Basis Mclean

[Anonymous]

Any updates? Anyone been to a recent info session? Are the sales rumors true?

[Anonymous]

What sales rumors?

[Anonymous]

11/08/2015. 7:35

[Anonymous]

Local outreach http://www.connectionnewspapers.com/news/2015/nov/02/us-rep-comstock-visits-basis-independent-mclean/

[Anonymous]

It should be called Basis-Tysons. It is in Tyson's. Soon, it will have a Tyson's zip code.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What sales rumors?

What do you mean by 'sales rumors' ?

[Anonymous]

I'm a former Basis admin and am now a principal at another school. I was not fired but left for a better paying job. Despite their claims, Basis has a hard time retaining admin and teachers. Few HOS stay in one school for more than a year and many admin and teachers leave after one year, either for better opportunities at other new Basis schools or they leave the organization. There is no difference at all in the curriculum between the independent schools and charters. In fact, when they hired me, they claimed the only reason they were opening private schools was because those states would not allow them to use their curriculum in charters so they had no choice. The independent schools are all tuition based charters. Also, most of their school openings were delayed due to the buildings not being ready. Our independent school opened two weeks late and Brooklyn was a year behind schedule and opened in a rented space that was an old paper factory. Would you pay 25k for that?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm a former Basis admin and am now a principal at another school. I was not fired but left for a better paying job. Despite their claims, Basis has a hard time retaining admin and teachers. Few HOS stay in one school for more than a year and many admin and teachers leave after one year, either for better opportunities at other new Basis schools or they leave the organization. There is no difference at all in the curriculum between the independent schools and charters. In fact, when they hired me, they claimed the only reason they were opening private schools was because those states would not allow them to use their curriculum in charters so they had no choice. The independent schools are all tuition based charters. Also, most of their school openings were delayed due to the buildings not being ready. Our independent school opened two weeks late and Brooklyn was a year behind schedule and opened in a rented space that was an old paper factory. Would you pay 25k for that?

Just curious, are you now at another independent school, a public school, or some other category of school? Is the reason they have a hard time retaining teachers and admins because of pay? If not, what other factors? Or is their retention rate just not any different from any other public school, charter or otherwise?

[Anonymous]

I am at a nonprofit private school. I think the retention issues are due to a number of factors. The most frustrating, for teachers, would probably be the lack of experience of the administration. There is also a great deal of nepotism and favoritism in the higher admin hiring decisions...Heads of School promote their friends rather than doing a search or having a real hiring process. This creates a negative atmosphere at the school and often leads to the wrong person being in the role, which means that lower admin and teachers aren't getting the necessary support, guidance, and training they need. In Arizona, their teacher pay may be decent, but in other states it is significantly lower than district schools and other private school. Teacher pay is higher for science and engineering, but still not on par with local districts. Many teachers have no experience teaching middle and high school students and get burned out from lack of support and overwork. At my current school, full time teachers teach 3-4 classes a year. At Basis, many teachers are given 6 classes a year for the same or less money. While it's true, teacher turnover is an issue everywhere, I have NEVER seen teachers leave in the middle of the year at any school I have worked for. At BASIS, I saw 4 quit mid-year (two in the first two months) and this year two have left already in the first month. I can't imagine losing that many of my teachers mid-year. Even one would be a disaster...it's hard to find good teachers, especially in the fall!

[Anonymous]

Very helpful, thank you. That's quite a record. Is your description applicable to the independent BASIS schools or only the charter schools?

[Anonymous]

Meaning the salaries and high turnover of teachers and admins?

[Anonymous]

Yes, I am wondering if the low salaries, lack of support, and high teacher turn-over is a problem in independent BASIS schools as much as the charter BASIS schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes, I am wondering if the low salaries, lack of support, and high teacher turn-over is a problem in independent BASIS schools as much as the charter BASIS schools.

The other independent schools have only been open a year.

[Anonymous]

Yes, I know, but do they have low salaries, poor support, and high teacher turnover, such as what you earlier described? It sounds like the teacher turnover is in the independent schools, but I'm wondering if that's because of low salaries or something else. Or was that only the charter schools?

[Anonymous]

I was at one of the independent schools. But it's known throughout the BASIS network that few people stay more than a couple years. They either move to another BASIS school or leave the organization. People who stay more than a few years are know in the organization as "lifers".