Notice of Adequate Yearly Progress

Please Read: Important Information Affecting Your Child

August 9, 2011

Dear New Hope Academy Charter School Parent or Guardian,

We would like to make you aware of the choices and resources available to you based on the progress of your child’s school under the guidelines of No Child Left Behind (NCLB).

What are the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA) and Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP)?

The PSSA is an annual exam given to Pennsylvania students at various grade levels to measure their academic progress. The state uses the PSSA to determine whether New Hope Academy Charter School is making Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP). AYP is determined by how successful districts and schools are in meeting state goals for attendance, graduation rates, test participation and academic progress.

To make AYP, a school must meet the state goals for the student body as a whole as well for each subgroup of students. A subgroup consists of 40 or more students in a school in the following categories: ethnicity, socio-economic status, Individual Education Plan (IEP) – Special Education, and English Language Learner (ELL) status. The number of subgroups that a school has determines the number of “targets” that it must meet to make AYP. During the 2009-2010 school year, students at New Hope Academy Charter School met 24 out of 25 targets.

New Hope Academy Charter School met 83% of AYP targets in 2011. Below are highlights of reading and mathematics achievements:

Reading: During the 2010-2011 school year, 34.7% of all New Hope students demonstrated proficiency in the area of Reading, as measured by the PSSA. These results were fairly consistent over our sub-group populations of Black, Latino, and economically disadvantaged students. Of our students with IEPs, only 15.3% were proficient.

Mathematics: During the 2010-2011 school year, 31.8% of all New Hope students demonstrated proficiency in the area of Math, as measured by the PSSA. These results were fairly consistent over our sub-group populations of Black, Latino, and economically disadvantaged students. Of our students with IEPs, only 18.6% were proficient.

Based on the overall performance and the performance of some subgroups, New Hope Academy Charter School has been identified in AYP STATUS by the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE). New Hope Academy Charter School’s PSSA results indicate that the school did not meet the state’s academic achievement targets for the fourth year in a row, based on 2010-2011 PSSA results. Specifically, New Hope Academy Charter School did not meet the targets as defined by PDE for All Students and Economically Disadvantaged Students in Math, and Reading. Additionally, the Black subgroup did not meet the target for Math.

Reading Proficient/Adv State Target Math Proficient/Adv State Target

All Students 34.7% 63% All Students 31.8% 56%

Econ. Dis. 34.2% 63% Econ. Dis. 31.3% 56%

Black 30.4% 56%

Please review the attachment for an explanation of school improvement and more information on how the New Hope Academy Charter School compares to other Pennsylvania schools.

Action Plan for Improving Student Achievement

As a result of an in depth needs assessment, [SCHOOL NAME] has identified the following areas as key strategies for instructional improvement:

• Remedial Programs such as Study Island and Plato will be used in both Math and Reading to improve students’ basic skills.
• Teachers will use data from 4 Sight assessments to align their instruction.
• Teachers will develop individual progress monitoring plans for each student to insure that every child makes at least one full year of academic growth each school year.
• Struggling students will be provided with intensive interventions during the regular school day.
• After school and summer programs will be established to allow students who are behind to catch up with their grade level peers.
  
  

Explanation of School Choice Option

According to NCLB, New Hope Academy Charter School must offer students the choice to transfer to another school in the district not in School Improvement however New Hope Academy Charter School does not have another school building available to offer the choice to transfer.

How parents and Families Can Help Improve Student Achievement

Parent support is essential to the success of New Hope Academy Charter School]. Communicating with your child’s teachers, making sure your child attends school regularly, helping your child with homework, monitoring your child’s television time, volunteering in the classroom, and participating in school decision-making are important.

The district-wide parent involvement policy will be updated this fall. If you are interested in providing input for this policy, please call Dulce Thomas at 845-4046 and place your name on the list of parents to be invited.. In addition, New Hope Academy Charter School will have its annual meeting to revise our school parent involvement policy and parent compact and to review parent rights under Title I. This meeting is currently scheduled for Wed, August 31^st at 6:45 pm, just prior to the SES provider fair.

The many successes at New Hope Academy Charter School cannot be measured in one test and we appreciate your continued support.

We must admit, however, that if ALL of our students are not doing well, we are not as good as we can be. That is our challenge, our goal and our commitment. Please continue to work with us to make sure that we achieve success for every student.

Sincerely,

Karen C Schoonover

CAO

Enclosures: Additional NCLB Information

Choice Selection Form