014. http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/cwp/view.asp?a=2758&Q=335288 See also Common Ground High School. http://commongroundct.org/high-school/college-success/ See also Amistad High School. http://www.achievementfirst.org/schools/connecticut-schools/achievement-first-amistad-high-school/ Notes: College persistence rates indicate the percent of high school graduates who enrolled in college in the year following high school and were still enrolled through their sophomore year. College acceptance rates are reported individually by high school for 2014.

!Summary and Analysis of Public Accountability for Charter Schools: Standards and Policy Recommendations for Effective Oversight, Annenberg Institute for School

Reform, Brown University1

This report includes seven broad standards to provide guidance for public charter school governance based on oversight, transparency, and policy recommendations. These standards and recommendations2 address charter school performance, attrition, discipline, funding, and governance/oversight. The reports goal is to advance standards that benefit both charter schools and traditional schools and help rebuild public trust in our nations public education system.

The seven broad standards are promising as they focus on ensuring quality performance, public transparency, comparable structures, resources, and conditions to traditional public schools:

1. Traditional districts and charter schools should work together to ensure a coordinated approach that serves all children.

2. School governance should be representative and transparent. 3. Charter schools should ensure equal access to interested students and prohibit

practices that discourage enrollment or disproportionately push enrolled students out of the school.

4. Charter school discipline policy should be fair and transparent. 5. Since all students deserve equitable and adequate school facilities, districts and charter

schools should work together to ensure that facility arrangements do not disadvantage students in either sector.

6. Online charter schools should be better regulated for quality, transparency, and the protection of student data (note: CT has no online charters).

7. Monitoring and oversight of charter schools is critical to protecting the public interest. They should be strong and fully funded by the state.

The report offers some promising recommendations that promote strong accountability and oversight, without compromising quality or flexibility, including: Requiring full financial disclosure reports from members of charter school governing

boards, identifying potential conflicts of interest with the school, management company, or other charter schools.

Requiring every charter school to make its school discipline policy publicly available on the schools website.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1 Source: The Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University. Public Accountability for Charter Schools: Standards and Policy Recommendations for Effective Oversight. Sept. 2014. Hyperlink: http://annenberginstitute.org/sites/default/files/CharterAccountabilityStds.pdf 2 The recommendations were developed when, in 2012-2013, the Annenberg Institute for School Reform (AISR) and Communities for Public Education Reform (CPER) convened a working group of grassroots organizers and leaders from cities across the country. The working group identified common areas of concern related to charter school expansion and studied both current state charter school laws as well as model laws and standards from the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools (NAPCS) and the National Association of Charter School Authorizers (NACSA). The standards and recommendations in this report is the culmination of the groups work.

! Requiring an annual assessment on the impact of charter schools on traditional school districts conducted by the CSDE, including information pertaining to: flow of funding, student enrollment, educational outcomes, and best practices to be shared across sectors.

The report, however, includes a number of recommendations that would restrict the autonomy and flexibility that is key to charters ability to best serve students and could prevent high-quality options from growing and serving more kids in Connecticut, including: Capping the number of charter schools the State Department of Education may grant

unless and until adequate oversight is provided. With nearly 40,000 students in Connecticut trapped in persistently failing

schools,3 the state cannot afford to slow or halt the growth of high-quality options.

Setting limitations on charter school board membership (including geographical or representational limitations).

This further limits and restricts the flexibility and independent governance central to charter schools to deliver a high quality education to traditionally underserved students.

Require that charter schools retain legal counsel as well as accounting and financial audit capacity that is independent of any Charter Management Organization.

Managing charter schools in requirements such as this undermines the authority and autonomy granted to charter school boards to make operational and financial decisions that are in the best interests of the students they serve. Moreover, requiring schools to retain legal counsel and other such services would impose unnecessary and redundant costs to schools. Charter schools that belong to a CMO depend on legal and other services that are centralized within charter management organization, just as traditional public schools rely on their school district for centralized services.

While we must hold schools accountable for unacceptable practices, we should not punish the public charter schools that continue to provide a high-quality option to students. In updating our charter law, we must set policies to push for stronger authorizing and State Board oversight without over-regulation that would stifle innovation and prevent these schools from fulfilling their mission and delivering a high-quality education to our states most underserved students. With nearly 4,000 families on charter school waitlists, we must find ways to ensure that parents who are demanding these options should have an opportunity to send their children to high-quality public schools.4

The Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now is a research and advocacy organization committed to promoting student-focused policies to ensure all of Connecticuts students have equal access to quality public schools.

Learn more at conncan.org. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!3 ConnCAN. A Crisis We Can Solve: Connecticuts Failing Schools and Their Impact. November 2014. http://www.conncan.org/media-room/2014-11-connecticut-education-in-crisis-40000-children-trapp 4 Conn. State Dept. of Educ. Charter School Accountability & 2015 Renewal. Presentation to the Connecticut State Board of Education. January 2015. http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/cwp/view.asp?a=2683&q=322228

www.conncan.org (203) 772-4017 85 Willow St. New Haven CT 06511

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How does SB 943, An Act Concerning Charter School Modernization and Reform Stack up Against the NACSA Report On the Road to Better Accountability: An Analysis of State Charter School Policies?

In its report, On the Road to Better Accountability: An Analysis of State Charter School Policies,1 the National Association of Charter School Authorizers (NACSA) identifies eight state policies to increase accountability for public charter schools and their authorizers. This report shows that Connecticuts charter school authorizing policies and nearly 20-year old public charter school law lag far behind other states and must be improved to ensure proper accountability for public charter schools and charter school authorizers. This legislative session, through SB 943, An Act Concerning Charter School Modernization and Reform, Connecticut has the opportunity to strengthen our outdated public charter school law to reflect national best practices in charter school authorizing, governance, and oversight. The NACSA report helps identify areas of weakness with our current law, and offers recommendations on creating stronger charter accountability policies, such as: approving only high-quality new schools, monitoring performance of all schools, empowering successful schools to grow, and closing schools that persistently fail. According to NACSA report, Connecticut ranks lowest in its group of 21 states,2 scoring only 4 out of 30 possible points, and earning points in only one out of the eight identified policy areas.3 Connecticut is falling behind other states, as four top-ranked states in this category recently underwent major revisions to their charter law. According to NACSA :

Connecticut needs to significantly improve its charter law to include charter school accountability policies that institute authorizer accountability Connecticut should also examine its current law regarding charter school board governance and financial and organizational transparency to ensure that it provides an authorizer the information needed to enforce charter contracts in a timely manner.

The table below shows that SB 943 would reflect many of the NACSAs policy recommendations to significantly improve Connecticuts authorizing policies and align the states laws and policies to reflect best practices.

1 Natl Assn of Charter School Authorizers, On the Road to Better Accountability: An Analysis of State Charter School Policies, Dec. 2014. http://www.qualitycharters.org/assets/files/Documents/Policy/NACSA_014_SLR_FINAL_1-15-15.pdf. 2 Connecticut falls into Group 3, which is for states with only 1-2 non-district authorizers because the State Board of Education (SBE) is the only authorizer for state charter schools. Local charter schools must be approved first by the local Board of Education, then by the SBE. Id. 3 Connecticut earns four points for Alternative Authorizer, because the State Board of Education (SBE) is considered an alternative authorizer. See id.

www.conncan.org (203) 772-4017 85 Willow St. New Haven CT 06511

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Comparison of NACSAs Recommendations to SB 943

NACSA Recommendation S.B. No. 943

Establish authorizer standards consistent with national professional

standards and best practices.

Adopts best practices of quality authorizing, including increased accountability and oversight measures for charter schools, charter management

organizations, and the states authorizer.

Authorizes the State Department of Education to issue regulations requiring background checks, anti-nepotism policies, and conflict of interest policies

consistent with state law and best practices in nonprofit corporate governance Require regular annual and public performance reporting by

authorizers on overall and school-specific performance. Requires annual performance and accountability reporting by governing

boards and the State Department of Education Grant charter authorizers with the authority and responsibility to use best

practices in performance management, including performance contracts and tools that help evaluate growth planning to replicate high-

performing schools successfully.

Requires performance contracts between charter schools and the authorizer that sets forth the roles, responsibilities, and performance expectations of both the charter school and the State Board of Education (including academic and

organizational performance goals). Enable charter authorizers to decide not to renew a school if it fails to

meet the performance standards and expectations established in the schools charter contract.

Establish an expectation for school closures as a consequence

for persistently failing charter schools through a state-established default closure provision.

Conditions charter school approval, growth, renewal and closure on meeting

organizational and academic performance expectations

The Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now is a research and advocacy organization committed to promoting student-focused policies to ensure all of Connecticuts students have equal access to quality public schools. Learn more at conncan.org.