Next week, in AV #225, I will provide
an overview of the steps leading to Denver Public Schools’ decision to create,
or “recreate,” a comprehensive high school at Montbello. First, however, I wish
to point out three reasons why Denver should not assume this responsibility. Why,
to be more importunate, I will argue that it has not proved itself capable of leading such work. I
will show why, for the sake of the Montbello community and future MHS students,
another entity needs to guide this critical effort.
I hope Denver Public Schools knows its limits. Over the past 20 years, DPS has not been able to create and open a successful new “comprehensive high school” in a community like Montbello. Moreover, we have all witnessed the district’s chronic failure to right the ship at Abraham Lincoln, Manual, and West. That is just the tip of the iceberg. The 2019 state as well as Denver’s own School Performance Framework (SPF) rated over 20 secondary schools in DPS as not meeting expectations.
Denver Public Schools should focus on
improving these schools. Plenty on its plate. It should not presume it
has the capacity to take on the design of the new school for Montbello.
1.
Any
examples of DPS opening a high-quality high school in a community like
Montbello?
DPS has not
created a high-quality secondary school serving a majority of low-income
students in this century. (The last high school opened by the district—and
a proven success? Perhaps the Denver School of the Arts in 1991.) The district’s
newest big high school, Northfield High, enrolls a student body vastly
different from what we saw at Montbello High in 2010 – or at the three schools
there now.
2. More than 20 Denver high schools are not
“Meeting Expectations” – support them first
DPS
has close to 18,000 secondary school students in schools that, on its own SPF, are
not Meeting Expectations. Ten of Denver’s larger secondary schools
earned the lowest two ratings on the both the state and the district’s
2019 SPF. They enroll nearly 7,000 students. Another ten secondary schools,
all Accredited on Watch on Denver’s SPF, serve almost 11,000 students. What
a challenge, to bring much-needed improvement to so many schools. This should
be the district’s first order of business.
3.
Did restructuring lead to “great schools”
at Montbello High?
The
district was responsible for oversight of the turnaround efforts when it closed
the old Montbello High in 2014. A success story? DCIS at Montbello and Noel
Community Arts School are “district-run”; both were rated Accredited on
Probation or Accredited on Priority Watch on the district’s SPF the
past four years. DPS must take responsibility for the discouraging results
of the past decade of its turnaround work at Montbello. How does it make sense
to turn to DPS again, hoping against hope that this time it will get it
right?
For these reasons, Denver Public Schools has not earned the right to take this on. It would be a distraction from more immediate concerns; at least 10 high schools need dramatic improvement now. I believe the evidence calls for some other entity, not DPS, to be tasked with this huge responsibility.
1.
Any
examples of DPS opening a high-quality high school in a community like
Montbello?
A. Northfield
High School, opened in 2015,
is “Denver's newest
comprehensive high school.”[i] I trust anyone who points to it as evidence
that DPS can open a “high-quality” high school notes its mission and the
student body it is serving (see enrollment, below). It would be wonderful to
offer the IB program to more students in the Montbello community, but at
present, a comprehensive high school committed to the IB program would be a
poor fit. The school community is markedly different from the population that attended
Montbello in its earlier traditional structure, or these past seven years with
several schools inside the building.
Northfield High School - An
International Baccalaureate World School
Colorado’s School Performance
Framework –
·
2017
– Performance
·
2018
– Improvement
·
2019
- Improvement
Northfield’s
Academic Program states: “Every student will have access and the opportunity to
pursue the International Baccalaureate® Diploma. All 11th and 12th grade core
academic courses are IB. All 9th and 10th grade courses align to the IB
curriculum pathways. This forms a rigorous college preparatory curriculum with
a strong correlation to college success.” https://northfield.dpsk12.org/academics/
Enrollment at Northfield H.S.
versus enrollment at the three schools located at Montbello
Fall 2000 - from CDE (# on
race/ethnicity from CDE; % is my math)
|
|
Free Lunch |
Reduced Lunch |
FRL Total |
Black/ African American |
Hispanic /Latino |
White |
Two or more
races |
|
Northfield High |
26.6% |
6.6% |
33.2% |
16% |
31% |
42% |
7% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
DCIS at Montbello |
80.4% |
12.6% |
93% |
8% |
86% |
1% |
1% |
|
Noel Community Arts School |
72.2% |
11.9% |
84.1% |
25% |
60% |
7% |
3% |
|
STRIVE Prep at Montbello |
79.1% |
12.3% |
91.4% |
16% |
75% |
3% |
4% |
- From
BEYOND AVERAGES: SCHOOL
QUALITY IN DENVER PUBLIC SCHOOLS[ii]
By Alex Ooms - Donnell-Kay Foundation, 2014
Though dated, this 2014 analysis of the
quality of schools in DPS gave a clear rebuke to the district. It noted what had happened in recent years –
without DPS leadership – the creation of successful new secondary charter
schools serving a high percentage of low-income students and students of
color. In contrast, Denver had not created one.
(Bold
mine)
From
– Executive Summary
… while the district has, very recently,
improved many of its elementary schools, there is no historical evidence
that the district has the ability to open or operate quality schools in the
secondary grades.
From - Secondary Schools Overall
|
*2013-% pts earned – 70 or above McAuliffe International (M) – 91% East High – 81% Denver School of the Arts – 79% CEC Middle College of Denver –
74% |
The district’s
quandary for quality secondary grades is not limited to continuing schools — it
exists within district-run new schools as well. The difficulties are two-fold:
achievement and access. First, DPS operates very few quality secondary schools.
Indeed, in 2013, there were just four quality secondary schools under
district governance out of 40 total*…. Second and far worse: the district
secondary schools that meet our quality distinction are not available to the
average low-income student. Two of these schools are magnets and have selective
admissions policies; the other two have low-income enrollment of 22%
[McAuliffe] and 36% [East] respectively – half or less of the DPS average.
… Put more
simply, there is no quality district-operated secondary school open to all
students with the exception of East High and its prodigious gaps in academic
achievement. An average student in DPS, particularly if low-income, has
virtually no chance of attending a quality secondary school run by the
district. Their best chance is to enroll at one of the 13 charter secondary
schools with a 2013 SPF score above 70%.
The inability
of DPS to operate quality schools serving secondary grades either by opening
new schools or by improving existing schools is deeply concerning…. Without
quality secondary schools, the district’s ability to educate students for
career and college success is virtually impossible.
|
**2019 UPDATE – from Denver’s
School Performance Framework From 4 quality secondary schools in 2013 to only 2
in 2019. McAuliffe International School (6-8) – Distinguished
– 84.04% pts earned Denver
School of the Arts (6-12) – Distinguished – 79.45% pts __ East High – Accredited on Watch – 43.75% pts. Career Education Center Early
College – Accredited on Watch - 32.70 % pts. |
I used these quotes from “Beyond
Averages” as part of newsletter #129, “Evidence of success from the charter world – smaller high schools,” (April 2015). See also page 3: DPS - “strategies that work.”
2.
More
than 20 Denver high schools are not “Meeting Expectations” – support them first
Most of Denver’s “district-run”*
secondary schools are not providing a high-quality program, if we accept either
the state’s School Performance Framework or Denver’s School Performance Framework
as a useful evaluation. (*Districts do not “run” schools, but the absurdity of
the phrase tells us a lot.) Along with the two secondary programs (DCIS at
Montbello and Noel Community Arts School) currently at Montbello, both on the
state’s Priority Improvement Plan, both Accredited on Priority Watch
on Denver’s SPF, here are 10 of the other “district-run” secondary schools in
DPS. Not only do not they not “meet expectations” on Denver’s SPF; they are
rated in the two lowest categories.
School Performance Framework – 2019 – 10 DPS high schools
TR - Turnaround, lowest rating
PI – Priority Improvement, second lowest rating
|
10
other* DPS secondary schools on Turnaround or Priority
Improvement |
State’s SPF |
Denver’s SPF |
|
Abraham
Lincoln High |
PI (year 5) |
Accredited on
Watch |
|
Collegiate Prep Academy |
PI |
Accredited on
Priority Watch |
|
Denver Center for International Studies (6-12) |
TR |
Accredited on
Probation |
|
Denver Montessori Jr./Sr. High (6-12) |
TR |
Accredited on
Probation |
|
Denver School of Innovation & Sustained Design |
PI |
Accredited on
Priority Watch |
|
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Early College (6-12) |
PI |
Accredited on
Priority Watch |
|
John Kennedy High |
TR |
Accredited on
Probation |
|
Manual High |
TR (year 6) |
Accredited on
Probation |
|
South High |
PI |
Accredited on
Priority Watch |
|
West Leadership Academy (6-12) |
TR |
Accredited on
Probation |
*Currently at Montbello High: DCIS at
Montbello and Noel Community Arts School are also on Priority Improvement
(state 2019 SPF) and Accredited on Priority Watch (DPS 2019 SPF).
More details in Section 3.
Enrollment at
these 10 schools – almost 7,000 students
|
10 DPS secondary
schools on Priority improvement or Turnaround status |
Enrollment
- fall 2020 |
|
Abraham Lincoln High |
964 students |
|
Collegiate Prep Academy |
340 |
|
Denver Center
for International Studies (6-12) |
561 |
|
Denver
Montessori Jr./Sr. High (6-12) |
236 |
|
Denver School of
Innovation & Sustained Design |
143 |
|
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Early College (6-12) |
1,199 |
|
John Kennedy
High |
884 |
|
Manual High |
258 |
|
South High |
1,722 |
|
West
Leadership Academy (6-12) |
596 |
|
TOTAL (Subtotal - In red,
Accredited on Probation with DPS – 2,535 students) |
6,903 |
Enrollment at
these 10 schools – almost 11,000 students
The district’s
SPF gave the following secondary schools a rating of Accredited on Watch.
|
Bruce Randolph (6-12) – 751 students |
North High - 1,591 |
|
Career Education Center Early
College – 491 |
Northeast Early College – 556 |
|
East High – 2,581 |
Northfield High – 1,239 |
|
George Washington High – 1,213 |
Thomas Jefferson High – 1,310 |
|
Kunsmiller Creative Arts Academy
(K-12) – in grades 6-12, 600+ |
West Early College – 611 |
|
TOTAL – 10,943 students enrolled,
fall 2020 |
|
|
Federal Tiered Intervention
Grant, 2010-11 to 2012-13 From AV #81 (August 2011) - [The grant included six Denver schools. Amount awarded to two DPS schools in the northeast: Montbello High - $3,388,350 and Rachel Noel Middle; $2,776,580 for Transformation (the model selected.] Montbello High School – “Four new schools replace Montbello High School over a four year phase-out. Phase in of Collegiate Prep Academy, Noel Community Arts (6-12), Denver Center for International Studies (6-12), and High Tech Early College.” Noel Middle School - “Three new school models replace Noel Middle School over a three year phase-out. Phase in of Noel Community Arts (6-12), KIPP Montbello, and Denver Center for International Studies (6-12).” (Summary from A Plus Denver’s Rays of Hope report on school turnarounds, 2012. More from that report in Endnote.[i]) |
The plea in 2010 was for “great schools in Far Northeast Denver.” Is the quality of education still a critical goal for the Montbello community and for Denver Public Schools? If so, what can be said of how the district managed the restructuring (assisted by over $6 million in a federal grant), and of how well the schools now at Montbello High are doing? The district, I hope you agree, bears some responsibility for the discouraging results. If so, why turn to the district again for Plan B?
CDE’s
School Performance Framework presents a discouraging picture for the past
four years.
·
DCIS at Montbello - past three years on Priority
Improvement or Turnaround. Year 3 on the accountability clock.
·
Noel Community Arts School - three of
past four years on Priority Improvement or Turnaround.
·
STRIVE Prep-Montbello -Steady decline
over four years. Now Year 2 on the accountability clock.
Colorado’s School Performance Framework
P – Performance I – Improvement PI – Priority Improvement TR - Turnaround
|
|
2016 |
2017 |
2018 |
2019 |
%
pts earned |
|
DCIS at Montbello (6-12) |
I |
TR |
PI |
PI |
45.5 |
|
Noel Community Arts School
(6-12) |
PI |
PI |
I |
PI |
49.7 |
|
STRIVE Prep – Montbello
(6-8) |
P |
I |
PI |
TR |
48.5 |
Denver’s School Performance Framework* provides slightly
different ratings: its bottom two categories are Accredited on Priority
Watch (orange - 33.5 to 39.49% points) and Accredited on
Probation (red - 0 to 33.49% points). Denver’s ratings put DCIS at
Montbello and Noel Community Arts School in the lowest two categories for
the past four years. After “Meeting Expectations” (Green) in 2016 and 2017,
STRIVE Prep – Montbello fell into the lowest two categories for 2018 and
2019.
*Denver Public Schools - School Performance Framework - https://spf.dpsk12.org/en/spf-ratings/
This too comes from Denver’s School
Performance Framework.
|
Are Students at
Our School Performing at Grade Level? 2019 |
||
|
DCIS at Montbello (6-12)** |
Does
Not Meet Expectations |
22.06% (15 out of 68
possible pts) |
|
Noel Community Arts School
(6-12)** |
Does
Not Meet Expectations |
12.9%
(8 out of 62 possible pts) |
|
STRIVE Prep – Montbello
(6-8)*** |
Does
Not Meet Expectations |
25.71%
(9 out of 35 possible pts) |
|
How
Engaged and Satisfied are Students and Families with our School? 2019 |
||
|
DCIS at Montbello (6-12) |
Does
Not Meet Expectations |
25%
(2.5 out of 10 pts) |
|
Noel Community Arts School
(6-12) |
Does
Not Meet Expectations |
28.13%
(4.5 out of 16 possible pts) |
|
STRIVE Prep – Montbello
(6-8) |
Does
Not Meet Expectations |
33.33%
(3 out of 9 possible pts) |
Denver’s SPF – **high schools https://spf.dpsk12.org/en/high-schools/ ***middle schools https://spf.dpsk12.org/en/middle-schools/
Remediation rate (entering college) remains tragically high for students who graduate
The tragically high remedial rate for
students who graduated from Montbello High in its final years (2012-2014) and
who went on to enter higher education the following year changed little once
DCIS at Montbello and Noel Community Arts School began to graduate their
seniors. In 2016 DCIS at Montbello appeared to have an impressive graduation
rate of 86.4%; more telling, though, is the fact that two-thirds of the those
who received a degree needed developmental classes first before taking college
level work.
Remediation rate – high school
graduates enrolling in higher ed that fall, needing remedial classes
|
|
2012[ii] |
2013 |
2014 |
2015[iii] |
2016 |
|
Montbello High School (before closing) |
71.9% |
62.5% |
69.2% - 36 out of 52 students |
|
|
|
DCIS at Montbello
|
|
|
|
71.8% |
65.6%
- 21 out of 32 students |
|
Noel Community Arts School |
|
|
|
55.6% |
63.2%
- 12 out of 19 students |
|
State average[iv] |
35.6% |
33.2% |
33.8% |
35.0% |
35.9% |
Endnotes
[i]
GreatSchools.org - https://www.greatschools.org/colorado/denver/5274-Northfield-High-School/#:~:text=Northfield%20High%20School%2C%20Denver's%20newest,the%20northeast%20region%20of%20Denver
[ii]
Beyond Averages: https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED558119.pdf
[iii] School Improvement Grant of $3.4 million to Montbello High - 2010-11 to 2012-13
August 2009 - Obama Administration announces plans to commit $3.5 billion in “School Improvement Grants (SIG) to Fund Transformational Changes Where Children Have Long Been Underserved.”
April 2010 - Denver Public Schools submits proposal for SIG funds to support turnaround work at six Denver schools, including Montbello High and Rachel Noel Middle.
2010 – Colorado Department of Education awards $37 million of SIG funds, over three years, to support turnaround work in 16 of the state’s lowest-performing.
With few details on how the funds would be used, Montbello is awarded nearly $3.4 million, over three years.
November 2010 – Months AFTER the award of $3.4 million, Denver approved of a plan on how to use the funds in Denver’s Far Northeast. (from “Denver school board OKs Montbello restructuring plan,” The Denver Post, by Jeremy Meyer, Nov. 18, 2010.)
The district says changes are needed to improve the schools that have been among the lowest-performing in Denver for years, if not decades. Of every 100 freshmen who enter Montbello High, six graduate and head to college without remediation.
State Sen. Michael Johnston, D-Denver, likened the system to a bus of 100 kids leaving the neighborhood every day but only six ending up at school. “What is amazing is that day after day, month after month, year after year we continue to put that bus on the road,” Johnston said, urging the board to pass the proposal. https://www.denverpost.com/2010/11/18/denver-school-board-oks-montbello-restructuring-plan/
[iv] https://highered.colorado.gov/Publications/Reports/Remedial/FY2015/2015_Remedial_relMay2016.pdf
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