Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sela needs to be investigated. But if you think that they really got a 100% score on all of the academic areas...just no. As a former teacher there I'm going to say that someone should contact the board.

Maye they have an insider who is manipulating the tests or the grades.
It has happened with other charters and no one has thought of investigating the results.

Clearly the Elders of Sela have a dark set of Protocols for manipulating the PARCC data...The sad, strange need to fake "chaos" at Sela is perhaps Trump-appropriate, but truly fake news. I can tell you having worked with charter schools, including Sela, ITS, and LAMB (in its infancy) that Sela's bumps were not out of the ordinary for a not for profit charter. They found a long-term space, have had solid books (more than you can say for most schools in DC) throughout their tenure, added a successful PK3 program early on, and have solid effective teachers and leadership. Some of the teacher churn is b/c of visas (just like YY), and they hired a lot of younger (cheaper) teachers early on. Yes, they replaced their head of schools (like, e.g., SSMA), but again it happens, and they found someone who works effectively with the diverse group of families/language focus. Some families moved to MoCo, others got into a charter they liked better b/c it had a more established track record. From a statistical perspective, you are more likely to see very high (or very poor) results in a small sample size. As the school grows, and there is more data and larger sample sizes, you will get a more accurate picture of the performance over time. No need to invent a cabal b/c your kid is in a Tier 2 program.

I'm not the PP who said they should be investigated or maybe they're cheating. But I am the PP who said I wasn't going to go back over all their "bumps", but by once again minimizing and misinforming here, it feels important to do it.

First off, the student and family "churn" to use your word (also known as jumping ship for the 1st better school they get in to) continues to be a huge issue for the school. More so than any school you name here.

The teacher turnover the 1st 2 years was ridiculous, including teachers leaving mid-year. That, also, did dot happen at any of the school you named or any others still open now. If you disagree, name a specific school and your source for that, because you mentioned "fake news", well you saying teacher turnover at those schools was like Sela (and was only visa-related at Sela) are both fake news.

The leadership issues were HUGE in the beginning. You say "they replaced the Head of School" as if it was an organized, strategic move. No, it was chaos and it threw the families at the time for a major loop. Again, you minimizing it is a disservice to teh school and families who went through the madness as well as prospective families.

And you neglected to mention that also UNlike the schools you name above, who grew and grew and whose student and staff retention has improved and improved over time, Sela has continued to lose more families than it keeps if they get into another school, which many do.

One more thing true of Sela that isn't true of any other schools still open (even the ones that are part of national organizations, like Kipp and Rocketship): the low enrollment and repeated student turnover would have sunk any other school that wasn't also privately funded. None of the other schools open know had enrollment that low or student turnover that high in years 2 and 3. Again, if you disagree, name the school.

If you want to help Sela, instead of misinforming and acting like their bumps were no biggie and they're just like a bunch of other successful charters, then talk about what Sela has done to IMPROVE after the bumps. Talk about real numbers of student retention - what % of families enrolled in SY15-16 returned in SY16-17? If it's getting so much better, speak in real facts about how you're measuring those improvements. Don't just say retention improved by ___ %, what % returned? Talk about the current Head of School and what they've done to improve the school.

But all anyone with questions has to do is search this forum for "Sela" and read all about the extreme turmoil of the 1st 2 years to see your claim of it being regular old bumps that all these other schools went through is "fake news" in the most real way.

As a happy Sela parent, I'll bite.

I can't speak to the bumps of the early years (this is our first year at the school), but I can report that the parade of horribles described above has been the farthest thing from our experience at Sela. Two specific examples in the areas you request:

1. Retention. Sela's 2016 report compared to its 2015 report (links below) shows marked improvement in re-enrollment -- from 46.6 percent to 76.1 percent. Could it be better? Sure. But the fact is that re-enrollment is now in the target range rather than significantly below it. And from conversations I've had with other parents, I imagine it will continue to improve.

2. Current Head of School. We've found Dr. Smith to be incredibly dedicated, involved, caring, focused, energetic, and accessible. Here's one example of what she's done to improve the school. As you note above, teacher retention was a problem. I understand that this was, at least in part, due to Hebrew language teachers being hired through a program that brought them over from Israel for a fixed period, after which they had to return. As you would expect, this led to turnover at rates that weren't acceptable. Dr. Smith recognized the issue and decided not to hire Hebrew language teachers through that program anymore; instead, she hired teachers who have more established ties to the area. We have heard that, at least so far, nearly all of the current teachers plan to return next year.

In short, all schools have problems, but not all schools have leaders and communities that are willing to make changes to address those problems. Sela, fortunately, does.

http://www.dcpcsb.org/sites/default/files/Sela_PCS_2014-2015%20PMF.pdf

http://www.dcpcsb.org/sites/default/files/Sela%20PCS_EC_PK-2_2016.pdf

To the PP who recounted Sela's bumps in the early years -- I'm sorry that you had a poor experience. It sure sounds difficult, and I can't fault you for wanting to share your frustration.

As a current Sela parent, however, I feel compelled to point out -- as some other PPs have -- that your claims about what is happening at the school today are just not supported by the data.

Re: growth/student retention: In addition to the DCPCSB performance reports one of the PP linked, please look at the audited enrollment data for this year (2016-2017), which just came out (http://osse.dc.gov/node/1223876). Sela has grown to 177 students, exactly where it wants to be for the grades it currently serves.

Re: teacher attrition: The early years sure sound bumpy. Sela's first annual report showed nearly 63% teacher attrition. Its second showed 25% teacher attrition. An improvement, but still too high. Guess what teacher attrition was in the third annual report? 0%. As one PP noted, this is because the school's leadership recognized the problem and addressed it.

For any prospective families out there considering Sela, I would encourage you to visit the school and talk to current families (of course), but also to consider the data (which is readily available) rather than anonymous anecdotes.

2013-2014 Annual Report: http://www.dcpcsb.org/sites/default/files/2013-2014%20Annual%20Report%28UJTS%29%28SelaPublicCharteSchool%29.pdf
2014-2015 Annual Report: http://www.dcpcsb.org/sites/default/files/folder%201/folder%201/2014-2015%20Annual%20Report%20-%20Revised%28ZPFF%29%28SelaPublicCharteSchool%29.pdf
2015-2016 Annual Report: http://www.dcpcsb.org/sites/default/files/report/2015-2016%20Annual%20Report%28T3IG%29%28SelaPublicCharteSchool%29-2.pdf

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sela needs to be investigated. But if you think that they really got a 100% score on all of the academic areas...just no. As a former teacher there I'm going to say that someone should contact the board.

Maye they have an insider who is manipulating the tests or the grades.
It has happened with other charters and no one has thought of investigating the results.

Clearly the Elders of Sela have a dark set of Protocols for manipulating the PARCC data...The sad, strange need to fake "chaos" at Sela is perhaps Trump-appropriate, but truly fake news. I can tell you having worked with charter schools, including Sela, ITS, and LAMB (in its infancy) that Sela's bumps were not out of the ordinary for a not for profit charter. They found a long-term space, have had solid books (more than you can say for most schools in DC) throughout their tenure, added a successful PK3 program early on, and have solid effective teachers and leadership. Some of the teacher churn is b/c of visas (just like YY), and they hired a lot of younger (cheaper) teachers early on. Yes, they replaced their head of schools (like, e.g., SSMA), but again it happens, and they found someone who works effectively with the diverse group of families/language focus. Some families moved to MoCo, others got into a charter they liked better b/c it had a more established track record. From a statistical perspective, you are more likely to see very high (or very poor) results in a small sample size. As the school grows, and there is more data and larger sample sizes, you will get a more accurate picture of the performance over time. No need to invent a cabal b/c your kid is in a Tier 2 program.

I'm not the PP who said they should be investigated or maybe they're cheating. But I am the PP who said I wasn't going to go back over all their "bumps", but by once again minimizing and misinforming here, it feels important to do it.

First off, the student and family "churn" to use your word (also known as jumping ship for the 1st better school they get in to) continues to be a huge issue for the school. More so than any school you name here.

The teacher turnover the 1st 2 years was ridiculous, including teachers leaving mid-year. That, also, did dot happen at any of the school you named or any others still open now. If you disagree, name a specific school and your source for that, because you mentioned "fake news", well you saying teacher turnover at those schools was like Sela (and was only visa-related at Sela) are both fake news.

The leadership issues were HUGE in the beginning. You say "they replaced the Head of School" as if it was an organized, strategic move. No, it was chaos and it threw the families at the time for a major loop. Again, you minimizing it is a disservice to teh school and families who went through the madness as well as prospective families.

And you neglected to mention that also UNlike the schools you name above, who grew and grew and whose student and staff retention has improved and improved over time, Sela has continued to lose more families than it keeps if they get into another school, which many do.

One more thing true of Sela that isn't true of any other schools still open (even the ones that are part of national organizations, like Kipp and Rocketship): the low enrollment and repeated student turnover would have sunk any other school that wasn't also privately funded. None of the other schools open know had enrollment that low or student turnover that high in years 2 and 3. Again, if you disagree, name the school.

If you want to help Sela, instead of misinforming and acting like their bumps were no biggie and they're just like a bunch of other successful charters, then talk about what Sela has done to IMPROVE after the bumps. Talk about real numbers of student retention - what % of families enrolled in SY15-16 returned in SY16-17? If it's getting so much better, speak in real facts about how you're measuring those improvements. Don't just say retention improved by ___ %, what % returned? Talk about the current Head of School and what they've done to improve the school.

But all anyone with questions has to do is search this forum for "Sela" and read all about the extreme turmoil of the 1st 2 years to see your claim of it being regular old bumps that all these other schools went through is "fake news" in the most real way.

As a happy Sela parent, I'll bite.

I can't speak to the bumps of the early years (this is our first year at the school), but I can report that the parade of horribles described above has been the farthest thing from our experience at Sela. Two specific examples in the areas you request:

1. Retention. Sela's 2016 report compared to its 2015 report (links below) shows marked improvement in re-enrollment -- from 46.6 percent to 76.1 percent. Could it be better? Sure. But the fact is that re-enrollment is now in the target range rather than significantly below it. And from conversations I've had with other parents, I imagine it will continue to improve.

2. Current Head of School. We've found Dr. Smith to be incredibly dedicated, involved, caring, focused, energetic, and accessible. Here's one example of what she's done to improve the school. As you note above, teacher retention was a problem. I understand that this was, at least in part, due to Hebrew language teachers being hired through a program that brought them over from Israel for a fixed period, after which they had to return. As you would expect, this led to turnover at rates that weren't acceptable. Dr. Smith recognized the issue and decided not to hire Hebrew language teachers through that program anymore; instead, she hired teachers who have more established ties to the area. We have heard that, at least so far, nearly all of the current teachers plan to return next year.

In short, all schools have problems, but not all schools have leaders and communities that are willing to make changes to address those problems. Sela, fortunately, does.

http://www.dcpcsb.org/sites/default/files/Sela_PCS_2014-2015%20PMF.pdf

http://www.dcpcsb.org/sites/default/files/Sela%20PCS_EC_PK-2_2016.pdf

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sela needs to be investigated. But if you think that they really got a 100% score on all of the academic areas...just no. As a former teacher there I'm going to say that someone should contact the board.

Maye they have an insider who is manipulating the tests or the grades.
It has happened with other charters and no one has thought of investigating the results.

Clearly the Elders of Sela have a dark set of Protocols for manipulating the PARCC data...The sad, strange need to fake "chaos" at Sela is perhaps Trump-appropriate, but truly fake news. I can tell you having worked with charter schools, including Sela, ITS, and LAMB (in its infancy) that Sela's bumps were not out of the ordinary for a not for profit charter. They found a long-term space, have had solid books (more than you can say for most schools in DC) throughout their tenure, added a successful PK3 program early on, and have solid effective teachers and leadership. Some of the teacher churn is b/c of visas (just like YY), and they hired a lot of younger (cheaper) teachers early on. Yes, they replaced their head of schools (like, e.g., SSMA), but again it happens, and they found someone who works effectively with the diverse group of families/language focus. Some families moved to MoCo, others got into a charter they liked better b/c it had a more established track record. From a statistical perspective, you are more likely to see very high (or very poor) results in a small sample size. As the school grows, and there is more data and larger sample sizes, you will get a more accurate picture of the performance over time. No need to invent a cabal b/c your kid is in a Tier 2 program.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sela needs to be investigated. But if you think that they really got a 100% score on all of the academic areas...just no. As a former teacher there I'm going to say that someone should contact the board.

Maye they have an insider who is manipulating the tests or the grades.
It has happened with other charters and no one has thought of investigating the results.

Clearly the Elders of Sela have a dark set of Protocols for manipulating the PARCC data...The sad, strange need to fake "chaos" at Sela is perhaps Trump-appropriate, but truly fake news. I can tell you having worked with charter schools, including Sela, ITS, and LAMB (in its infancy) that Sela's bumps were not out of the ordinary for a not for profit charter. They found a long-term space, have had solid books (more than you can say for most schools in DC) throughout their tenure, added a successful PK3 program early on, and have solid effective teachers and leadership. Some of the teacher churn is b/c of visas (just like YY), and they hired a lot of younger (cheaper) teachers early on. Yes, they replaced their head of schools (like, e.g., SSMA), but again it happens, and they found someone who works effectively with the diverse group of families/language focus. Some families moved to MoCo, others got into a charter they liked better b/c it had a more established track record. From a statistical perspective, you are more likely to see very high (or very poor) results in a small sample size. As the school grows, and there is more data and larger sample sizes, you will get a more accurate picture of the performance over time. No need to invent a cabal b/c your kid is in a Tier 2 program.

I'm not the PP who said they should be investigated or maybe they're cheating. But I am the PP who said I wasn't going to go back over all their "bumps", but by once again minimizing and misinforming here, it feels important to do it.

First off, the student and family "churn" to use your word (also known as jumping ship for the 1st better school they get in to) continues to be a huge issue for the school. More so than any school you name here.

The teacher turnover the 1st 2 years was ridiculous, including teachers leaving mid-year. That, also, did dot happen at any of the school you named or any others still open now. If you disagree, name a specific school and your source for that, because you mentioned "fake news", well you saying teacher turnover at those schools was like Sela (and was only visa-related at Sela) are both fake news.

The leadership issues were HUGE in the beginning. You say "they replaced the Head of School" as if it was an organized, strategic move. No, it was chaos and it threw the families at the time for a major loop. Again, you minimizing it is a disservice to teh school and families who went through the madness as well as prospective families.

And you neglected to mention that also UNlike the schools you name above, who grew and grew and whose student and staff retention has improved and improved over time, Sela has continued to lose more families than it keeps if they get into another school, which many do.

One more thing true of Sela that isn't true of any other schools still open (even the ones that are part of national organizations, like Kipp and Rocketship): the low enrollment and repeated student turnover would have sunk any other school that wasn't also privately funded. None of the other schools open know had enrollment that low or student turnover that high in years 2 and 3. Again, if you disagree, name the school.

If you want to help Sela, instead of misinforming and acting like their bumps were no biggie and they're just like a bunch of other successful charters, then talk about what Sela has done to IMPROVE after the bumps. Talk about real numbers of student retention - what % of families enrolled in SY15-16 returned in SY16-17? If it's getting so much better, speak in real facts about how you're measuring those improvements. Don't just say retention improved by ___ %, what % returned? Talk about the current Head of School and what they've done to improve the school.

But all anyone with questions has to do is search this forum for "Sela" and read all about the extreme turmoil of the 1st 2 years to see your claim of it being regular old bumps that all these other schools went through is "fake news" in the most real way.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sela needs to be investigated. But if you think that they really got a 100% score on all of the academic areas...just no. As a former teacher there I'm going to say that someone should contact the board.

Maye they have an insider who is manipulating the tests or the grades.
It has happened with other charters and no one has thought of investigating the results.

Clearly the Elders of Sela have a dark set of Protocols for manipulating the PARCC data...The sad, strange need to fake "chaos" at Sela is perhaps Trump-appropriate, but truly fake news. I can tell you having worked with charter schools, including Sela, ITS, and LAMB (in its infancy) that Sela's bumps were not out of the ordinary for a not for profit charter. They found a long-term space, have had solid books (more than you can say for most schools in DC) throughout their tenure, added a successful PK3 program early on, and have solid effective teachers and leadership. Some of the teacher churn is b/c of visas (just like YY), and they hired a lot of younger (cheaper) teachers early on. Yes, they replaced their head of schools (like, e.g., SSMA), but again it happens, and they found someone who works effectively with the diverse group of families/language focus. Some families moved to MoCo, others got into a charter they liked better b/c it had a more established track record. From a statistical perspective, you are more likely to see very high (or very poor) results in a small sample size. As the school grows, and there is more data and larger sample sizes, you will get a more accurate picture of the performance over time. No need to invent a cabal b/c your kid is in a Tier 2 program.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sela needs to be investigated. But if you think that they really got a 100% score on all of the academic areas...just no. As a former teacher there I'm going to say that someone should contact the board.

Maye they have an insider who is manipulating the tests or the grades.
It has happened with other charters and no one has thought of investigating the results.

Clearly the Elders of Sela have a dark set of Protocols for manipulating the PARCC data...The sad, strange need to fake "chaos" at Sela is perhaps Trump-appropriate, but truly fake news. I can tell you having worked with charter schools, including Sela, ITS, and LAMB (in its infancy) that Sela's bumps were not out of the ordinary for a not for profit charter. They found a long-term space, have had solid books (more than you can say for most schools in DC) throughout their tenure, added a successful PK3 program early on, and have solid effective teachers and leadership. Some of the teacher churn is b/c of visas (just like YY), and they hired a lot of younger (cheaper) teachers early on. Yes, they replaced their head of schools (like, e.g., SSMA), but again it happens, and they found someone who works effectively with the diverse group of families/language focus. Some families moved to MoCo, others got into a charter they liked better b/c it had a more established track record. From a statistical perspective, you are more likely to see very high (or very poor) results in a small sample size. As the school grows, and there is more data and larger sample sizes, you will get a more accurate picture of the performance over time. No need to invent a cabal b/c your kid is in a Tier 2 program.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sela needs to be investigated. But if you think that they really got a 100% score on all of the academic areas...just no. As a former teacher there I'm going to say that someone should contact the board.

Maye they have an insider who is manipulating the tests or the grades.
It has happened with other charters and no one has thought of investigating the results.

Anonymous wrote:Sela needs to be investigated. But if you think that they really got a 100% score on all of the academic areas...just no. As a former teacher there I'm going to say that someone should contact the board.

Anonymous wrote:Sela needs to be investigated. But if you think that they really got a 100% score on all of the academic areas...just no. As a former teacher there I'm going to say that someone should contact the board.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So proud of DCB!

+1

Also, so very proud of Sela! They worked hard with Board meetings, staff meetings, professional input followed to the letter, and extra time & energy to bring up those scores. That "academic improvement" you see in their results is not by luck, chance, or coincidence -- they worked very hard with individual attention to every student to make sure that the school improved while providing a language-immersion environment.

Every school could learn from their example to make sure academic rigor is not at the expense of the child, learning a second language, or having an emotionally supportive environment!

Congrats, Sela!

Yay...redemption! Sela deserves the recognition.

x1000. Way to go Sela on combining language immersion with academic rigor. It's a great school. It went through a few bumps (that all new schools face!) and then flew over the last hurdles with grace!