SUMMARY

Issue for Decision

Should the Regents approve and issue the proposed first renewal charter of Future Leaders Institute Charter School (New York City)?

Background Information

We have received a proposed renewal charter from the Chancellor of the city school district of the City of New York for Future Leaders Institute Charter School (FLI or “the School”).  The School’s charter was initially granted on March 15, 2005.  It currently serves 300 students in grades K-8.  Upon renewal, it will serve 366 students in grades K-8, and grow to serve 376 students in grades K-8 by the end of this proposed renewal term.  The School's mission is “to expand opportunities for students who historically have had limited access to rigorous academic instruction and to empower them to make informed, deliberate decisions so that they may lead socially responsible, productive lives.  FLI fulfills this mission by offering an innovative, academically rigorous learning community where students of all ability levels can meet academic success.”

The School does not have a management partner.  The School will provide instruction from 8:20 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. for 180 days per academic year for grades K-8, with an additional 15 shortened days in the summer for grades
1-8.  The School endeavors to create an environment in which “students should be taught to become independent learners, and teaching should be student-centered and assessment-driven with the teacher as facilitator of learning.”

The New York City Department of Education held a public hearing in Community School District 3 on December 9, 2009 regarding this proposed renewal charter.  Four comments were made in favor of the renewal. 

Complete copies of the above are available for your review by contacting Sally Bachofer at (518) 474-1762.  Additional information concerning this renewal application may also be found on the Board of Regents website at http://www.regents.nysed.gov/.

Recommendation

              VOTED: That the Board of Regents approves and issues the first renewal charter of the Future Leaders Institute Charter School as proposed by the Chancellor of the city school district of the City of New York, and that its provisional charter be extended for a term up through and including March 14, 2013.

Reasons for Recommendation

              (1) The charter school described in the proposed charter meets the requirements set out in Article 56 of the Education Law, and all other applicable laws, rules, and regulations; (2) the applicants can demonstrate the ability to operate the school in an educationally and fiscally sound manner; and (3) approving and issuing the proposed charter is likely to improve student learning and achievement and materially further the purposes set out in subdivision two of section twenty-eight hundred fifty of Article 56 of the Education Law. 

Timetable for Implementation

The Regents action for the Future Leaders Institute Charter School will be effective immediately.

New York State Education Department

Summary of Charter School Renewal Information

Summary of Applicant Information

Name of Proposed Renewed Charter School:  Future Leaders Institute Charter School (FLI or “the School”)

Address:  134 West 122nd Street, New York, NY 11510

Board of Trustees Co-Chairs:  Suzanne Thompson and Melody Rollins

Renewal Period:  March 15, 2010 – March 14, 2013

Opening Date:  July 1, 2005

District of Location: New York City Community School District 3, Manhattan

Charter Entity:  Chancellor of the city school district of the City of New York

Institutional Partner: N/A

Management Partner:  N/A

Grades Served per Year:    K-8

Projected Enrollment per Year:

Renewal Year 1: 366

Renewal Year 2: 375

Renewal Year 3: 376

Renewal Application Highlights

Evidence of Educational Soundness/ Attainment of Educational Objectives

• The student achievement results for the School for years 2006-2007 through 2008-2009 are shown in Attachment 1 – Tables 1, 2, and 3.
• The School earned a B on its New York City progress report in 2008-2009, a C in 2007-2008, and a B in 2006-2007.
• New York City Department of Education (NYCDOE) reports that FLI has had an inconsistent record of meeting its charter goals throughout its current charter term.
• As a means to improve student performances, FLI recently hired an elementary school director and a middle school director, and has modified student schedules and grade-level structures.  
• In 2008-2009, the School scored higher than its district of location in the English language arts (ELA) and slightly lower in math.  See Attachment 1 – Table 4.
• In 2008-2009, eighty-three percent of students in grades 3-8 were proficient on the New York State (NYS) ELA examination, and 83.8 percent were proficient on the NYS math examination.  See Attachment 1 – Table 1.
• The School has been deemed “In Good Standing” under the NYS Accountability System in 2008-2009.
• The School’s aggregate Performance Index (PI) of 182 on the NYS ELA and 183 on the math exams met the Annual Measurable Objective (AMO) set forth in the NYS accountability system in 2008-2009.
• In 2008-2009, the School met the goals of 70 percent of students in grades
  3-8 will score at proficiency levels in the State ELA exam, and 73 percent will score at proficiency levels in the State math exam.
• The School population in 2009-2010 comprises 86 percent Black, 10 percent Hispanic, one percent White, and three percent Other.
• In 2009-2010, the School identified 10 percent of its students as students with disabilities (SWD), two percent as English language learners (ELL), and 73 percent as eligible for free or reduced lunch.
• The School provides instruction in each subject in the seven general curriculum areas, and the proposed curriculum is aligned to all 28 NYS learning standards.
• The School uses the FOSS and SEPUPS science programs, TERC and Math in Context for math, Research Workshop and the McDougal Littell series for social studies, and a Balanced Literacy Program in ELA.
• The School uses assessment data to inform teaching and learning. 
• In addition to the mandated NYS exams, FLI administers interim assessments in reading and math such as the CTB/McGraw Hill Acuity, City College’s Design Your Own (DYO) assessment, and retired NYS exams.  
• FLI proposes a developmental kindergarten program, along with a regular kindergarten program, as a way to differentiate instruction to kindergarten students with varying abilities and backgrounds.  The curriculum, goals and enrollment age will be the same in both programs. 
• The School employs the Sheltered Instruction Observation Protocol model (SIOP) to help ELL students achieve proficiency in the English language. 
• The School provides instruction from 8:20 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. on Monday through Friday.
• The School provides a 180-day school year from September to the end of June for all grades.
• FLI provides a mandatory three-week summer program for grades 1-8.  The summer program meets Monday through Friday, 8:20 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
• The School’s average daily attendance in 2008-2009 was 94 percent.
• The teacher retention rate was 25 percent for 2008-2009, 59 percent for 2007-2008, and 46 percent for 2006-2007.
• The School has had two principals since inception.  The current principal has served since the beginning of the 2008-2009 academic year.

Evidence of Fiscal Soundness/Projected Fiscal Impact

• The School maintained a positive fund balance in each year of the charter.
• FLI shows a negative change in its net assets for 2007-2008 and 2008-2009.  See Attachment 3.
• The School reports that for 2009-2010 it received private donations totaling $205,758.
• The School is housed in a public school building, located at 134 West 122nd Street, New York, NY 11510.
• The School reports that it has no long-term debt. 
• NYCDOE reports that FLI has over $1.8 million in liquid assets and is “in good financial condition to meet its obligations.”
• The number of Trustees will not be fewer than five and will not exceed 15.  Currently, there are 12 regular trustees and two ex-officio members.
• One Trustee will be a parent of a current student in the School.
• The officers of the board of trustees are chairperson, vice chairperson, secretary and treasurer.
• The standing committees of the Board of Trustees are executive and finance. 
• The board will have two working groups: education accountability and legal/human resources.  Members will include trustees and others.
• Parents and staff members will be asked to participate in ad hoc committees as needed.
• Regular meetings of the Board of Trustees are held at least six times per year.
• The potential fiscal impact upon the District is represented below.  Please note that these projections are based upon several assumptions, which may or may not occur: that all existing charter schools will also exist in the next five years and serve the same grade levels as they do now; that the charter schools will be able to meet their projected maximum enrollment; that all students will come from New York City and no other districts; that all students will attend every day for a 1.0 FTE; that the District’s budget will increase at the projected rate; that the per pupil payment will increase (and not decrease); and that the per pupil payment will increase at the projected rate.

Projected Fiscal Impact of the

Future Leaders Institute Charter School

(New York City – CSD 3 – Manhattan)

2010-11 through 2012-13

* Assumes no annual increase in the District’s budget from the base of $21 billion in 2010-2011; and no annual increase in the average expense per pupil per year from the 2010-2011 rate of $12,443.

Evidence of Parent and Student Satisfaction and Community Support

• A public hearing to solicit comments from the community in connection with the charter school’s proposed renewal was conducted by the (NYCDOE) on December 9, 2009.  There were four comments in favor of the renewal. 
• The student attrition rate was 11 percent in 2008-2009, 15 percent in 2007-2008, and 18 percent in 2006-2007.   
• NYCDOE reports that FLI students express high levels of satisfaction with the School.
• The School reports that the current waiting list contains 290 names of interested students
• The School reports that in 2008-2009, the parent satisfaction rate was 94 percent, with a response rate of 37 percent.  In 2007-2008, the satisfaction rate was 90 percent, with a response rate of 45 percent.  In 2006-2007, the satisfaction rate was 94 percent, with a response rate of 72 percent.

Summary of Charter Entity’s Findings and Recommendations

New York City Department of Education (NYCDOE) has recommended a three-year renewal.  NYCDOE states that, “although the recent data available around the academic performance of the students at FLI has been promising, reviewers felt that lackluster results in the early years of the charter, relative to CSD 3 and New York city as a whole, created uncertainty around the level of academic success at the school and made it impossible to recommend a full five-year renewal term.

“Nonetheless, changes made in the last two years gave reviewers reasons to believe that FLI had a great deal of potential.  New leadership has reenergized instruction at the school and increased opportunities for student voice to be heard.  The school is introducing new data-tracking systems that will enable greater differentiation within classrooms and ultimately lead to improved outcomes.”

Furthermore, NYCDOE states that “it is confident that FLI has the potential to become a high-achieving charter school and that recent changes have put the school in a position to perform at a high level.  We are confident that after this three-year term, the school will be able to demonstrate its academic success and earn a full five-year term.”

Attachment 1

Table 1

2008-2009

Grades 3-8 State ELA and Math Assessments

Percent of FLI Students at Levels 1 – 4

Table 2

2007-2008

Grades 3-8 State ELA and Math Assessments

Percent of FLI Students at Levels 1 – 4

Table 3

2006-2007

Grades 3-8 State ELA and Math Assessments

Percent of FLI Students at Levels 1 – 4

Table 4

2006-2007, 2007-2008 and 2008-2009

Grades 3-8 State ELA and Math Assessments

Percent of FLI and District 3 Students at Proficiency Level

Attachment 2

Current Enrollment

Future Leaders Institute Charter School

2009-2010

Projected Enrollment

Future Leaders Institute Charter School

2010-2011 to 2012-2013

Attachment 3

Future Leaders Institute Charter School

Change in Net Assets for 2006-07 through 2008-09*

*Source: Audited Financial Statements provided as a part of each Annual Report.