SEVEN HILLS CHARTER SCHOOL FAILS TO MEET BENCHMARKS, FACES PROBATION; February 26, 2011; Telegram & Gazette (Worcester, MA)
WORCESTER — The state commissioner of elementary and secondary education has recommended that Seven Hills Charter School be put on probation, according to a memo he sent to the state board.
The state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education is scheduled to vote on Seven Hills' charter Monday, and Commissioner Mitchell D. Chester recommends that the board impose several conditions on the charter's renewal, including that it demonstrate that it is an academic success by December 2012.
Mr. Chester's concerns include that the school has not met federal and state improvement benchmarks (called adequate yearly progress) in any subject since 2005, although some subgroups of students have met their goals in some subjects. The department's review of the school also found that eight teachers (one-fifth of instructional staff) were fired or left at the end of the 2009-2010 school year (including all of the fourth- and fifth-grade teachers) and that the school has had a different governance model for each of the last five years, although it has had the same leader throughout those years. During the 2009-10 school year, the school's board of trustees, which is supposed to have nine to 25 members, dwindled to four, three of whom quit the following year, when eight more joined….
7 comments:
For the record as a former employee, the new heads of school are not certified and one of which cannot pass the mtel . Many teachers are not even certified to teach!! Unless you are part of the elite crowd that kisses ms piazza's bottom you will not be recognized. Do not send your kids here and Do not apply to work here. It is a sinking ship and will end up being shut down!!
For the record...I am a current parent of children at this school. We love the school. My children have performed very well on the MCAS and in other areas. I would only listen to this previous post with a grain of salt as since this is a "former" employee we do not know under what circumstances this person left and if they have a bone to pick with the administration. I do not want my children going to a public school.
I am glad you and your child are having a good experience at Seven Hills. Something good should happen as a result of so many hard working people. However, your are a minority.
So far, half way through the extended school year 17 teachers have left and the majority of whom is left are desperately seeking new employment or are just trying to make it till the end of the year without losing all of their hope and passion of being a teacher. Many of these teachers relocated their lives and families from far and away. Naively, to make a difference in this shameless mess of a school whose administration has trickled down a brutal style of stripping these dedicated people of all of their confidence and instilling fear as a means of motivation. For many many years the school has changed its administrative structure, curriculum, and employees. This year 80% of the teachers were replaced. Many great teachers decided to not return for a reason. Did you know that you can get fired for simply "being negative" as cited in the handbook as policy. What happened to freedom of speech? Or some healthy feedback? Many teachers and administrators don't have their license in their fields because they cannot pass the state tests (MTEL's); they don't have the academic schooling or pedagogy to inform their position; AND they don't have very much teaching or administrative experience to be in such management positions. Not to mention the skills to command a fleet of teachers with helpful guidance and academic support. The true and unspoken shame is that in order to make it as an employee at this school, it does not require: hard work, dedication, empathy, compassion, intellect, effective academic strategies, best practices, rapport with students, ability to collaborate, a solid curricular foundations, or the determination to give all that you have got to your students. Instead, you need to be better at politics than your predecessor was. Quality teaching or teachers is not a valued asset.
Believe what you want to believe, but remember.. we did warn you.
I can't believe this school has not been closed by the Mass DOE. At the very least it sholud be investigated by the Mass State Ethics Commission. This "school" an is an example of everythng bad in education.
Tread carefully.
Vote no for charter schools and yes for public...this school is why charter schools are not popular. Our hard earned tax dollars are in the trash...literally food that has not been touched in the trash by 3pm...apples,oranges...you name it it's in there because a child will not want it for lunch. Administration is lacks quality and good leadership skills. Someone warned me, I did not listen. There are only so many warnings about this school to be heeded. Test scores in 2016 are the worst ever for this school only two years off of probation...that says enough. It has not gotten better for teachers or students because of the lack of good leadership. Notice that I said good, never mind great let's just begin with obtaining good. Warning!
Okay, first the good news about this school is that there are always openings for new hires. The bad news is that the school is not a quality school for teachers to properly educate in so therefore vacancies are always prevalent. I was relieved to see minority teachers in the school, but surprisingly they are not teachers but aids in a classroom. The teachers who are not minorities, most do not have their credentials or license to teach and yet they are lead teachers helping children who cannot pass standardized testing? Why are our tax dollars funding this school and paying for teachers who are not passing their MTELS? PLEASE LOOK AT THE COST OF THIS SCHOOL AND THEN YOUR PAYCHECK WHERE TAXES HAVE BEEN USED TO FUND THIS SCHOOL. THEN GO TO SCHOOL DIGGER AND LOOK AT THE RANKING OF THIS SCHOOL AND TELL US IF THIS IS FAIR TO PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHERS WHO HAVE PASSED THEIR TESTS FOR LICENSURE TO TEACH IN THE STATE OF MA. I am writing this on my way to work where I have a job teaching students who are passing state tests. I wake up early to prepare my classroom tasks and worksheets and stay late to ensure that my classroom is ready to go the next day. That is what your tax dollars should reflect, not a failing rate of 80% on state tests. This school is sinking. It is 2016 and yet the test scores are still what they are...lowest scores in the state of Massachusetts. This school is not a good school to have on your resume.
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