Washington, D.C. — The DC Public Charter School Board (PCSB) voted Wednesday at a special board meeting not to renew the charter of Arts and Technology Academy Public Charter School (ATA PCS) for another 15-year term. The school’s charter will expire this year, but the PCSB Board stated that it would be open to entertaining proposals for the school to transfer its assets and operations to a high-performing charter operator.
Charters in the District are granted for a 15-year term. The Board’s 7-0 vote not to renew the charter came after ATA PCS submitted a renewal application because its current charter expires this year. PCSB reviewed the school’s application and found that the school failed to meet its charter goals and academic achievement expectations. As a result, the charter does not meet the standard for charter renewal set out in the District of Columbia School Reform Act of 1995.
Located in Ward 7, ATA PCS was granted a charter from PCSB and opened in 1999. It has 624 students in grades PK3 to 5. The school received a Tier 3 score PCSB’s 2012 and 2013 Performance Management Framework. ATA PCS had seven goals and academic achievement expectations that were measured in its renewal application. PCSB found that ATA PCS had not met two of its academic achievement expectations related to reading and math. The school met four non-academic goals – including an ability to communicate through the arts, high attendance and re-enrollment. There was insufficient evidence to measure one goal related to parent volunteer activities.
Vice Chair Darren Woodruff noted that ATA PCS had made recent progress, but the renewal decision must consider a school’s performance for the entire time it has been open. To that end, ATA PCS has struggled to improve the reading and math skills of its students over time, Woodruff said. “As a Board we are faced with assessing the entire performance of a school.”
Board Chair John H. “Skip” McKoy told the ATA PCS Board of Trustees that PCSB wanted to make sure that families at the schools had access to information and resources on other school options to assist ATA PCS families with the transition.
To read PCSB’s renewal report on ATA PCS, please click here.
About PCSB: The DC Public Charter School Board (PCSB) is setting a national model for creating quality public school options through its rigorous review of new charter applications and effective oversight of charter school performance that is leading the transformation of public education in Washington, DC. PCSB oversees 60 public charter schools on 109 campuses serving nearly 37,000 students living in every ward of the city. Learn more at dcpcsb.org.