Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Agree with the latest comments. Sela has been a wonderful school and community for my children for many years. Lots of us are happy there and have chosen to stay, even without a feeder school for middle and high. Enrollment certainly drops off in the higher grades as some lottery into middle schools that start in 5th or move out of DC. The school has been actively working on a feeder school, but it’s challenging for many reasons. Also, Hebrew will never be the most popular language to learn. For us, we were open to any dual language program at a school where our children could thrive both academically and socially. Sela has been that place for us and many families. This petition was a shock to receive in my inbox this week and posting it here is simply ridiculous. Those hiding behind it won’t even reveal themselves to the school community. That’s telling in my opinion.

Why do you think Sela's growth stats are so low?

Understand that poor academic growth compounds year over year to pull down performance. If you love your school, and it sounds like you do, open your eyes.

If the group of people trying to take down the leadership, which is supposed to include staff, puts forth no theory of why the growth numbers are low, how is a parent going to know that? I've been happy there and my older kid did not struggle academically with the transition to middle school, and it doesn't seem like their friends did either. I can't speak about anyone else.

They could know by looking on DC School Report Card, where Sela scores in the 22nd percentile. If you're fine with that, great. But I can't look at that and say there's no problem here.

The median student grew at the 27th percentile in English and the 37th in math. You have no idea why. I have no idea why. And the people who are complaining about this have no idea why and no plan to improve this. As a parent, all I can tell you is that it's been a good school for my kids and I've had zero concerns about their test scores.

Well yay for you, but I'm concerned about all the kids not just my own.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Agree with the latest comments. Sela has been a wonderful school and community for my children for many years. Lots of us are happy there and have chosen to stay, even without a feeder school for middle and high. Enrollment certainly drops off in the higher grades as some lottery into middle schools that start in 5th or move out of DC. The school has been actively working on a feeder school, but it’s challenging for many reasons. Also, Hebrew will never be the most popular language to learn. For us, we were open to any dual language program at a school where our children could thrive both academically and socially. Sela has been that place for us and many families. This petition was a shock to receive in my inbox this week and posting it here is simply ridiculous. Those hiding behind it won’t even reveal themselves to the school community. That’s telling in my opinion.

Why do you think Sela's growth stats are so low?

Understand that poor academic growth compounds year over year to pull down performance. If you love your school, and it sounds like you do, open your eyes.

If the group of people trying to take down the leadership, which is supposed to include staff, puts forth no theory of why the growth numbers are low, how is a parent going to know that? I've been happy there and my older kid did not struggle academically with the transition to middle school, and it doesn't seem like their friends did either. I can't speak about anyone else.

They could know by looking on DC School Report Card, where Sela scores in the 22nd percentile. If you're fine with that, great. But I can't look at that and say there's no problem here.

The median student grew at the 27th percentile in English and the 37th in math. You have no idea why. I have no idea why. And the people who are complaining about this have no idea why and no plan to improve this. As a parent, all I can tell you is that it's been a good school for my kids and I've had zero concerns about their test scores.

Academics are very important to our family so I’ll certainly be digging deep into this latest data. The school has received many accolades and awards over the years— which have been well-deserved in my opinion based on how my children are performing. My understanding is that the latest scores are focused on CAPE and grades 3-5. Unlike other language immersion programs, Sela admits students at all grades. 4th and 5th are small class sizes based on what I previously noted above about no feeder school, etc. I’m planning to dig into scores of students who have been at Sela for many years and those who just joined and took the test if this data is accessible.

I’ll also note that Sela meets students where they are and provides differentiation when needed. For example, if your child is a high performer, their needs will be met. If they are not, their needs are met as well through various formats. The administration has an open door and will sit down with you and discuss learning needs and whatever else you need in detail. They take feedback seriously and adjust as needed. That has been our experience. This anonymous petition, especially the approach of posting in this forum, is entirely the opposite of the school culture and experience we know and love. We don’t even know if this is coming from current parents, families who chose to leave, or a combination. Hope this information is helpful.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Many parents, myself included, believe the claims in this petition are based on incomplete information. Further, using an anonymous petition to document concerns is a simply not a constructive way to promote dialogue in a school community. Sela is very unique in its commitment to being diverse by design. It has stable leadership - which is so rare in DC. And it is a remarkably high-performing school for its composition. I hope people reading this thread are aware that it represents a minority of parents who have chosen to take an approach of an anonymous letter rather than collaborative dialogue.

Why do you think it's remarkably high-performing? Please explain the growth scores.

DP. I don't have a stake in Sela, but why do you think growth is the only marker of success?

My guess is what you're seeing here is a bunch of kids who are scoring high and don't have room to grow, a bunch of kids who are scoring low and are aren't improving much, and not much in the middle. That's not ideal but it's also not indicative of worsening performance over time.

I don't think growth scores are the only marker of success. But I do think they are important, and Sela's are really quite bad.

Growth scores compound and pull down proficiency scores more and more over time.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Many parents, myself included, believe the claims in this petition are based on incomplete information. Further, using an anonymous petition to document concerns is a simply not a constructive way to promote dialogue in a school community. Sela is very unique in its commitment to being diverse by design. It has stable leadership - which is so rare in DC. And it is a remarkably high-performing school for its composition. I hope people reading this thread are aware that it represents a minority of parents who have chosen to take an approach of an anonymous letter rather than collaborative dialogue.

Why do you think it's remarkably high-performing? Please explain the growth scores.

DP. I don't have a stake in Sela, but why do you think growth is the only marker of success?

My guess is what you're seeing here is a bunch of kids who are scoring high and don't have room to grow, a bunch of kids who are scoring low and are aren't improving much, and not much in the middle. That's not ideal but it's also not indicative of worsening performance over time.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Agree with the latest comments. Sela has been a wonderful school and community for my children for many years. Lots of us are happy there and have chosen to stay, even without a feeder school for middle and high. Enrollment certainly drops off in the higher grades as some lottery into middle schools that start in 5th or move out of DC. The school has been actively working on a feeder school, but it’s challenging for many reasons. Also, Hebrew will never be the most popular language to learn. For us, we were open to any dual language program at a school where our children could thrive both academically and socially. Sela has been that place for us and many families. This petition was a shock to receive in my inbox this week and posting it here is simply ridiculous. Those hiding behind it won’t even reveal themselves to the school community. That’s telling in my opinion.

Why do you think Sela's growth stats are so low?

Understand that poor academic growth compounds year over year to pull down performance. If you love your school, and it sounds like you do, open your eyes.

If the group of people trying to take down the leadership, which is supposed to include staff, puts forth no theory of why the growth numbers are low, how is a parent going to know that? I've been happy there and my older kid did not struggle academically with the transition to middle school, and it doesn't seem like their friends did either. I can't speak about anyone else.

They could know by looking on DC School Report Card, where Sela scores in the 22nd percentile. If you're fine with that, great. But I can't look at that and say there's no problem here.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Agree with the latest comments. Sela has been a wonderful school and community for my children for many years. Lots of us are happy there and have chosen to stay, even without a feeder school for middle and high. Enrollment certainly drops off in the higher grades as some lottery into middle schools that start in 5th or move out of DC. The school has been actively working on a feeder school, but it’s challenging for many reasons. Also, Hebrew will never be the most popular language to learn. For us, we were open to any dual language program at a school where our children could thrive both academically and socially. Sela has been that place for us and many families. This petition was a shock to receive in my inbox this week and posting it here is simply ridiculous. Those hiding behind it won’t even reveal themselves to the school community. That’s telling in my opinion.

Why do you think Sela's growth stats are so low?

Understand that poor academic growth compounds year over year to pull down performance. If you love your school, and it sounds like you do, open your eyes.

If the group of people trying to take down the leadership, which is supposed to include staff, puts forth no theory of why the growth numbers are low, how is a parent going to know that? I've been happy there and my older kid did not struggle academically with the transition to middle school, and it doesn't seem like their friends did either. I can't speak about anyone else.

Anonymous wrote:Many parents, myself included, believe the claims in this petition are based on incomplete information. Further, using an anonymous petition to document concerns is a simply not a constructive way to promote dialogue in a school community. Sela is very unique in its commitment to being diverse by design. It has stable leadership - which is so rare in DC. And it is a remarkably high-performing school for its composition. I hope people reading this thread are aware that it represents a minority of parents who have chosen to take an approach of an anonymous letter rather than collaborative dialogue.

Why do you think it's remarkably high-performing? Please explain the growth scores.

Many parents, myself included, believe the claims in this petition are based on incomplete information. Further, using an anonymous petition to document concerns is a simply not a constructive way to promote dialogue in a school community. Sela is very unique in its commitment to being diverse by design. It has stable leadership - which is so rare in DC. And it is a remarkably high-performing school for its composition. I hope people reading this thread are aware that it represents a minority of parents who have chosen to take an approach of an anonymous letter rather than collaborative dialogue.

Anonymous wrote:Agree with the latest comments. Sela has been a wonderful school and community for my children for many years. Lots of us are happy there and have chosen to stay, even without a feeder school for middle and high. Enrollment certainly drops off in the higher grades as some lottery into middle schools that start in 5th or move out of DC. The school has been actively working on a feeder school, but it’s challenging for many reasons. Also, Hebrew will never be the most popular language to learn. For us, we were open to any dual language program at a school where our children could thrive both academically and socially. Sela has been that place for us and many families. This petition was a shock to receive in my inbox this week and posting it here is simply ridiculous. Those hiding behind it won’t even reveal themselves to the school community. That’s telling in my opinion.

Why do you think Sela's growth stats are so low?

Understand that poor academic growth compounds year over year to pull down performance. If you love your school, and it sounds like you do, open your eyes.

Agree with the latest comments. Sela has been a wonderful school and community for my children for many years. Lots of us are happy there and have chosen to stay, even without a feeder school for middle and high. Enrollment certainly drops off in the higher grades as some lottery into middle schools that start in 5th or move out of DC. The school has been actively working on a feeder school, but it’s challenging for many reasons. Also, Hebrew will never be the most popular language to learn. For us, we were open to any dual language program at a school where our children could thrive both academically and socially. Sela has been that place for us and many families. This petition was a shock to receive in my inbox this week and posting it here is simply ridiculous. Those hiding behind it won’t even reveal themselves to the school community. That’s telling in my opinion.

I’ve been a Sela parent for a while, my kids have had a very positive experience there, caring teachers and staff, great small and dedicated community. My kids have made strides in their education because of the small classrooms which allow for individual attention. They’ve learned how to read write and speak Hebrew. If something isn’t working at Sela, I’ve found available and open administrators willing to help solve problems. This rings to me of entitled parents that are only thinking about themselves. The great thing about the charter school system is if the school doesn’t work for your family, you can find another one. The great thing about this area are there are a lot of schools to choose from don’t ruin things for the families that enjoy Sela, we are the majority.

Sharing this nonsense petition in a public forum is completely disgraceful. You guys are anonymous cowards and will only hurt the institution you say you are trying to help. Utterly childish and stupid.

Anonymous wrote:I'm appalled that someone would use this forum to gripe (and I do mean gripe) about matters that could have been handled through a proper channel. The organizers are not getting the reaction or traction they thought they would get at the school and decided to take this personal vendetta to a public forum. I have been to the PTSA meetings and the amount of complaining about a playground that has been delayed due to permitting issues that DC government is notorious for is truly unbelievable. Whoever is hiding behind the anonymity of a petition has no credibility. They are simply someone who can't handle the fact that everyone isn't jumping on their bandwagon. Having been at the school for 7 years, I believe this person doesn't fit our culture and should exercise their school choice options. Trying to take down the school on their way out (hopefully) is the height of hypocrisy.

Well, I'm not a Sela parent, but if I were I would post something about why you stay at Sela, perhaps even in this thread.

I'm appalled that someone would use this forum to gripe (and I do mean gripe) about matters that could have been handled through a proper channel. The organizers are not getting the reaction or traction they thought they would get at the school and decided to take this personal vendetta to a public forum. I have been to the PTSA meetings and the amount of complaining about a playground that has been delayed due to permitting issues that DC government is notorious for is truly unbelievable. Whoever is hiding behind the anonymity of a petition has no credibility. They are simply someone who can't handle the fact that everyone isn't jumping on their bandwagon. Having been at the school for 7 years, I believe this person doesn't fit our culture and should exercise their school choice options. Trying to take down the school on their way out (hopefully) is the height of hypocrisy.