STAR Academy A Proposed Pre-kindergarten through 8th grade STEAM School Charter School Application 25 July 2016 Submitted to Alabama Public Charter School Submission Submitted by: Jonta Morris, STAR Academy Executive Director/Founder and Farrah Nicole Martin, Charter School Consultant (On behalf of STAR Academy’s Board of Directors) 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 6 EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM OVERVIEW 18 CURRICULUM AND INSTRUCTIONAL DESIGN 30 STUDENT PERFORMANCE STANDARDS 47 SCHOOL CALENDAR AND SCHEDULE 51 SCHOOL CULTURE 54 SUPPLEMENTAL PROGRAMMING 56 SPECIAL POPULATIONS AND AT-RISK STUDENTS 61 STUDENT RECRUITMENT AND ENROLLMENT 78 STUDENT DISCIPLINE 84 PARENT AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT 87 EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM CAPACITY 90 LEGAL STATUS AND GOVERNING DOCUMENTS 94 ORGANIZATIONAL CHART 95 GOVERNING BOARD 96 ADVISORY BODIES 100 STAFFING STRUCTURE 105 STAFF PLANS, HIRING, MANAGEMENT, AND EVALUATION 106 PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 111 PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT 115 FACILITIES 122 START-UP & ONGOING OPERATIONS 127 OPERATIONS CAPACITY 131 FINANCIAL PLAN & CAPACITY 134 2 Letter of Intent New Rising Star Community Support Corporation 7400 London Ave. Birmingham, AL 35206 June 7th, 2016 Alabama State Department of Education Office of Public Charter Schools 50 North Ripley Street P.O. Box 302101 Montgomery, Alabama 36104 Re: Letter of Intent For A Start-Up Charter School To Whom This May Concern: I am Thomas Beavers, the Senior Pastor of New Rising Star Church and Interim Executive Director of the New Rising Star Community Support Corporation where our mission is to make Eastlake a community of choice through education and housing initiatives. The purpose of this letter is to share our intent to submit an application for a start-up charter school to the Alabama Public Charter School Commission. Currently, the New Rising Star Community Support Corporation’s educational efforts already include an Early Learning Center (6 weeks-4 years old), After School Enrichment, Spring Break Enrichment, and Summer Camp Enrichment. Our next step to improve the quality of life in our community is to launch STAR Academy as a means to restore hope, value, leadership, and empowerment to the people and future of our city. Our core belief is that demography does not determine destiny- all children, regardless of zip code and socioeconomic status, are deserving of a high quality education that prepares them for the demands of the 21st century workforce. STAR Academy (STAR) will serve students in grades Pre-Kindergarten through 8th grade and our hope is to open in August 2017 to a diverse population of students in Birmingham, AL. STAR will utilize an integrated Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM) and project-based instructional model with a focus on literacy instruction, personalized learning, and character education. Our curriculum will be anchored by national and state standards for learning in all core subjects. Please let us know if you need any additional information before we submit our application before the August 1st deadline. Warmest regards, Dr. Thomas Beavers New Rising Star Church, Senior Pastor New Rising Star Community Support Corporation, Interim Executive Director 7400 London Ave., Birmingham, AL 35206 3 Cover Letter and Enrollment Projections Name of Proposed School: STAR Academy Primary contact person(s): Jonta Morris & Thomas Beavers Mailing address: 1731 Oak Park Lane Helena, AL 35080 Phone (day and evening): Jonta: 720.326.9609; Thomas: 205.317.3107 Email: Jonta: [email protected]; Thomas: [email protected] Primary contact for facilities planning: Thomas Beavers Phone number: 205.317.3107 Email: [email protected] Name of entity or interest group applying: New Rising Star Community Support Corporation Names, roles, and current employment of all persons materially involved in the presentation of this application or the organization or governance of the proposed school: Full Name Current Job Title and Employer Position with Proposed School Farrah Martin Aman STEAM Academy Consultant Thomas Beavers Pastor, New Rising Star Voting board member/advisor Ruben Morris Executive Director, New Rising Advisor Star Community Support Corporation Does this applicant entity or interest group have charter school applications under consideration by any other authorizer(s) in the United States? __Yes X No State Authorizer Proposed School Application Due Decision Date Name Date Provide school opening information. Opening Year *Geographic area Opening Grades Grade Level at Full Enrollment 2017 East Birmingham Pre-kindergarten Pre-kindergarten through 8th through 1st grade grade Model or focus of proposed school. 4 Science, Technology, Engineering, integrated Arts, & Math (STEAM) Does the school intent to contract with a third-party education service provider (ESP) to manage the educational program and operations of the school? __Yes X No If yes, identify the ESO or other partner organization: _________________________________________ Proposed Principal/Head of School Information (If Identified): Name of proposed principal candidate: Jonta L. Morris Current employment: Principal Resident; Greenwood Academy K-8 Daytime phone and cell: 720.326.9609 Email: [email protected] 5 Executive Summary STAR Academy (STAR) will serve students in grades Pre-kindergarten through 8th and will open in August 2017 to a diverse population of students in Birmingham, Alabama. STAR will utilize an integrated Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM) and project-based instructional model with a focus on literacy instruction, personalized learning, and character education. Our curriculum will be anchored by national and state standards for learning in all core subjects. Mission: The mission of STAR Academy is to educate and empower our students to reach their limitless potential, by providing them with rigorous academic preparation within a joyful and nurturing community focused on developing personal success factors, problem-solvers, and leaders to create a better world for themselves and others. Vision: At STAR Academy, we believe all children possess the inherent capacity to excel and learn. Our students are shining stars who have ideas that should be valued and cultivated. We create meaningful and lasting experiences that allow our stars to shine the light on what is possible. Stars make their own energy, producing light and are empowered to discover their limitless potential. We are proud of who we are as individuals and as a village and will use our voices to seek justice for humanity for a better community and world. In accordance with the Alabama School Choice and Student Opportunity Act, the founders of STAR Academy believe that “different students learn differently and public schools should have the ability to customize programs that fit the needs of individual students.” Students of all backgrounds should have access to high quality instruction and schools should have the capacity to implement innovative ideas that can address individual learning needs. STAR Academy, we believe that a high-quality education is the foundation upon which children build and realize their highest potential. Our commitment is to prepare our students for a changing local, national, and global context by re-envisioning our educational approach, and in so doing, foster a generation of change-agents, innovators, and leaders that not only think with their mind and heart. We also believe meaningful and lasting learning experiences do not happen in isolated silos, but are interconnected, and thus, so should academic learning in schools. We believe that children are naturally curious, observant, and creative and that it is our goal as a school to nurture these by providing authentic exploration and investigative opportunities beginning when children are young. We believe the visual and performing arts invite creativity and innovation, while science and technology-based instruction develops problem- solving and critical thinking skills that are needed to make personal and professional decisions in an ever-evolving world. We believe the sciences, technology, engineering, and the arts are catalysts for this creative expression and the building of skills that are needed for future-ready scholars, leaders, and citizens. Likewise, we believe, no matter what a child does when he or she “grows up”, success and happiness at home, in school, and in the workplace will be enhanced greatly if that child has a foundation of strong language skills; And that child has a much better chance of developing strong language skills with a focus on language development and literacy as early as possible. 6 STAR Academy will prepare students for this future environment by implementing our vision, mission, and philosophy through a STEAM (integrated science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics) model that infuses a focus on literacy throughout its curriculum and instructional themes. Shared Institutional Values: Our shared values represent the foundation for everything we do at STAR Academy and are central to our program and results. STAR is built on six shared institutional values in which our teachers, leaders, support staff, and board members will exemplify a strong commitment towards our culture, curriculum, and performance measured by: 1. Empowerment – providing the right environment and opportunities to nurture a set of skills and habits of mind that will empower students to make independent and responsible decisions. 2. Equal Access – all students,