(ATTACHMENT 1) ACTION ON A CHARTER SCHOOL PROPOSAL FOR MILWAUKEE EXCELLENCE CHARTER SCHOOL MILWAUKEE PUBLIC SCHOOLS Charter Petition/Proposal Submission Cover Sheet A. INCLUDED IN THIS SUBMISSION: Executive Summary 15 Page Petition/Proposal Signed Petition (Not Applicable) Appendices Hard Copy of Submission Electronic Copy of Submission Provide the name of the person who will serve as the primary contact for this proposed charter school: Maurice Thomas B. NAME OF CHARTER SCHOOL: ___Milwaukee Excellence Charter School____ Petition Instrumentality ( X ) Proposal ( X ) Non-Instrumentality IF NON-INSTRUMENTALITY: Name of non-profit corporation that will hold the charter: _____Milwaukee Excellence INC._______________________ Has the corporation applied for 501-C3 non-profit status? () Yes (X) No C. NAME OF CONTACT PERSON: ______Maurice Thomas_____________________________________ TITLE/RELATIONSHIP TO PROPOSED SCHOOL: _______Lead Founder and Proposed Executive Director______ MAILING ADDRESS: ____________ TELEPHONE: __________ _____________________________Same________________ (Day) (Cell) E-MAIL ADDRESS: _____________________________ D. The proposed school will open in the fall of school year: _____2016-2017___________ Term of charter requested: ___Five consecutive school years beginning in fall 2016__________ School Year Grade Levels Total Student Enrollment 1st Year 5th 120 2nd Year 5th and 6th 240 3rd Year 5th, 6th, and 7th 360 4th Year 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th 480 5th Year 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th 600 1) I understand the Milwaukee Board of School Directors reserves the right to give priority to petitions and proposals that directly address identified areas of need of targeted student populations within the district and to replicate currently successful schools. 2) I certify that I have the authority to submit this petition/proposal and that all information contained herein is complete and accurate, realizing that any misrepresentation could result in disqualification from the petition/proposal process or revocation after award. 3) NON-INSTRUMENTALITIES ONLY: I understand that seat availability is based on Milwaukee Public Schools enrollment counts. In any year seats may or may not be available. ___________________________________________________________ ___12/31/14_____ Signature Date Submitted _____Maurice Thomas_______________________________________ Printed Name 1-1 A proposed 5th – 12th grade charter school for Milwaukee, Wisconsin Milwaukee Public Schools, Proposal Respectfully Submitted by Lead Founder and proposed Executive Director Maurice Thomas The Milwaukee Excellence Founding Team Rayna Andrews, Founding Board Member Director Community Relations, Office of the Milwaukee County Executive Ben Goetter, Founding Board Member Executive, M.A. Mortenson Company Nicole Maassen, Founding Board Member Assistant Professor, Masters of Business Administration Program, Alverno College William Mahler, Founding Board Member Financial Advisor, Artisan Partners Jean Maier, Founding Board Member Retired, Former Executive, Northwestern Mutual Darren Miller, Founding Board Member President, JM Construction Maurice Thomas, Lead Founder and Proposed Executive Director Fellow, Building Excellent Schools Ranell Washington, Founding Board Member Senior Analyst, BMO Harris Bank Torrie Williams, Founding Board Member Attorney, Public Defender’s Office, Milwaukee, Wisconsin Milwaukee Excellence Contact Information: 1-2 Table of Contents Section Page I. Executive Summary ii II. Proposal 1 1. Description of the charter concept including vision, mission and rationale 1 2. Name of the person who is seeking to establish the charter 2 3. Name of the person who will be in charge of the charter school 2 4. Description of how the community wishes to assume more support 2 5. Description of the educational program of the school 3 6. Methods the school will use to enable pupils to attain educational goals 6 7. Method by which pupil progress in attaining the education goals will be measured 8 8. School Governing Body: Governance structure of the school, including the method to 8 ensure parental involvement and the plan for addressing parental concerns 9. Certifications and qualifications of individuals employed in the school 9 10. Procedures and Requirements to ensure the health and safety of the pupils 9 11. Targeted student population and recruitment strategies/procedures/requirements 10 12. Procedures and requirements for admission to the school 11 13. Enrollment and grade level distribution chart for each year of the contract term 11 14. Proposed Budget Outline 12 15. Annual financial and programmatic operation auditing process 12 16. Procedures for disciplining pupils 13 17. Public school alternatives for pupils who reside in the school district 14 18. Description of the school facilities and the types and limits of liability insurance 14 19. Effect of establishment of the charter school on the liability of the school district 15 20. School transportation and nutrition policies 15 21. Declaration of non-instrumentality charter school 15 22. Initial school year and length of charter term 15 Appendix 16 A. Charter school calendar 16 B. Student day start and end times 17 C. Uniform policy 18 D. Instrumentality Memoranda of Understanding (NA) 19 E. Diversity Plan 20 F. Special Education Plan 22 G. Charter school proposed budget and optional services form 26 H. Charter School discipline policy 28 I. Petition Signatures (NA) 38 J. Vitae and contact information of the school leader and applicant team 39 K. Sample student weekly schedule 56 L. Additional curriculum information to support educational concept 58 M. Letters of support from business and community partners 64 N. Sample teacher work week 68 O. Local assessments 69 P. Educational Philosophy and School Characteristics 75 Q. A Day in the Life at Milwaukee Excellence 82 R. Governance and Capacity 83 S. Bylaws and Conflict of Interest 88 T. Sample Marketing Material 99 U. Monthly Newsletter 100 V. Community Support Events 103 1-3 I. Executive Summary A. The educational program to be offered Mission: Through rigorous academics and character education essential for success, Milwaukee Excellence Charter School educates 5th through 12th grade students to excel within and graduate from four-year colleges and to pursue the professions of their choice. Vision: Milwaukee Excellence Charter School (“Milwaukee Excellence”) is a proposed 5th – 12th grade charter school for the 53206 zip code in the City of Milwaukee. Starting with 120 5th grade students, Milwaukee Excellence will use a slow growth model, growing one year at a time until we reach full capacity of 960 students in 2023. Milwaukee Excellence is comprised of two academies: Milwaukee Excellence Middle School (grades 5-8) with 480 students at full capacity and Milwaukee Excellence High School (grades 9-12) with 480 students at full capacity. In fall 2020, our first class will enter ninth grade with the core skills and academic knowledge to succeed in high school as evidenced by their ability to read and do math on or above grade level and as measured by rigorous state and national assessments. The education students will have received at Milwaukee Excellence Middle School will have prepared them for the challenging ACT-aligned curriculum of our high school. By fall 2024, our students will be equipped with the knowledge, skills, and character to compete with their more affluent peers from communities such as Whitefish Bay, and to achieve at high levels in prestigious colleges within Milwaukee such as the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee and Marquette, across Wisconsin and the Midwest such as the University of Wisconsin- Madison and Northwestern, and including Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) such as Morehouse and Spelman. Our graduates will carry with them character traits informed by our FIRST values of Focus, Integrity, Respect, Self-Determination, and Team, and they will be equipped with the scholarly habits necessary to navigate their personal lives while attending college. Our students will be prepared to capitalize on all that life has to offer. We are unapologetically college preparatory, and our educational program is grounded in extensive research of school design elements that meet the needs of low-income, first generation college-bound students. All of our programmatic choices are possible through the autonomy of a non-instrumentality charter school. Offering a highly innovative seamless 5-12 charter model, currently unavailable to local families, Milwaukee Excellence is proposed for the 53206 and 53209 zip code of Milwaukee – a community which includes the Amani and Franklin Heights neighborhoods. The public schools in these zip codes face significant challenges, with each school having over 80% of its student population designated as economically disadvantaged. Low educational attainment in combination with high levels of poverty and incarceration have devastated the area. In a 2012 study, the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee identified the 53206 zip code as the poorest zip code in Milwaukee County, with an average annual household incoming of $20,260.1 The additional study of Wisconsin’s Mass Incarceration of African-American Males: Workforce Challenges for 2013 indicated that the 53206 zip code had the most incarcerated African-American males in Milwaukee County from 1990 to 2012.2 In response to this need, our educational philosophy is built on the following seven key beliefs: 1. Literacy