INCS Issue Brief 2015.Indd

ISSUE BRIEF FALL 2015 Achieving the Dream Chicago Charter High Schools Improve Academic and Life Outcomes for Students a 17 of the Top 20 Non-Selective Chicago High Schools for College Enrollment Are Charter Schools.1 STREET % COLLEGE ENROLLMENT NOBLE–GARY COMER NOBLE–GARY COLLEGE PREP NOBLE–MUCHIN COLLEGE PREP NOBLE–NOBLE COLLEGE PREP NOBLE–RAUNER COLLEGE PREP NOBLE–UIC COLLEGE PREP NOBLE–CHICAGO BULLS COLLEGE PREP URBAN PREP ACADEMY FOR YOUNG MEN–ENGLEWOOD NOBLE–GOLDER COLLEGE PREP MASON HS LAWNDALE NORTH COLLEGE PREP–CHRISTIANA URBAN PREP–EAST GARFIELD PARK CHICAGO INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL– CHARTER RALPH ELLISON NOBLE–ROWE- & SCI. ACADEMY CLARK MATH NOBLE–PRITZKER COLLEGE PREP CHICAGO INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL– CHARTER NORTHTOWN YOUNG WOMEN'S LEADERSHIP HS KENWOOD ACADEMY HS CHICAGO ACADEMY HS UCSN–MAJOR HECTOR GARCIA MD CAMPUS P. CHICAGO VIRTUAL SCHOOL CHARTER 87% 87% 84% 82% 81% 80% 78% 78% 77% 75% Transforming Public Education Since the first charter high school opened its doors in 1997, Chicago’s charter public high schools have been transforming the public education system to improve academic achievement and outcomes, especially for African-American and Latino students who have historically faced barriers to academic success. This issue brief examines how charter public high schools have moved the needle on student academic growth, high school graduation, and college enrollment. Relative to their demographic peers, Chicago’s charter school students are rising Charter Schools Lead CPS above expectations on multiple measures. in High School Graduation 2 This is especially true at the high school and College Enrollment level, where students generally enter 9th grade significantly behind academically. But something is working in Chicago’s charter high schools that is helping to change the odds and improve opportunities for success for these students. For over a decade, % % 63 76 % % % 70 50 Chicago’s charter high schools have led CPS 51 68% in achieving the critical milestones of high school graduation and college enrollment. Charter schools’ success on these measures Graduation Rates College has led to an overall increase in district 2004 2014 Enrollment achievement among students with the highest needs. Charter District, Non-Selective b NOBLE–GARY COMER NOBLE–GARY COLLEGE PREP NOBLE–MUCHIN COLLEGE PREP NOBLE–NOBLE STREET COLLEGE PREP NOBLE–RAUNER COLLEGE PREP NOBLE–UIC COLLEGE PREP NOBLE–CHICAGO BULLS COLLEGE PREP URBAN PREP ACADEMY FOR YOUNG MEN–ENGLEWOOD NOBLE–GOLDER COLLEGE PREP MASON HS LAWNDALE NORTH COLLEGE PREP–CHRISTIANA URBAN PREP–EAST GARFIELD PARK CHICAGO INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL– CHARTER RALPH ELLISON NOBLE–ROWE- & SCI. ACADEMY CLARK MATH NOBLE–PRITZKER COLLEGE PREP CHICAGO INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL– CHARTER NORTHTOWN YOUNG WOMEN'S LEADERSHIP HS KENWOOD ACADEMY HS CHICAGO ACADEMY HS UCSN–MAJOR HECTOR GARCIA MD CAMPUS P. CHICAGO VIRTUAL SCHOOL CHARTER 75% 74% 74% 74% 73% 73% 72% 72% 72% 70% Chicago’s Charter High Schools by the Numbers • Number of Schools: 48 • Number of Students Served: 21,798 • 1 in 5 high school students in Chicago Public Schools attends a charter high school. Student Demographics3 Charter District FREE/REDUCED 91% 91% LUNCH ENGLISH LEARNERS 6% 10% SPECIAL EDUCATION 15% 16% AFRICAN-AMERICAN 56% 37% HISPANIC 39% 50% What Is a Charter School? Charter schools are independent and mission-driven public schools. Charter schools are tuition-free and open to all children. There are no entrance requirements or admission tests required to attend a charter school. 1 How do charter schools move the bar for students so dramatically? Because charter schools are independent, autonomous public schools, they are granted flexibility in exchange for academic accountability. This freedom allows schools to focus on programmatic priorities and tailor resources around their goals. For college prep high schools, all decisions flow from this end goal, including those related to curriculum, school culture, resources, leadership, personnel, and other critical factors that contribute to a school’s performance. Keeping Students From Freshmen Year Through Graduation Chicago’s charter public high schools are among the most successful schools at graduating the students that enroll in them on the first day of high school. This rate – the percent of original freshmen who earn a diploma from the first school they enrolled in – is referred to as the “freshman retention rate.” The highest-quality high schools take responsibility for the success of all the students who enter their doors on the first day of freshmen year. These schools invest in resources and supports to prepare their students academically and emotionally for graduation day and beyond. The average freshman retention rate for charter schools is nearly 10 percentage points higher than the average for non-selective district schools. These data reveal another critical trend: the preponderance of families who start high school in CPS but leave the school district altogether during the high school years – a group referred to as “verified transfers.” Percent of Students Graduating High School Within Five Years of Their Start4 100 3% 15% 23% 80 27% 16% 60 9% 40 57% 48% 20 0 Charter District, Non-Selective Transferred out of the district Graduated from another CPS high school Did not graduate Graduated from original high school 2 Improving Academic Growth Under Illinois law, charter public schools serve all students regardless of socio-economic status, ethnicity, race, academic performance, or neighborhood. As in many public schools in Chicago, most charter school students enter high school several grades behind their national peers academically. To ensure students are on track to graduate and are prepared for the rigors of college and career, many charter schools focus relentlessly on student academic Charter schools focus growth. By setting aggressive academic growth targets, many Chicago charter schools have proven relentlessly on student they can bring students to grade level no matter academic growth. where the students enter high school academically. Data show that, on average, students at all non-selective CPS schools begin high school at similar academic starting points.5 However, charter school students’ academic growth is nearly double that of students attending other schools.6 Academic Growth by Starting Point Among Freshmen7 7 6 5 4 3 2 3.0 2.4 3.2 2.5 4.7 2.7 6.3 3.1 Points of growth from Explore to ACT Explore from Points of growth 1 0 Starting Score: Starting Score: Starting Score: Starting Score: 12-12.9 13-13.9 14-14.9 15-15.9 Charter District, Non-Selective SPOTLIGHT ON SUCCESS Noble Network of Charter Schools’ Advisories All Noble students participate in an advisory program for the entirety of their high school careers. Advisory offers scholars a supportive group setting where they build a strong bond with fellow classmates and are led by a faculty advisor who stays with that group throughout their high school experience. Advisories “My advisor always strived to make consist of 20 to 25 scholars and one staff each one of us better. She helped member who supports students with academic shape the person I am today. progress, community service, enrichment But most importantly, advisory requirements, the college admissions process, was a place where I felt safe and and character development. comfortable to be myself.” — Priscilla Centeno, Noble and Connecticut College alumna 3 Opening Doors to College and Opportunity The ACT exam is widely recognized as a key to open doors to college. Colleges view this score as an early predictor of students’ abilities to handle the rigor of a post-secondary education, and a score of 21 is a benchmark for college readiness. Since every CPS student takes the ACT, it serves as a common indicator of college readiness among Chicago high schools. In 2008, four of the top 10 non-selective schools in Chicago Public Schools on ACT achievement were charter schools. But the system-wide performance was bleak: no non-selective public school had an average ACT score close to the national benchmark for college readiness. In 2014, all 12 of the highest performing open-enrollment public high schools on ACT achievement were charter Charter public schools public schools. Most importantly, several of these schools are now meeting or surpassing the national increase college- benchmark for college readiness. Over time, charter readiness for more public schools have pushed the bar higher in the city for college-readiness. students across the school district. Chicago Public Schools’ ACT Achievement8 24 ACT COLLEGE READINESS BENCHMARK (21) 18 TOP 12 6 4 2008 12 0 2014 Taft Hubbard Lake View Noble–UIC Morgan Park Perspectives– College Prep Noble–PritzkerNoble–Muchin Noble–GolderNoble–Rauner College Prep Noble–Johnson CICS–Northtown CICS–Northtown Chicago Academy Rodney D. Joslin ChicagoScience Math Academy and ChicagoScience Math Academy and Kenwood Academy Computer Science Noble–Gary Comer Noble–Noble Street Noble–Chicago Bulls Noble–Noble Street ASPIRA–Mirta Ramirez Charter District, Non-Selective SPOTLIGHT ON SUCCESS Chicago International Charter Schools’ Restorative Justice Practices Restorative Justice is an alternative form of discipline that emphasizes repairing the harm done in relationships, addressing the needs of student participants, and safely reintegrating students back into the school environment. Restorative Justice also recognizes the importance of building students’ overall capacity, building healthy intergenerational relationships, and

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