State gives Lynn charter academy OK to add high school

Fifth-grade students study math at KIPP Academy Lynn, a charter school
that has received state approval to expand. (Pat Greenhouse/Globe
Staff/File 2008)

By John Laidler

Globe Correspondent / December 31, 2009

www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2009/12/31/state_gives_lynn_charter_school_ok_to_expand/

Some great news for KIPP Lynn (at the end of this is the email I sent
around on Sept. 28th after visiting the school, and a great video at:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=iEMFA7KJk40):

KIPP Academy Lynn, which currently consists of a grades 5-to-8 middle
school, will gradually add a high school (grades 9 to 12) and expand
enrollment by 430 students to a maximum of 750.

KIPP Academy Lynn, which currently consists of a grades 5-to-8 middle
school, will gradually add a high school (grades 9 to 12) and expand
enrollment by 430 students to a maximum of 750.

The state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education voted 8 to 2 on
Dec. 15 to approve an amendment to the Lynn school's charter that
allows the expansion.

Dear Education Leader,

Six months ago, I kicked off my first day as Rhode Island Commissioner
of Education with one question for the team at the Rhode Island
Department of Education: "Are you ready to change the world?" They
erupted into applause, and we were off and running.

I now ask you that same question: "Are YOU ready to change the world?"
If so, I encourage you to consider joining our team in Rhode Island!

There is no better career in the world than improving the life
circumstances of children through education, and this is an incredibly
exciting time to be a part of it. Our entire country is poised to move
dramatically beyond the mediocrity and failures of the past decades
and into a new generation where all of our students are achieving to
internationally benchmarked standards. We have the momentum and
support needed for transformation to happen – Now it is going to take
tremendous effort and courage to drive us from sustained progress to
success. State departments of education have a key role to play in
this reform effort, and Rhode Island has a unique opportunity due to
our policy landscape, manageable size and student need.

I came to Rhode Island because I recognized the need and the
opportunity. Overall, our state's students are not achieving at the
levels we know they can, and, in particular, our students whose
families are poor, students of color, students who are English
Language Learners, and students with special needs are being seriously
short-changed. We have significant achievement gaps among our
students, and we must do whatever it takes to ensure that ALL students
can achieve at high levels.

Rhode Island has the tools for success:

We have a Governor, legislative leaders and a Board of Regents who are
deeply committed to accelerated improvement and have the courage to
pull it off.

While our state, like others, is experiencing budget challenges, we
are well funded. We are 6th highest in the nation on per pupil
spending.

Our state has only 150,000 students in 36 districts, 13 charter
schools and 4 state schools, and we can get to any of them in less
than an hour.

We have one of the strongest state laws on education reform in the
country giving us the authority to make necessary changes and to
intervene in struggling districts and schools.

We have new and emerging education policies that are making a
difference, such as alternative certification and teacher evaluation
including student achievement.

We have resources in philanthropy, community-based organizations and
in multiple institutions of higher education, including Brown
University, with a significant investment in elementary and secondary
education.

We have a business community ready to be deeply engaged.

Importantly, we have a strong foundation of work to build upon:

high educational standards and a quality assessment through a
partnership with the New England states;

a high school graduation system with multiple measures including a
requirement of passing a proficiency-based assessment;