2014 State of the Charter Sector Report

8/10/2019 2014 State of the Charter Sector Report

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STATE OF THE CHARTER SECTOR:

A SNAPSHOT OF CHARTER SCHOOLSIN BUFFALO, NEW YORK

2014

www.BuffaloReformEd.org@BuffaloReformEd


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1 State of the Charter Sector: 2014

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

What is a charter school? Who attends local charter schools? How does student performance in

charter schools compare to performance of public schools at the local and state levels? The

Western New York Charter Sector Report answers these questions, presenting a snapshot ofstudent performance and demographic statistics in Western New Yorks charter schools.

As of 2013, the last year with full enrollment data, there were 18 charter schools in Western

New York serving nearly 9,000students. One school (Pinnacle Charter School) is closed as of

the 2013-14school year while a new school, the Charter School of Inquiry, is set to open in

2015. While local charter schools have experienced tremendous growth over the past 15years,

there has been a lack of comprehensive analysis on the performance of the charter sector as a

whole. The Western New York Charter Sector Report fills this gap, providing the public with a

deeper understanding of the options that charter schools provide and the role they play in our

public education system.This report compiles and averages data on student performance and demographics at each

WNY Charter School in order to provide aggregate information on the performance of the

charter sector as a whole. In addition, this report draws comparisons among student

performance in WNY Charter Schools, the Buffalo City School district, and New York State.

The Buffalo City School district was chosen as a point of comparison as it educates a similar

demographic as the local charter sector. This comparison helps control for the impact of

students background on outcomes, and isolate differences in student achievement between

traditional and charter schools. A comparison to NYS averages was included in order to gauge

how local schools measure against statewide standards.

The data presented in this report is derived from standardized English Language Arts, Math,

and Science examinations at the elementary level, Regents examinations and graduation rates

at the high school level, and demographic statistics at individual schools. Buffalo ReformEd

recognizes that standardized test scores do not account for factors that contribute to overall

school quality; however, test scores serve as a reliable means of determining a schools impact

on student performance.

Above all, this report aims to serve as a useful resource and tool for parents, students, and

community members as they seek to evaluate local educational options, and understand the

impact of the charter sector on student achievement.


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WHAT ARE CHARTER SCHOOLS?

Charter schools are publicly funded, independently operated, tuition-free public schools created

by parents, educators, and community leaders. Charter schools are open to all students; schools

must enroll students through a blind, lottery based admissions process. The only legaladmissions preference schools can offer is to applicants who have a sibling enrolled in the

school.

Charter schools are not under the direct control of a local board of education or

Superintendent. Each school is independently operated by its own board of trustees. As

independent entities, charters are allowed more freedom to innovate, develop their own

curriculum, hire staff, and offer a longer school day and school year. In exchange for more

freedom, charter schools are subject to more rigorous accountability.

Charter schools operate under a five-year contract, or charter. Every five years, a charterschool must undergo a rigorous process of renewal to determine if the school is raising student

achievement, and is financially and organizationally sound. If the school does not meet the

criteria for renewal, it will lose its charter and close. This system helps ensure that high quality

charter schools are supported, while low performing schools are phased out. Charter schools

are subject to constant oversight by their authorizer. In New York State, there are three

entities that can act as charter school authorizers: The SUNY Board of Trustees, the New York

State Board of Regents, and local school boards.

As public schools, charter schools are funded by public tax dollars that pass through the

student's school district of residence. A portion of the per-pupil amount that a school districtspends follows a student to the charter school. Because not all monies received by a school

district are included in the calculation, charter schools receive only between 60-80% of what

school districts actually spend on a per pupil basis. In addition, charter schools do not receive

building aid or public funds for capital improvements or renovations.1

For the 2014-15school year, there are 248charter schools operating in New York; another 11new schools have been approved to begin operating in 201516or later.2


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CHARTER SCHOOLS IN WESTERN NEW YORK

There are 17Charter Schools currently serving students in Western New York. One additionalcharter school, the Charter School of Inquiry, is set to open for 2015, while one school, PinnacleCharter School, has closed since our initial report. The long-term fate of Pinnacle is unclear,

however, as there is some effort to reopen the school.

Local charter schools are diverse in focus and program offerings; some adopt a progressive,child-centered education philosophy or a focus on science, technology or leadership, whileothers strive to serve unique populations such as English language learners.

What is unique about WNYs charter sector is that it is a locally grown, grassroots effortdriven by parents, teachers, and community leaders seeking enhanced educational options forstudents. There is only one local charter school run by a national charter operator whereas inmost large urban districts, charter operators and charter networks are common.

The table below shows each WNY charter school and its enrollment in 2012-13:

School Grades Served Enrollment

Aloma D. Johnson Community Charter School K 4 295

Buffalo Academy of Science Charter School 7 12 404

Buffalo United Charter School K 8 643

Charter School for Applied Technologies K 12 1,670

Charter School of Inquiry* K - 3 n/a

Community Charter School K 6 321

Elmwood Village Charter School K 6 298

Enterprise Charter School K

8 404

Global Concepts Charter School K 8 848

Health Sciences Charter School 9-10 325

King Center Charter School K - 6 260

Niagara Charter School K - 6 350

Oracle Charter School 9 - 12 334

Pinnacle Charter School** K 8 550

South Buffalo Charter School K 8 673

Tapestry Charter School K - 12 735

West Buffalo Charter School K-2 138

Westminster Charter K 8 552

WNY Maritime Charter 9-12 292

Source: NYSED School Report Cards (http://data.nysed.gov)*School set to open for 2015-16school year**School closed as of 2013-14school year


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ENROLLMENT IN WESTERN NEW YORKS CHARTER SCHOOLS

In the 2012-13 school year, there were 9,092students enrolled in Western New Yorks 18charter schools; enrollment in schools serving Buffalo was 7,894. Enrollment in public charterschools in Western New York has steadily increased since the opening of the areas first charter

school, King Center Charter School, in2000

. In Buffalo, increased charter enrollment and asteady decline in District enrollment means that charter enrollment as a share of total publicschool enrollment in Buffalo has steadily increased.

The graphs below show enrollment of students in charter schools operating in Buffalo as ashare of student enrollment in the Buffalo City School district. The figures for charterenrollment do not include students in the three charter schools operating outside of Buffalo.Although these schools do enroll students from the city of Buffalo, specific data on the numberof Buffalo students enrolled in these schools is not available, as was therefore excluded.

4,000

5,000

6,000

7,000

8,000

9,000

20,000

25,000

30,000

35,000

40,000

45,000

2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13

TOTAL BUFFALO PUBLIC

ENROLLMENT

BPS ENROLLMENT

BUFFALO CHARTER

ENROLLMENT

Charter, District and Total Public School Enrollment in Buffalo

Charter Enrollment as Share of Total Buffalo Public School Enrollment

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13


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DEMAND FOR LOCAL CHARTER SCHOOLS

Charter Schools admit students on a lottery basis; when a school reaches its enrollmentcapacity, students are placed on a waitlist. Waitlists for local charter schools continue to grow,reflecting a rising community demand for charter schools as an educational option. In the 2011-2012

academic year, WNY charter schools had over2,000

students on waitlists compared to atotal enrollment of 8,139students.

The following table shows available information on waitlists of charter schools operating inWNY.

SCHOOL # Students on Waitlist

* Data was not available for 4of the 17WNY Charter Schools operating in 2010-11, and thus

have N/A in Total column.

Source: NYCSA Online. 2012. New York Charter Schools Association. 24July 2012.


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WHO ATTENDS WESTERN NEW YORKS CHARTER SCHOOLS?

Western New Yorks charter schools serve a diverse population demographically similar to the

population of students enrolled in the Buffalo City School District.

0%

61%14%

2%3%

20%

Buffalo Charter Demographics (2012-13)

Native American

African American

Hispanic

Asian

Multiethnic

White

1%

51%

17%

7%

2%

22%

Buffalo Public Schools Demographics (2012-13)

Native American

African American

Hispanic

Asian

Multiethnic

White


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The majority of students enrolled in Western New Yorks charter schools live in poverty, asmeasured by free and reduced lunch rates. In the 2012-13school year, Buffalo area charters andthe Buffalo Public School District served identical populations of student eligible for free orreduced-price lunches, a proxy for measuring poverty.

82%

18%

Buffalo Charter Demographics (2012-13)Eligibility for Free/Reduced Price Lunch

Eligible for Free or Reduced

Price Lunch

Non-eligible

82%

18%

BPS District Demographics (2012-13)Eligibility for Free/Reduced Price Lunch

Eligible for Free or Reduced

Price Lunch

Non-eligible


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The following graph compares demographic information for individual charter schools withaverage demographic statistics in the Buffalo Public Schools. The majority of local charterschools enroll a higher proportion of minority students than the Buffalo Public Schools.

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Hispanic/

Black

White

BLACK/HISPANIC AND WHITE ENROLLMENT (2012-13)

BUFFALO CHARTER SCHOOLS AND BPS DISTRICT


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ENROLLMENT OF SPECIAL EDUCATION STUDENTS

Overall, Western New Yorks Charter schools enroll fewer students with special needs ordisabilities than the Buffalo Public Schools.

Within traditional public schools in Buffalo, however, there is a great degree of variance in theconcentration of special education students, with enrollment rates from 4.9% to 30%; in thecharter sector, the variance is much lower, with enrollment ranging from 10% to 22%. Whiletraditional schools enroll more students with special needs than charter schools, these statisticscould be inflated by trends in oversubscription of students, primarily minority students, tospecial education, as documented by the state Education Department in a 2009report.3

Charter leaders have noted that one obstacle to serving students with disabilities is the inabilityto 'scale' costs: it is prohibitively expensive to serve small populations of students with diversespecial needs. Legislation proposed in New York in 2012would make it easier and more cost-effective for charter schools to serve students with special needs by allowing schools to poolresources in order to provide specialized services.4

13.3%

20.8%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

BUFFALO CHARTERS BPS

Enrollment of Students with Learning Disabilities

Buffalo Charter Schools and BPS (2012-13)

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

Learning Disabled Student Enrollment by School

(2012-13)


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ENROLLMENT OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNERS

Based on the data available, Buffalo Public Schools enrolled a higher percentage of students

with limited English proficiency than local charter schools in 2012-13.*Charter Schools admit

students based on a blind lottery admissions system, therefore schools cannot offer admissions

preference to English Language Learners (ELL) or students with special needs. In order toincrease the percentage of ELL students served in charter schools to more closely mirror the

local student population, schools must actively advertise their programs, and conduct outreach

in diverse communities. In addition, changes at the state level, in the form of newly revised

enrollment and retention targets for special education and limited English proficient students

aim to increase the proportion of these populations enrolled in Charter Schools across New

York. These changes to charter school law would sanction schools that fail to make a good faith

effort to recruit and enroll English Language Learners or students with special needs.6

*2012-13 English-language learner demographic data is not available for: Buffalo United Charter School, HealthSciences Charter School, King Center Charter School, Oracle Charter School, Pinnacle Charter School, orWestminster Charter School. ELL demographics for these schools are withheld for a variety of reasons. Theseschools collectively enroll 2,684 students (34%) of charter enrollment, so may significantly change overall chartersector demographics.

4%

12%

0%

2%

4%

6%

8%

10%

12%

14%

BUFFALO CHARTERS BPS

Limited English Proficiency Enrollment 2012-13

Limited English

Proficient %


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STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT - ELEMENTARY MATH AND ENGLISH

In 2012-13and 2013-14, Buffalo area charter schools significantly outperformed Buffalo CitySchools in Math and English proficiency in grades 3through 8. Buffalo charters alsooutperformed the other 'Big 5' upstate schools,though performance was significantly below

New York City and statewide performance. Buffalo area charters also showed significantgrowth in both English Language Arts and Math, whereas the other comparison districtslargely stayed level in ELA proficiency.

A note about 2012-13 and 2013-14 proficiency rates: 2012-13 was the first year students in grades 3-8 weregiven new, more rigorous assessments aligned with the new New York Common Core State Standards. Stateeducation officials warned that proficiency rates were expected to fall dramatically with the new, more rigorousassessments. As a result, 2012-13 proficiency rates cannot be compared easily to previous years. Rochester, Syracuse, Albany and Yonkers.

14.2%

11.5%

10.8%

26.5%

31.1%

17.0%

11.9% 11.2%

28.5%30.6%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

BUFFALO CHARTERS BUFFALO CSD UPSTATE BIG 5 NEW YORK CITY SD NEW YORK STATE

ELA Proficiency Comparisons (2012-13 & 2013-14)

2012-13 ELA 2013-14 ELA

19.5%

9.6% 9.2%

29.7% 31.1%

22.9%

13.1% 12.5%

34.3%36.2%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

BUFFALO CHARTERS BUFFALO CSD UPSTATE BIG 5 NEW YORK CITY SD NEW YORK STATE

Math Proficiency Comparisons (2012-13 & 2013-14)

2012-13 Math 2013-14 Math


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When making a school-by-school comparison, seven of twelve charter schools serving grades3-8outperformed the District in ELA proficiency 2012-13, with nine of twelve outperformingthe District in 2013-14; nine of eleven charter schools operating in both years saw ELAproficiency rates improve.

In Math proficiency nine of twelve charter schools outperformed the District in 2012-13, withten of twelve outperforming the District in 2013-14; eight of eleven charter schools operatingin both years saw ELA proficiency rates improve.

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

45%

50%

ELA Proficiency School-by-School Comparison

2012-13 ELA

2013-14 ELA

0.0%

10.0%

20.0%

30.0%

40.0%

50.0%

60.0%

Math Proficiency School-by-School Comparison

2012-13 Math

2013-14 Math


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Turning to high school completion rates, charters again significantly outperform the District,other upstate urban districts, and even the state average in the percent of students receiving aRegents diploma, though they lag behind the state average in Regents diplomas withdistinction.

0.0%

20.0%

40.0%

60.0%

80.0%

100.0%

BUFFALO

CHARTERS

BUFFALO CSD UPSTATE BIG 5 NEW YORK

STATE*

Secondary Science Proficiency

88.1%95.2%

76.8%82.9% 82.4%

54.3%

0.0%

20.0%

40.0%

60.0%

80.0%

100.0%

BASCS CSAT Oracle Tapestry WNYMaritime

BUFFALOCSD

High School Completion Rates (2012-13)

Any Diploma

Regents

Diploma

Regents w/

Distinction

Local

Diploma

86.2%

54.3%

64.9%

79.7%

0.0%

20.0%

40.0%

60.0%

80.0%

100.0%

BUFFALO

CHARTERS

BUFFALO CSD UPSTATE BIG 5 NEW YORK

STATE

High School Completion Rates (2012-13)

Any

Diploma

Regents

Diploma

Regents w/

Distinction

Local

Diploma


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ATTENDANCE AND SUSPENSION RATES

Average daily attendance in Buffalo area charter schools is significantly higher, whilesuspension rates are also notably lower. Data is for the 2011-12school year, with newer datanot yet available.

Suspension rates vary significantly across area charter schools. This may be for a number offactors, particularly the schools' approach to discipline. WNY Maritime Charter School, whichhas the highest suspension rate, is particularly strong on discipline, following the Naval

Academy model. Suspension rates on their own, without the context of what the school'sdisciplinary policy is, therefore tells very little.

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Average Daily Attendance

Rate

Suspension Rate

2011-12 Attendance and Suspension Rates

BUFFALO CHARTERS

BUFFALO PUBLIC SCHOOLS

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Charter Suspension Rate Comparisons (2011-12)


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meet proficiency standards on the new Common Core aligned assessments. In the first fewyears of adapting to the new standards, charters already have shown to be better equipped toadjust, largely because charters already have firmly established school-wide approaches tocurriculum development. Whereas many district schools struggle with an unclear school-widemission, inconsistent or unclear mandates from the central office, or a combination of the two.Nonetheless, charters still must make the necessary changes to ensure their students areprepared for the more rigorous standards. This is all the more vital for charters coming up forrenewal, as the renewal of their charter depends on showing continued academic performance.

Serving Special Needs Students

As the report shows, while charters serve demographics ethnically and economically similar tothe District, they tend to serve fewer proportions of special needs students, including studentswith learning disabilities and English language learners. While many factors may contribute tosome of this disparity (self-selection by high-need families; limitations of enrollment by lottery;the tendency of urban districts like Buffalo to over-identify students with learning disabilities),the fact remains that the charter sector can improve its efforts to recruit and serve higher need

populations. One possible solution in the works is legislation that would give charters greaterability to combine services or connect with other service providers to provide specializededucation services at scale. Charters should also regularly review their recruitment andapplication systems to ensure these are not creating unintentional barriers to enrollment ofhigh-need students. Some charters, such as West Buffalo Charter School, have proven,however, that recruitment campaigns can successfully target particular high-need students:26% of West Buffalo students are English language learners, far surpassing the charter sectorand district averages.


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CONCLUSION

For local charter school founders, the goal in creating new schools is to prove that change ispossible with the public school population in Buffalo and to model how that change can beaccomplished. By and large Western New York Charters have done this. Data on schoolperformance showed that on average, the WNY Charter sector consistently outperformed theBuffalo city school district in all academic categories, at both the elementary and high schoollevels.

While WNY charter schools are extremely competitive at the local level, aggregate scores stilllag behind statewide averages in some categories. Local charter schools serve far more studentsliving in poverty than represented in statewide averages, but high expectations for studentachievement, regardless of race or income, must be maintained. Both charters and traditionalpublic schools, especially in urban districts like Buffalo, have room to improve. However, theimpressive academic results on state assessments for charter schools across the state comparedto their respective districts is unmistakable, and indicates the important role that charterschools play in improving the quality of education in locally and across New York State.

While on average local charter schools enroll similar, sometimes higher, rates of studentsliving in poverty compared to their home districts, they enroll lower rates of students withspecial needs and English language learners. Local charter schools must work to address thesegaps and fill the need for adequate programming for an increasingly diverse local studentpopulation. At the state level, providing charter schools with equitable per-pupil funding andenacting legislation to make it easier and more cost-effective for charter schools to servestudents with special needs will support charter schools as they seek to better serve the specialneeds population. In addition, new enrollment and retention targets in charter schools willcreate processes through which schools can enroll greater numbers of English languagelearners, along with necessary accountability measures.

As charter schools continue to enroll a greater portion of public school students in Buffalo, aconcerted effort must be made on the part of local and state education authorities to supportand strengthen local charter schools. Collaboration across charter and traditional publicschools has been limited; in order to fully realize the local potential for reform that existswithin successful charter schools, education leaders must promote the sharing of best practicesacross sectors.

Western New Yorks Charter Schools are a valuable part of the local education landscape,offering parents and students with urgently needed quality educational options. Local demandfor charter schools is outpacing supply, indicating that there is much room for the sector toexpand in the coming years.


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ENDNOTES

1What is a Charter School?Www.Nysca.org.New York Charter Schools Association. Web. September 15, 2012.

.

2Charter School Facts.Www.p12.nysed.gov.New York State Education Department. July 24, 2012. Web.September 9, 2012. .

3Special Education Annual Performance Report: Statewide Classification Rate of Students with Disabilities by

Race/Ethnicity.Www.p12.nysed.gov. New York State Department of Education. October 2009. Web. October 10,

2012. (Noting that in

comparison to white students, black and Latino students are disproportionately placed in special education,

especially in the states high-needs, urban districts).

4S7122-2011: Relates to the provision of special education services at charter school.Open.nysenate.gov/open.

New York State Senate. Web. October 12, 2012. .6Slentz, Ken. Enrollment and Retention Targets for Charter Schools.Www.Regents.NYSED.gov.NYS Board of

Regents. July, 16 2012. Web. October 18, 2012.

.
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Documents

2014 State of the Charter Sector Report