Tag: enrollment

Nevada Ed-Watch: 4/15/22

Posted on by Opportunity 180

The Ed-Watch series is designed to increase access to information on what decisions are being made regarding public education in Clark County and Nevada.

State Public Charter School Authority (SPCSA)

What is the SPCSA & what are they responsible for? Considered one of Nevada’s school districts, the SPCSA sponsors and oversees public charter schools. The Authority consists of seven appointed members responsible for overseeing educational and operational standards and holding sponsored schools accountable to the academic achievement of students. 

How often does the SPCSA Board meet? The SPCSA typically meets once a month, generally on Fridays. 

Click here for SPCSA meeting schedule and materials.

Can community members engage at SPCSA Board Meetings? While all meetings of the SPCSA are typically held publicly at the Nevada Department of Education building in Carson City and the Nevada Department of Education building in Las Vegas (1st floor boardroom), all meetings are now held virtually due to the COVID-19 crisis. Members of the public may view the meeting online via the link on the SPCSA’s Public Notice web page and the agenda and any supporting materials can be found here. Public comment may be given on any agenda item at the beginning of the meeting, or public comment regarding any matter that is SPCSA-related may be given at the conclusion of each Board meeting. Members of the community giving public comment can utilize the following conference call line: 1-312-584-2401; extension 3952176# with a time limit of three minutes per speaker. Alternatively, public comment may be submitted in writing to publiccomment@spcsa.nv.gov, and any such public comment received prior to the meeting will be provided to the Authority and included in the written minutes of the meeting.

Click here for a list of all SPCSA Members.
Click here for a list of all SPCSA sponsored schools.

Friday, April 15, 2022
State Public Charter School Authority Board Meeting
Access the meeting agenda and playback.

What happened at this meeting? 

Public comment 

Public comment was provided on FMLA and personnel concerns.

SPCSA Executive Director’s Report

Highlights from the report include:

  • Student Equity: Last month, Nevada Prep presented its transportation plan, and this month, the Board will hear about how Beacon Academy serves students with special needs. The agency is continuing discussions around recruitment and enrollment plans to serve certain student populations and promote equitable learning environments.
  • Impacts of COVID-19: The focus is on ensuring schools have access to testing, and schools continue to evolve their COVID plans.
  • Legislative Updates: At the Interim Finance Committee, the SPCSA shared routine adjustments to grant amounts and requested two additional positions, both of which were approved.
  • Budget Prep: The agency is working on budget preparation for the next fiscal year.
  • Annual Enrollment Count: Last year’s annual enrollment data had errors identified; none were specific to SPCSA, but they are working to incorporate those minor technical corrections in SPCSA documents.

Board Heard an Update on Beacon Academy of Nevada

Beacon Academy of Nevada discussed its alternative school model, which offers at-risk high school students with a personalized education plan that provides the support and flexibility for students to graduate high school. 95% of its students fall into a high-need category. The school currently has 95 students and operates on continuous enrollment and have not turned away any students at this point. The school was accredited by COGNIA in 2022, as well. Staff provided updates on credit earning rates, graduation rates by cohort, and next steps for the school.

Explore the presentation.

Board Approved Amendments to Charter School Contracts

Beacon Academy of Nevada requested a good cause exemption and received approval to accelerate financing for its East campus.

Explore Beacon Academy’s good cause exemption letter and charter amendment application. The budget workbook, amortization schedule, and the enrollment workbook can be found here.

Girls Athletic Leadership School (GALS) was approved for a change in its charter management organization. It was approved to formally separate GALS Las Vegas from GALS Inc. and terminate its CMO agreement.

Explore the GALS recommendation memo and Notice of Termination of Contract with GALS Inc.

Battle Born Academy received approval for a temporary location for the 2022-2023 school year, at 4201 E. Bonanza Rd., Las Vegas, NV 89110.

Explore the Battle Born Academy recommendation memo and good cause exemption letter.

Board Heard an Update on Approved New Charter Schools for Fall 2022

Battle Born Academy: The school has secured a temporary facility and has submitted an updated budget, as well as received approval for an SPCSA revolving loan. Enrollment has reached about 50% and is expected to rise with the announcement of the temporary location. The school hired an Operations Director in March, as well as a full-time counselor, and is still looking for professionals in the fields of special education and ESL.

Explore the update from Battle Born Academy.

Sage Collegiate: The school is 59.4% enrolled and will begin canvassing the community in May. The facility is on track to open for the 2022-23 school year but are working on contingency plans. The school is hosting a career fair with several other charter schools on April 23.

Explore the update from Sage Collegiate.

PilotED – Cactus Park Elementary: Enrollment for the school is at 40%, and the faacility is two weeks ahead of schedule. It is 80% staffed for admin and leadership positions, 13% for teaching positions, with additional interviews taking place this month.

Explore the update from PilotED.

Young Women’s Leadership Academy: The school is 60% enrolled, with recruitment events continuing throughout April. They are also making progress with staff recruitment efforts.

Explore the update from Young Women’s Leadership Academy.

Strong Start Academy: The school is 90% enrolled in kindergarten, and 20% in Grades 1 and 2. Upcoming recruitment marketing will focus on Grades 1 and 2, and the school has established a weighted lottery system, should enrollment exceed capacity. Vendor contracts have been executed, and the City of Las Vegas is in the process of transferring funds and has also made an offer on a permanent facility. At an upcoming City Council meeting, the school will move to increase the number of board seats to nine, to ensure each ward served by the school is represented.

Board Approved a Recommendation for School to Submit Recruitment and Enrollment Plans

SPCSA presented a recommendation for schools to submit recruitment and enrollment plans in progress of increasing populations of FRL, ESL, and IEP students served. The recommendation presented included focusing on the FRL student group, as this population represented the greatest disparity, and identifying schools by comparing school FRL percentage to local district schools with the largest FRL rates. Schools making adequate progress (at least 25% increase in the enrollment of students who qualify for FRL in the prior year) were removed from the list. This process resulted in 14 schools being identified to submit recruitment and enrollment plans.

These enrollment plans include staff issuing guidance to the identified schools. Plans would need to be submitted in September 2022 and should detail recruiting and enrolling students who quality for FRL (but the schools can also explore other student groups). Strategies in the plan should fall under at least one of the following categories:

  • Raising awareness
  • Ensuring the school provides a welcoming and supportive environment for all learners, or
  • Increasing the likelihood that such students are selected through the enrollment process.

SPCSA staff will provide feedback and regular updates, and schools will implement plans and provide SPCSA staff with data regarding the effectiveness of those strategies.

Board discussion included questions on monitoring, other state models, and school feedback on the process.

Explore the recommendation memo and SPCSA FRL data.

Board Heard an Update on the SPCSA Growth Management Plan

Staff held a meeting with a community working group to review the current version of the Growth Management Plan. The updated plan will be brought to the Board in June.

Long-Range Calendar (next 3 months):

Agenda items over the next three SPCSA board meetings are anticipated to include:

  • The Growth Management Plan
  • Enrollment and staffing data reporting for new schools

Click here to see the long-range calendar.

The next Meeting of the SPCSA Board is scheduled for May 20, 2022 @ 9:00 am. 

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Nevada Ed-Watch 03/04/2022

Posted on by Opportunity 180

The Ed-Watch series is designed to increase access to information on what decisions are being made regarding public education in Clark County and Nevada.

State Public Charter School Authority (SPCSA)

What is the SPCSA & what are they responsible for? Considered one of Nevada’s school districts, the SPCSA sponsors and oversees public charter schools. The Authority consists of seven appointed members responsible for overseeing educational and operational standards and holding sponsored schools accountable to the academic achievement of students. 

How often does the SPCSA Board meet? The SPCSA typically meets once a month, generally on Fridays. 

Click here for SPCSA meeting schedule and materials.

Can community members engage at SPCSA Board Meetings? While all meetings of the SPCSA are typically held publicly at the Nevada Department of Education building in Carson City and the Nevada Department of Education building in Las Vegas (1st floor boardroom), all meetings are now held virtually due to the COVID-19 crisis. Members of the public may view the meeting online via the link on the SPCSA’s Public Notice web page and the agenda and any supporting materials can be found here. Public comment may be given on any agenda item at the beginning of the meeting, or public comment regarding any matter that is SPCSA-related may be given at the conclusion of each Board meeting. Members of the community giving public comment can utilize the following conference call line: 1-312-584-2401; extension 3952176# with a time limit of three minutes per speaker. Alternatively, public comment may be submitted in writing to publiccomment@spcsa.nv.gov, and any such public comment received prior to the meeting will be provided to the Authority and included in the written minutes of the meeting.

Click here for a list of all SPCSA Members.
Click here for a list of all SPCSA sponsored schools.

Friday, March 4, 2022
State Public Charter School Authority Board Meeting
Access the meeting agenda and playback.

What happened at this meeting? 

Public comment 

No public comment was provided.

SPCSA Executive Director’s Report

Highlights from the report include:

  • COVID-19 updates: Some schools are still requiring masks, while others have lifted the mask mandate. SPCSA is working on a plan, but at this time, schools are determining their masking requirements.
  • Emergency funds: 38 charter schools have requested emergency funds.
  • Next cycle: There are 14 letters of intent from September that are carrying into the next cycle. Nine letters of intent were received in January. There were 23 total letters of intent in the April cycle.

Explore the letters of intent.

Board Heard an Update on Focus on Schools: Nevada Prep Charter School Transportation

NV Prep discussed school transportation. More than 50 percent of the school’s students ride the bus, and they currently have two (with an additional two buses planned). Currently, charter schools receive no transportation funding from CCSD. The school posed requests and recommendations for assistance with more systemic solutions regarding student transportation equity.

Explore the presentation.

Board Heard an Update on Nevada Connections Academy

The school will be entering its renewal cycle by this summer, with the decision to renew by the SPCSA by the end of 2022.

Current enrollment for the school is 1,316 students, with continuing growth. The school’s performance framework target is a three-star rating and 56 total points across all indicators. The school recently held four ACT boot camps for students. Various student engagement initiatives also continue.

Explore the presentation.

Board Heard an Update on Approved New Charter Schools for Fall 2022 – Coral Academy of Science

Prior to the lottery, 1,793 applications with the Cadence Campus had been submitted for 1,850 open seats. 607 new applications have been received since the February 15 Authority meeting. Final enrollment counts will take place in October.

Community outreach for the 2021-2022 school year included door-to-door routes, flyers, phone calls, media coverage, and bilingual support for various outreach initiatives.

Explore the presentation.

 Board Heard an Update on Approved New Charter Schools for Fall 2022

  • Battle Born Academy: The school began hiring in December and had 60 applicants for 11-12 positions. Enrollment is currently 55 applications, with another 200 interested. There is a delay in a permanent facility, but the school is exploring additional partnerships, including one with Discovery Children’s Museum. No delay is expected regarding school opening.
  • Sage Collegiate: The school met its lottery for third grade, and has a wait list in three grade levels (kindergarten, first, and third). From the most recent parent/guardian survey, transportation remains a barrier for some students. The school’s facility partner is expected to close on the property located at 4100 W. Charleston Blvd., with renovations commencing soon thereafter. The school is on track to meet its July 18 TOC deadline with the authorizer.

Explore Sage Collegiate’s update.

  • Cactus Park: The school has a groundbreaking event in two months and is in the process of hiring. The school is also exploring potential partnerships for funding and enrollment, board governance training, and talent strategy.
  • Strong Start: The school has confirmed its principal/executive director and has received a $1 million grant from the City of Las Vegas. The school has started its application window and lottery approval with the SPCSA, and is working on finalizing a permanent site.
  • YWLA: The school is currently 41 percent at lottery with 60+ scholars. The lease has been finalized for the facility and are currently building a hiring pipeline.

Board Heard an Update on Charter School Recruitment and Enrollment Plans

In 2019, the SPCSA adopted a five-year strategic plan that centers on a vision of equitable access to high-quality public charter schools for Nevada students. Three goals were established regarding that plan: 1) provide families with access to high quality schools; 2) ensure that every SPCSA student succeeds, including those from historically underserved student groups; and 3) increase the diversity of students served by SPCSA schools. While the SPCSA has seen progress towards these goals, it continues to serve a disproportionately low percentage of students in three student groups – students qualifying for free and reduced-price lunch (FRL), students identified as English Language Learners (ELL), and students with disabilities (IEP).

SPCSA recommends requiring certain schools to develop and submit a recruitment and enrollment plan to supplement additional strategies it has implemented to address these discrepancies. It has proposed focusing on one group at a time, beginning with FRL students, as this has the greatest discrepancy. Proposed strategies include comparing each school’s FRL rate to each school in the district; identifying the schools with the most significant FRL rates; identifying the 25 percent of schools that have the most significant gaps in FRL rates compared to the local district; and removing any school that had at least a 25% increase in the FRL rate from the 2021-21 to 2021-22 school years. SPCSA anticipates that 10-15 schools would be identified to submit and develop a recruitment and enrollment plan.

Explore the briefing.

Board Heard an Update on Emergency Grant Funding

In June, NDE provided the SPCSA and other local educational agencies with allocations for approximately two-thirds of the anticipated ARP ESSER funding. The SPCSA allocated this funding to each charter holder based on a straight per-pupil allocation, plus a supplemental allocation for each charter holder with greater than 40% of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch reflected in the October 2020 data.

SPCSA staff is considering allocation methodologies for the remaining one-third of the funds. Proposed approaches include carrying over the existing methodology from the first two-thirds of the ARP ESSER funding or exploring a set aside for some of the remaining funds to schools most impacted by a reduction in per pupil funding in the Pupil Centered Funding Plan transition.

Through Assembly Bill 495, the Legislature allocated an additional $15 million from the ARP Act Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Funds (CSFRF) to Title I charter schools. SPCSA staff have been in frequent communication with the Governor’s Finance Office regarding the timeline and process for allocating these funds.

Explore the briefing.

Board Heard a Presentation and Update on the SPCSA Growth Management Plan

SPCSA is required to provide an update for the Growth Management Plan every two years.

The 2022 Growth Management Plan will include gathering input with community working groups on March 30, 2022; meeting with school districts and NDE; and discussion with the Board in March, with possible action at the May Board meeting.

Staff members identified opportunities for revision, including updating enrollment and academic data; conducting a new survey for existing charter holders regarding possible future growth; summarizing key actions by the Authority in the last two years to further strategic goals; reevaluating existing policies and procedures; and considering opportunities for direct engagement with stakeholders to better identify community needs.

SPCSA Board comments were made regarding the importance of outreach and working groups to the plan revisions.

Explore the Growth Management Plan presentation.

Long-Range Calendar (next 3 months):

Agenda items over the next three SPCSA board meetings are anticipated to include:

  • The Growth Management Plan
  • Overview of the renewal process
  • Amendment applications

Click here to see the long-range calendar.

The next Meeting of the SPCSA Board is scheduled for April 15, 2022 @ 9:00 am. 

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Nevada Ed-Watch 12/11/2020

Posted on by Opportunity 180

The Ed-Watch series is designed to increase access to information on what decisions are being made regarding public education in Clark County and Nevada.

State Public Charter School Authority (SPCSA)

What is the SPCSA & what are they responsible for? Considered one of Nevada’s school districts, the SPCSA sponsors and oversees public charter schools. The Authority consists of seven appointed members responsible for overseeing educational and operational standards, and holding sponsored schools accountable to the academic achievement of students. 

How often does the SPCSA Board meet? The SPCSA typically meets one a month, generally on Fridays. 

Click here for SPCSA meeting schedule and materials.

Can community members engage at SPCSA Board Meetings? While all meetings of the SPCSA are typically held publicly at the Nevada Department of Education building in Carson City and the Nevada Department of Education building in Las Vegas (1st floor boardroom), all meetings are now held virtually due to the COVID-19 crisis. Members of the public may view the meeting online via the link on the SPCSA’s Public Notice web page and the agenda and any supporting materials can be found here. Public comment may be given on any agenda item at the beginning of the meeting, or public comment regarding any matter that is SPCSA-related may be given at the conclusion of each Board meeting. Members of the community giving public comment can utilize the following conference call line: 1-312-584-2401; extension 3952176# with a time limit of three minutes per speaker. Alternatively, public comment may be submitted in writing to publiccomment@spcsa.nv.gov, and any such public comment received prior to the meeting will be provided to the Authority and included in the written minutes of the meeting.

Click here for a list of all SPCSA Members.Click here for a list of all SPCSA sponsored schools.

Friday, December 11, 2020

State Public Charter School Authority Board Meeting

Click here to see the meeting agenda

What happened at this meeting? 

Members of the public also submitted public comment online:

Click here to view Public Comment #1
Click here to view Public Comment #2
Click here to view Public Comment #3
Click here to view Public Comment #4
Click here to view Public Comment #5

Board Heard Update on COVID-19 In-Person Learning Guidance

The board heard an update on the SPCSA COVID-19 In-person Learning Guidance from Director Feiden, who noted that there were no major changes in status following the update given at the December 5, 2020 meeting.

School leaders will continue to work diligently with local health officials on the COVID-19 response. Director Feiden recommended that the best course of action is to maintain the current in-person guidance. SPCSA staff will continue to communicate with schools regularly to provide needed supports and information. SPCSA will convene an emergency board meeting if there is a change in the Governor’s directive or an update from the Nevada Department of Education regarding the COVID-19 response prior to the next scheduled on January 22. 

Members of the board requested information about access to the COVID-19 vaccine for teachers and expressed concerns about meeting the needs of Special Education students.

Click here to read the recommendation.

Board Heard Update on Validated Demographic Enrollment Data

Each year on October 1, the Nevada Department of Education (NDE) takes a snapshot of student enrollment, known as Validation Day. Enrollment data is collected at the student level. The data is validated by Local Education Agencies (LEAs) and charter schools and used by NDE, SPCSA, LEAs, charter schools, and other stakeholders, for official federal and state reporting and funding. 

Report highlights:

  • A total of 53,223 students enrolled at SPCSA-sponsored schools for the 2020-21 school year — a 7.7% increase in enrollment from prior year.

  • Almost one-third, or just over 17,000 students, were enrolled in Title 1 schools.
  • Enrollment increased year over year for Asian, Black, and Hispanic/Latino student populations, as well as FRL, IEP, and ELL.
  • Despite the increase in diverse student populations, SPCSA schools enroll fewer Hispanic/Latino and American Indian/Alaska Native students, ELLs, and other special populations as compared to the state average.
  • The ELL enrollment rate for new SPCSA-sponsored schools that opened for the 2020-21 school year exceeds both SPCSA and state ELL enrollment rates.

Board members requested seat number data for new schools and a process to collect student exit data to inform strategies that improve student retention.

Click here & here to view the presentation materials.

Board Heard Update on 4-Year Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rates

The 4-Year Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate (ACGR) is the percentage of students in a school’s cohort of first-time 9th graders that will graduate within four years. The rate is increased when new students transfer into the school and decreased when students transfer out. 

Highlights on graduation rates for SPCSA-sponsored schools:

  • The 4-year graduation rate for the Class of 2020 is 84.2%–a 6.4% increase from prior year.
  • 10 schools reported a 100% graduation rate–more than double the prior year.
  • Year over year graduation rates increased for all student groups, including students identifying as Asian, Black/African American, White, Pacific Islander, or two or more races, as well as ELLs and students with disabilities.

Click here to view the presentation materials.

Board Reviewed Four (4) School Renewal Applications

SPCSA staff presented information to the Board about four school renewal applications, followed by Board discussion and an opportunity for each school to present before the Board.

  • Elko Institute for Academic Achievement: Approved 
    • Elko Institute for Academic Achievement (EIAA) was approved for a 5-year renewal term. The board shared the following highlights:
      • EIAA Middle School has held a 5-star rating since the 2017-18 school year.
      • EIAA most recently received a perfect score under the Organizational Performance Framework.

Click here to see the full EIAA application report.

  • Alpine Academy: Approved
    • Alpine Academy was approved for a 6-year renewal term. The board shared the following highlights:
      • Alpine has exhibited adequate performance, not earning less than a 3-star rating.
      • Alpine most recently earned a perfect score under the Organizational Performance Framework.

Click here to see the full Alpine Academy application report. 

  • Equipo Academy: Approved
    • Equipo Academy was approved for a 6-year renewal term. The board shared the following highlights:
      • Equipo High School is rated 4-stars with a 5-star rating at the middle school.
      • The board commended Equipo for its dedication to improving performance and for its high graduation and FRL rates.

Click here to see the full Equipo Academy application report.

  • Silver Sands Montessori: Approved
    • Silver Sands Montessori was approved for a 6-year renewal term. The board shared the following highlights:
      • In almost every year Silver Sands Elementary has earned a minimum 3-star rating.
      • The board commended the Silver Sands team for their dedication to transforming its middle school from a 2-star to a 5-star rated school.

Click here to see the full Silver Sands Montessori application report.

Board Heard Recommendation on TEACH Las Vegas Application

The board denied a new charter school application for TEACH Las Vegas for the 2021-22 school year following recommendation by the SPCSA staff. Staff noted concerns that the application fails to satisfy NRS 388A.249, shows limited evidence of established community partnerships or how the school will meet the needs of the target population. The board also noted areas of strength in the application including a clear mission, a plan to continue parent engagement, a strong emphasis on data and individual student achievement, and a robust professional development plan.

Click here to see the TEACH Las Vegas application report.

Board Heard Update on 2021 Academic and Demographic Needs Assessment

The Academic and Demographic Needs Assessment is an evaluation of student demographic information, the academic needs of students, and the needs of students who are at risk of dropping out. The SPCSA board first approved the needs assessment at the July 26, 2019 meeting.

Proposed updates to the needs assessment for this year will include limited technical changes, dropout and graduation rates, enrollment and demographic information, and the addition of a new section to focus on the implementation of the needs assessment.

The updates aim to aid the SPCSA in assessing its impact and telling the public the story about the work the SPCSA is doing. The assessment will be brought to the board for possible action at the January 28 board meeting.

Click here to view the Academic and Demographic Needs Assessment.

Click here to view proposed updates.

Long-Range Calendar

In the coming months, the SPCSA board will engage in conversation on the pre-opening process for new charter schools, and expected new schools will provide an update on their work. At the request of board members, SPCSA will also consider rescheduling the March 26 and May 28 meeting dates that fall on or near CCSD’s spring break and Memorial Day respectively.

Click here to see the long-range calendar.

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