|
Reinventing Public Education
The Beginning with Children Foundation was established in 1990 by Joe and Carol Reich with a clear goal: To effect positive change in the public school system through the staunch belief that all children can learn. As a key part of that goal, the Reichs set about creating an innovative new public school, designed to nurture academic achievement and individual growth by addressing the needs of the whole child.
Today, the Foundation serves as the institutional partner to two charter schools in Brooklyn - and more than 1,000 children have benefited from the schools' unique learning environment, where personalized instruction, dynamic teaching strategies, and analytical assessment help students master a rigorous academic curriculum and develop a life-long love of learning. The success of the schools' strategic approach is clearly validated by results on city and state standardized tests, in which BwCF students have consistently outperformed both neighboring schools and schools city-wide.
An Incubator for Educational Excellence
When BwCF launched the Beginning with Children School in 1992 (which became Beginning with Children Charter School in 2001), its mission was not merely to establish a school providing a quality education to children in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn. It was also intended to have a far-reaching impact on all children in the public school system - by becoming a model of how a school could offer the highest quality academic environment to a diverse body of students.
Everything about the school was designed to be welcoming and nurturing, and to convey the Foundation's firm belief in children's ability to become self-confident, motivated, and academically prepared to pursue their goals. Created in partnership with the then New York City Board of Education (now Department of Education), the United Federation of Teachers, and Pfizer Inc, that first BwCF school quickly set a new standard for both academic excellence and efficient school management. Its conversion to charter status was at the request of the Chancellor of the City of New York, making it one of the first K-8 public charter schools in New York State.
BwCF's mission took another leap forward with the launch of a second school, the Community Partnership Charter School, which opened in Brooklyn's Fort Greene section in 2000, and later moved to the nearby Clinton Hill neighborhood of Brooklyn. Modeled after the first school's successful formula, CPCS was the fruit of a partnership with local parents and chartered by the Trustees of the State University of New York.
Because the Foundation deliberately chose different authorizers to charter its schools, the two schools together provide a wealth of data on what structures, qualities, and characteristics contribute to high quality education. That information forms the basis for BwCF's roadmap for change in the public school system as a whole, as the Foundation mentors, inspires, and advises other existing and prospective charters.
Clear Measures of Success
• In 1994, the Beginning with Children School was designated a "model" demonstration elementary school for New York City.
• In 1997, the Beginning with Children School received the New York City Literacy Hero Award from then-Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and Chancellor Rudy Crew as the most improved elementary school in New York City.
• In both the 2004-2005 and 2005-2006 school years, BwCCS was recognized as one of New York State's 271 Title I schools that have met the criteria for designation as "high performing/gap closing" by accomplishing the dual goals of increasing student achievement while closing the gap in student performance. BwCCS received this designation as a result of making "Adequate Yearly Progress in English Language Arts, Mathematics, Science and/or graduation rates during the 2004-2005 and 2005-2006 school years."
• In 2005-06, BwCCS received a full five-year renewal of its charter by its authorizer, the New York City Schools Chancellor's office, which recommended its renewal to the SUNY Board of Regents.
• In 2006-07 BwCCS won an award from the New York State Education Department and Board of Regents for the school's commitment to excellence for all students; the Blackboard Award for Excellence in Education presented by Manhattan Media Publications; and an Effective Practice Grant from the New York City Center for Charter School Excellence.
• In March 2007, the NY Board of Regents approved Community Partnerships Charter School's charter for another five year. In its renewal report, Charter School Institute (CSI) found that "CPCS is an educationally sound entity that the Institute finds will increase student learning and achievement during the next charter period. It is organizationally effective and viable, as well as fiscally sound."
BwCF's Formula for Success
The key component of the BwCF model is its student assessment. BwCF views standardized testing not simply as a benchmark, but as a crucial diagnostic tool. Student assessments are used to identify the skills, progress, strengths and weaknesses of individual students, as well as to provide invaluable data for creating whole school programs and informing staff and curriculum development. By tracking scores, the schools are able to target children having problems in specific areas and provide enrichment for those excelling.
At the same time, student assessments are critical to each school's curriculum development, enabling BwCF and its schools to evaluate the curriculum's effectiveness and address any deficiencies in the course material. Once an area for improvement is identified, a curriculum specialist is brought to the school to work with faculty and staff to ensure that the curriculum is mapped to each school's charter and the state's standards.
Supporting student assessment and curriculum development is continual staff development, including frequent, on-site evaluation of instructional methods and practices. Classroom observation, demonstration classes, and team teaching are used to strengthen each teacher's skills in reaching students and meeting their needs.
As a natural outgrowth of BwCF's individualized instructional model, the Special Needs Program utilizes the full-time services of a child psychologist and a special needs coordinator to mitigate psychological, behavioral, or severe learning problems of students with special needs and students at risk of academic failure.
Enhancing the academic offerings at the BwCF schools is a rich program of instruction in technology, the arts, and physical fitness. The use of computers and appropriate software in the classroom is an integral part of the BwCF model, as is instruction in art, music, laboratory science, library, and athletics. Also offered are summer school, after-school and pre-K programs.
Underlying the entire management approach is the schools' accountability. BwCF works with its schools to establish educational and fiscal practices, procedures, and policies that correlate to the charters' stated goals, and weaves those objectives into the fabric of the schools' daily operations. In addition, BwCF works with the administrative staff of both schools to set up and implement all business systems.
Finally, BwCF develops strong and meaningful partnerships in the public and private sectors. These collaborations provide unique opportunities for learning inside the classroom and in the community at large - expanding the students' views of the world and helping them to develop as well-rounded, productive citizens, a concept central to the schools' mission. Partnerships continue to evolve and have included: Pfizer Inc; Cornell University; Columbia University; New York University/Americorp Students; American Ballet Theatre; Brooklyn Botanic Garden; Pratt Institute; Mark Morris Dance Group; New York Knicks Reading Zone; Brooklyn Philharmonic; Bertelsmann Foundation; Chess-in-the-Schools; and others.
Meeting the Future Challenge
The passage of New York State's charter school legislation in 1998 provided the Beginning with Children Foundation with new direction to pursue its goal of educational excellence for all public school students.
State support, however, is limited:
• Charter schools receive only discounted per-pupil funding
• Charter schools receive no funds for facilities
Despite financial limitations, the Beginning with Children Foundation sees charter schools as one of the most promising avenues for reform in public education. Its first decade has provided BwCF with greater clarity in how to effect true education reform, and the Foundation has greatly expanded its outreach and advocacy efforts on behalf of the charter movement and education reform in general. BwCF has positioned itself in a leadership role as it remains dedicated to its goal of providing quality education for all children.
By garnering philanthropic support and establishing public/private partnerships, the Foundation has enabled hundreds of young boys and girls to experience quality learning, and therefore take a different path from many of their peers. The BwCF vision, however, is far broader than its own two schools -- and through the ongoing generosity and vision of supporters, BwCF will continue to open the door to high achievement for hundreds more, enabling all children to realize their true academic potential.
|
