The Sojourner Truth School - possible new public middle and high school option

[JLessek]

Hi all --

I am part of a team trying to launch a new public Montessori middle and high school in D.C. If approved, it would be called the Sojourner Truth School and now that the school is getting closer to reality I wanted to introduce our vision.

With a mission to empower students to transform the world, Truth aims to become D.C.'s first public Montessori middle and high school, and a high-quality option for all students of D.C. - regardless of whether or not they have prior experience with Montessori.

Truth's leadership and design teams combine individuals with backgrounds teaching and leading in local public Montessori schools with those who have extensive experience and success innovating in non-Montessori D.C. public middle and high schools, and we are working to ensure that all staff receive aligned training.

The leadership and design teams strongly believe in the original tenets of the Montessori Method and its underlying philosophy of inclusivity. We have intentionally designed our model to be accessible to all students, and one of our goals is to reach families that have not yet had Montessori access and may not even be aware of Montessori as an option. Truth seeks to provide continuity of programming through the 12th grade for those that are already invested in Montessori, and also to utilize open enrollment as a way to provide broad access to anyone from around the District looking for a personalized and holistic approach that deliberately prepares students to become independent, confident, and resourceful adults.

As a seventeen-year veteran of Chicago and DC Public Schools and the parent of two public school students here in D.C., I'm thrilled to be part of the team for Truth. If you are interested in a new and high-quality public school option for middle and high school, there are a number of ways to learn more and help support our effort.

To learn more about our model:

• Please visit us at www.thetruthschool.org
• Send an email with questions or ideas directly to me at [e-mail].
• Attend one of our upcoming info sessions (dates available here). Our next sessions will be in Wards 5, 4, and 7.
• Read our charter application here.

To show your support:

• Take 20 seconds to sign on to our petition here
• Send a quick email to the Public Charter School Board ([e-mail]) expressing your support for the Truth School. Just one or two sentences is fine!

To get involved:

• Come join us at a public hearing pf the D.C. Public Charter School Board on April 22nd. RSVP here.
• If you're interested in joining one of our design teams (academic, culture and climate, or parent), please email me ([e-mail]) to coordinate.

Thank you to all for your consideration of the above, and please don't hesitate to reach out to me directly ([e-mail]) with any questions, concerns, or to continue the conversation.

Justin Lessek

[Anonymous]

1. How many seats are you offering for 6th and how many will be open to students who have not been in a Montnessori elementary school.

2. If there is a Montessori preference, has that been approved by the City Council (the way DCIs had to be) or is that not required for some reason?

3. Which ward will you open in?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:1. How many seats are you offering for 6th and how many will be open to students who have not been in a Montnessori elementary school.

2. If there is a Montessori preference, has that been approved by the City Council (the way DCIs had to be) or is that not required for some reason?

3. Which ward will you open in?

4. How is it equitable to apply a Montessori preference, knowing that it will skew your class high-income? Will there also be an at-risk preference to balance it out?

[Anonymous]

Are you going to be one of those schools that pats itself on the back for good test scores but it isn't actually that impressive because almost all the kids are high-income?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are you going to be one of those schools that pats itself on the back for good test scores but it isn't actually that impressive because almost all the kids are high-income?

Wow! People are really negative here. So far the school hasn’t even opened, and it’s already discriminated against low SES. Can anyone win here?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you going to be one of those schools that pats itself on the back for good test scores but it isn't actually that impressive because almost all the kids are high-income?

Wow! People are really negative here. So far the school hasn’t even opened, and it’s already discriminated against low SES. Can anyone win here?

No, nobody can win here. But people can ask the questions that are actually on their minds. So, I'd love to know the plan for how Sojourner Truth is going to avoid being Sojourner Wealthy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you going to be one of those schools that pats itself on the back for good test scores but it isn't actually that impressive because almost all the kids are high-income?

Wow! People are really negative here. So far the school hasn’t even opened, and it’s already discriminated against low SES. Can anyone win here?

Tough questions =/= negativity. It would be paid for with all our tax dollars. The questions are valid.

[Anonymous]

Lol Sojourner Wealth. What specifically is the plan to bring in families who are low-income and/or haven't been exposed to Montessori, and do you intend to really follow through or are you just saying what the DCPCSB likes to hear?

How will you balance the different cultures and expectations and academic levels of the entering students? Many HRCS elementaries have struggled mightily with this at middle school.

[Anonymous]

OP, good luck with your school - I sincerely mean that. DC needs more good middle and high school options, for all, and there is no reason that can't be yours. Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Where has the OP gone?

[Anonymous]

The OP was just spamming us and has no good answers to the questions.

[Anonymous]

??? the comments on this are why we can’t have nice things. I assume the lottery system will be used which means that admission will be SES-blind. Do charters skew wealthier? Probably. But I can tell you that our Montessori elementary is much more diverse than the Montessori school we previously attended in the burbs. Nothing is going to be perfect. You can’t force lower SES families to choose Montessori. Last I checked middle and UMC kids deserve a good education too but the more strong middle school options we have outside of Deal, the better it is for everyone.

The funny thing is that I bet the people complaining about (perceived) lack of diversity are the same people complaining about the lack of middle school options in the city.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:??? the comments on this are why we can’t have nice things. I assume the lottery system will be used which means that admission will be SES-blind. Do charters skew wealthier? Probably. But I can tell you that our Montessori elementary is much more diverse than the Montessori school we previously attended in the burbs. Nothing is going to be perfect. You can’t force lower SES families to choose Montessori. Last I checked middle and UMC kids deserve a good education too but the more strong middle school options we have outside of Deal, the better it is for everyone.

The funny thing is that I bet the people complaining about (perceived) lack of diversity are the same people complaining about the lack of middle school options in the city.

The OP is claiming that one of the goals is to reach students who haven't had Montessori exposure. So what's the plan? Recruit at your high-income feeder schools and then say oh, too bad so sad, guess we'll have to have mostly high-income kids? Or is there a real plan to achieve the OP's own stated goal?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:??? the comments on this are why we can’t have nice things. I assume the lottery system will be used which means that admission will be SES-blind. Do charters skew wealthier? Probably. But I can tell you that our Montessori elementary is much more diverse than the Montessori school we previously attended in the burbs. Nothing is going to be perfect. You can’t force lower SES families to choose Montessori. Last I checked middle and UMC kids deserve a good education too but the more strong middle school options we have outside of Deal, the better it is for everyone.

The funny thing is that I bet the people complaining about (perceived) lack of diversity are the same people complaining about the lack of middle school options in the city.

Charters do not skew wealthier. And they have more students of color and students with disabilities than DCPS (as of last year).

Creating a charter with a feeder system is in direct contradiction to the DC School Reform Act and requires legislative approval by the Council. To date, they have only approved it for children with disabilities and students in military families.

More diverse than your suburban Montessori is the wrong point of comparison. DC school age population is only 10% white and 40% at-risk. More students live in Wards 7 and 8 than any other Ward.

And if Sojourner Truth school is going to live up to its proposed namesake’s legacy, they best figure out how to attract, support and educate underserved kids first and foremost.

Personally the name of this school, knowing the school driving this and its demographics, is borderline offensive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:??? the comments on this are why we can’t have nice things. I assume the lottery system will be used which means that admission will be SES-blind. Do charters skew wealthier? Probably. But I can tell you that our Montessori elementary is much more diverse than the Montessori school we previously attended in the burbs. Nothing is going to be perfect. You can’t force lower SES families to choose Montessori. Last I checked middle and UMC kids deserve a good education too but the more strong middle school options we have outside of Deal, the better it is for everyone.

The funny thing is that I bet the people complaining about (perceived) lack of diversity are the same people complaining about the lack of middle school options in the city.

The OP is claiming that one of the goals is to reach students who haven't had Montessori exposure. So what's the plan? Recruit at your high-income feeder schools and then say oh, too bad so sad, guess we'll have to have mostly high-income kids? Or is there a real plan to achieve the OP's own stated goal?

Or talk to him. It sounds like he is willing to be contacted if he puts his email address into the DCUM vipers den