Truth about being three coughs above FARMS at a high performing Charter School

Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:OP, to the extent that you are describing how you and your family have been made to feel -- marginalized, unheard, etc. -- your post is thought-provoking and definitely a valuable read. But in addition to that, you have raised some very serious allegations. It's no joke to claim that

a certain school only gives the rich kids to the best teachers,

that they give better grades to kids purely because they come from wealthy families,

and that the school will manipulate residency paperwork to effectively kick you out if you complain about any of it.


To me, those allegations diminish the credibility of your post. If they were real, you would name the school or at the very list notify the PCSB and give them all of the proof you have. If these things are acghakkj going on, it's pretty cowardly to throw around veiled anonymous accusations.


+1000 Please name the evil HRCS where all these nefarious deeds happen!


Pretty easy to tell if you've had any exposure to her - I'm not the only pp who knows who this is. And sorry folks, I don't want to out her because she wisely didn't name a school, and I encourage the others that know who OP is to do the same. If she did name a school though, I guarantee there would be many more people than I calling her out on her BS.

OP:

I know one of your kids. And, I must say, you're doing something right: Sweet, thoughtful, courteous. I hope you can get over whatever this is you've built up in your head. She's wanted, and would be a loss to the community if she weren't around. Don't penalize her for your insecurities.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:OP here, thanks for the feedback and additional opinions. I probably could have been a bit more concise with everything. I just don't think that there are honest conversations about the day to day experience that many middle income families have at high demand charter schools. And I wish someone would have written something like this when I was starting out.

As a new parent several years ago, I've seen the charter school movement in DC go from unique pockets of primarily small, independent schools to an industry of branding and replication that many schools are today. While the remnants and impression of a diverse landscape are there, it is fading fast when one truly unpacks what happens in the classroom.

The pressure to expand, grow, and replicate many times means that the public tuition paid for middle income and lower income (above FARMS) kids are used as leverage to fund the expansion programs. Parents are pressured to keep quiet and go with the flow, especially if you want your kid's residency verification paperwork to not magically disappear when it’s time to re-apply or renew admission for the next fall.

The public tuition that is paid for each student does not vary based on income; the access and delivery of an equal education should reflect this equality. Many performance ratings of "high demand" schools ride on the academic achievement of children that pay for supplementation outside of the school, while the school itself provides a low quality, lackluster education program to a specific segment of their students within the school. And they can afford to do better.

The operative word in this conversation is "Public". I agree that many of the same issues expressed in this post are experienced at private institutions. However, if the activity and support of wealthier families at public schools grossly benefits the children of wealthier families yet marginally helps poorer families, this creates a disparate impact on the middle income and lower income families that depend on the school's existence.



With the exception of KIPP, none of the highly regarded charters in DC are part of a network that has any interest in expansion. At least none of the ones that are highly regarded on this forum. All of the chain charters are focused on low-SES students (KIPP, CAPCS, Friendship). There is no expansion plan for Latin, Yu Ying, Mundo Verde, Creative Minds, etc.


BASIS is also expanding out to additional grades but what OP described in that initial post definitely does not describe anything about BASIS.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I am a working class parent of a child that attends a highly demanded public DC Charter School. A school that is sought out by thousands of parents, has long waiting lists, and is the subject of much debate on DCUMD forums. My children have been in several high demand public schools for over 10 years.

I'd like to share a bit about my experience if you are considering sending your child to a highly demanded public school.

I am a parent that:

Finished college;
Has a thankless job, pays taxes;
Takes no government income subsidy to feed my family; and
Is far from wealthy in any form.

With that out of the way, here it goes. At high demand public charter schools, there is a clear understanding that the only families that have a real voice are the wealthy families. They can afford the $2,000-$10,000 donations that quietly roll in. The wealthy families are the ones that can afford the high priced auxiliary programs. The wealthy families are the ones that are not impacted by school being closed on odd days in the middle of the week, or consistently with week long breaks in instruction.

The donations and social leverage of these families ensure that their children are chosen for extra perks, special activities, and instruction. It also puts added pressure on the public teachers at the school to give their children high marks on subjective assessment scales. The children of working parents are relegated to being tracked in "meeting the standard" or "below standard", as it compares to their wealthy peers, who many times supplement instruction with private tutoring.

At a private school, the wealthy charter school children would be one of many with parents of status and influence. The majority of children would have access to private tutoring. The majority of children may summer in exotic locations and have elevated points of reference. Competition to shine would be high; they would actually have to work hard to stand out.

Alternatively, at the high demand public charter school, children of the wealthy and almost wealthy easily stand out in stark contrast to their lower class peers.

Wealthy parents are recognized as "pioneers", "friends of public education","school reformers", and "parent organization leaders". But many are really attention seekers using public education to save money and to generate their own personal relevance. Listservs are abundant at these schools coupled with a clear understanding that a large portion of the school's parents may not have regular internet or technology access.

In a way the gentrification we see in real estate has a parallel model to what we see in the charter school movement; looks good from the outside, but on the inside, the marginalization of the economic classes is apparent. Like H Street, it might look a lot nicer, but the working people who always lived their can now no longer afford to eat there.

And the high demand charter school is an expensive place to eat.

The average cost of private tutoring runs from $30-$50 dollars per hour. Most parents that can afford to pay for private tutoring do so, and offset the public charter school's arbitrary instruction. As many these schools do not receive Title I funds, they are known for hiring teachers with little classroom experience to save money. Your lower income DS or DD will still have just as much chance of having that fresh out of school teacher as any other public school in DC. Be advised that the poorer kids will be routed to the inexperienced teacher a lot quicker than the rich ones will.

High performing charter schools are under little to no scrutiny by outsiders; they ride off the testing performance of the rich kids as if the school is producing/instructing at a higher level. In turn, they are not required to ensure academic assistance pathways for students, unless the student is one to two grades below level or on FARMS.

Low income parent (45-65K), be wary. There is no guarantee that just because your child attends the high demand school that they are truly being taught by highly qualified and capable educators on a daily basis. At times, you will find that your concerns are responded to with arrogance and be tinged with an undercurrent of apathy. You will definitely hear the phrases, "We are a school of choice." and "Well if you don't like what we are doing, go to your neighborhood school."

Do not make the mistake of believing that you just won the golden ticket because your child's name was chosen in the charter school lottery for a high demand charter school. A good school is one where your child can feel physically, socially, and emotionally safe to open themselves up for learning. A great school is one that can provide the environment of a good school, while simultaneously providing well thought out pathways that push every student to their highest potential, regardless of income.

You will have to do the same child advocacy work that you may have expected at a poorer performing school; but without the wraparound services that a poorer performing school would have to provide, due to increased outside versight. Just keep that in mind.

Would I have done anything differently over these ten years? Yes. I think I would have read this post and kept its points in mind.









You just described all of DCPS in a nutshell. High SES families get Mann or Key or Lafayette. Low SES families get HD Cooke, Cardozo, Amidon-Bowen, and Ballou.



Do you really mean "get"? I think you mean "make". High SES are always going to demand something better and if they don't get it they will leave the system. The solution is affordable housing plus living wages, not school reform alone. That always fails just look at Newark NJ.




Hmm, does this mean that high-SES families are good or evil? According to OP, they're a terrible scourge on charters. According to PP, they're a beneficial influence on DCPS. Yet both are public schools. So which is it?


Neither good nor evil. Just a fact of life, there are haves and have nots. Both groups are entitled to use the public schools because they are public. Low SES students often draw more per student funding but my point above is that education policy alone is not going to alter anything much. And, yes, the Newark story is on target because it shows that if riots drive the middle class from a city, don't think charter schools are going to uplift the poor who are left behind. Gentrification won't improve it either. Only an integrated education-economic policy will. Which we are not getting anytime soon...



Except that's exactly what's happening. Charters & gentrification ARE uplifting the poor - at least in DC. & the performance scores prove it.
Anonymous
Thanks for an excellent post.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:We definitely fit in the lower income category, though we're nowhere near FARMS levels. I just can't relate to a single thing in OP's post. The primary issue I have is that it's hard to be involved in the school when I work during school hours (and beyond) and have little flexibility.

I just don't understand how anyone at the school has any idea what our income is or where we fit on a socio economic continuum. We're never asked for monetary donations and I have absolutely no idea at all how our income compares to his class mates - none.

But perhaps our charter school just isn't popular or "highly regarded" enough.


I wondered how everyone at the school knows so much about each others finances - when we enrolled at our charter I don't recall anyone asking for my bank statement. I also don't recall sizing up any of the other parents there to enroll and missed the dollar/cents signs over their heads.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:OP, to the extent that you are describing how you and your family have been made to feel -- marginalized, unheard, etc. -- your post is thought-provoking and definitely a valuable read. But in addition to that, you have raised some very serious allegations. It's no joke to claim that a certain school only gives the rich kids to the best teachers, that they give better grades to kids purely because they come from wealthy families, and that the school will manipulate residency paperwork to effectively kick you out if you complain about any of it. To me, those allegations diminish the credibility of your post. If they were real, you would name the school or at the very list notify the PCSB and give them all of the proof you have. If these things are acghakkj going on, it's pretty cowardly to throw around veiled anonymous accusations.


+1 if OPs allegations are true where are the stories about how she fought against this discrimination? Surely OP would not keep her child enrolled in such a despicable place!
Anonymous
Good idea not to "out" the OP, as you may think you know who OP is but you may be wrong. I have heard similar stories from low and middle income families at charter, public, and private schools It is a little strange that this post would turn so personnel so quickly. Makes me wonder if OP and those who "know" her are in fact the same person.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:Good idea not to "out" the OP, as you may think you know who OP is but you may be wrong. I have heard similar stories from low and middle income families at charter, public, and private schools It is a little strange that this post would turn so personnel so quickly. Makes me wonder if OP and those who "know" her are in fact the same person.


? Are you saying that OP is having a conversation with herself, pretending people are saying they know who she is?
Anonymous
What's "three coughs above FARMS"? Sorry if it's a dumb question but I've been trying to figure it out all day.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Good idea not to "out" the OP, as you may think you know who OP is but you may be wrong. I have heard similar stories from low and middle income families at charter, public, and private schools It is a little strange that this post would turn so personnel so quickly. Makes me wonder if OP and those who "know" her are in fact the same person.


? Are you saying that OP is having a conversation with herself, pretending people are saying they know who she is?


Not sure, just don't understand how people could know who she is. Personally I think that she wants us all to believe she is referring to YuYing without naming the school. I have heard that they have a lot (more than typical) professional days; timeline seems to fit; expansion funding = DCI; etc. The thing is I have heard complaints similar to hers about other HRCS. This is why it is hard for me to believe that anyone would truly know who she is. If the post is real I do feel for her; but after reading some of the "I know who you are and I know you child" responses I am left feeling that it is all a little off. Why would anyone mention her child even to compliment? Just seems like someone is going out of their way to be sensational.
Anonymous
Well, at least I think I know who she isn't.

She sure isn't at our "HRC" - or if she is, she's seriously delusional.
Anonymous
I agree that people who claim they know who she is may very well not. But I don't think she is posing as them (though Jeff would probably know).
Anonymous
Not at mine either as I have been told I would know who she is if I had been "exposed" to her.
Anonymous
I have to say, as an outsider, and one of the new new york arrivals to your school system, I have to ask:

There is no expansion plan for Latin, Yu Ying, Mundo Verde, Creative Minds, etc.


Why the hell not? If you have highly regarded public charter systems that work, why not expand them? You people are like the Park Slope Co-oP.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:I have to say, as an outsider, and one of the new new york arrivals to your school system, I have to ask:

There is no expansion plan for Latin, Yu Ying, Mundo Verde, Creative Minds, etc.


Why the hell not? If you have highly regarded public charter systems that work, why not expand them? You people are like the Park Slope Co-oP.


heh.

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