ANNUALREPORT

SchoolYear2014-2015

BDC,APublic CharterSchool,Inc. BASISDC

410 8thStreet,NW WashingtonDC,20004

202.393.5437

Dr.Craig R.Barrett

Chairmanof theBoard

TableofContents

1) Annual ReportNarrative

I.School Description

A. MissionStatement…………………………………………………………………3

B. School Program

1. SummaryofCurriculumDesignandInstructional Approach…..3

2. ParentInvolvement……………………………………………. ………7

II.School Performance

A. Performance and Progress

1. Meetingour Mission…………………………………………………...10

2. Meetingour Goals andAcademic Achievement

Expectations………………………………….……………………….12

B. LessonsLearnedandActions Taken…………………………………………20

C.Unique Accomplishments……………………..………………………………23

D. Listof Donors……………………………………………………………………..25

2) DataReport……………………………………………………………………………………27

(usingdatacollectiontool providedbyPCSB)

3) Appendices

a. Staff Roster for 2014-15school year………………………………………………30b. BoardRoster for 2014-15school year…………………………………………….34c. Unaudited Year-end2014-15Financial Statement…………………………...34 d. Approved 2015-16Budget……...…………………………………………………...35

ANNUALREPORTNARRATIVE

I.SchoolDescription

A. Mission Statement

BASIS DC will provide anacademicallyexcellentandrigorous liberalartscollege preparatoryeducationavailabletoall middle andhighschool students inthe Districtof Columbia.

B. SchoolProgram

1.SchoolProgram.SummaryofCurriculumDesign and Instructional Approach.

CurriculumDesign

The BASIS curriculumisanorganic article.Anew,higherqualityversionofthe curriculum is createdeach year throughthe process ofcollaboration betweenBASIS

managementandBASIS teachers.The teachers designtheir ownsubjectsyllabi based ontheir reviewofrelevantsubjectsyllabifromthe previousschool year(s)and requirements defined bythe keysubjectexams(Pre-comprehensive,Comprehensive, Final,Alternative AP, AP exams and State Assessments).The teachers alsoparticipate indesigningkey exams.The academicleadership audits the syllabi andformulates finalversions ofkey exams.This process assures continuityofthe BASIS curriculumanddetermines any revisions that maybe necessarydue tochanges in:

The stateofknowledge

The structure ofthe BASIS curriculum:subjectsoffered,hours taught, graduationrequirements,etc.

DC Educational Standards

  • Implementation of new District assessments (PARCC)

Studentstructure:grade andgroup structure,parallel entryofstudentsfrom other schools

Key Exams are highstakesexams witha heavyweightindeterminingthe students’final grade.These exams are specific assessmenttools usedtoensure students’academic progress atBASIS.

Key Examinations serve three purposes:

1)Toevaluate the extenttowhichstudents master andretainthe material taughtduringthe school year.Inthe case ofcomprehensive exams,the students whodonotmaster material atthe basic level will geta chance torepeatthe test(orthegrade).

2)Toevaluate howBASISstudentsinspecific BASIS institutions perform comparedtoother BASIS institutions andhowtheycompare tostudents in previous years.

3)Toevaluate howBASISstudentsperformcompared toexternal and international standards.Itis our goal toassure BASIS students are able to compete inthe globalmarketplace.

The keyexaminationshave three types ofquestions (whichdiffer inquantitydepending ongradelevel):

1)Questions,writtenbythe course teacher,testinghowwell students understandandretainmaterial covered inthe class.

2)Questionscomingfromthe BASIS questionbank:writtenbyall BASIS staff andteachers.

3)Questions,writtenbythe expertsoutside the school,testinghowBASIS students compare tointernational standards.TheAcademic Mentor’s team(not includingthe course teacher)selectsthese questions from standardizedtestsusedonstudents inthe same grade level outside of BASIS.Students donotknowwhichquestionsare supplied bytheir teacher and whichare outsidequestions.

Pre-comprehensive exams (used as comprehensive exampractice in Middle School) andFinal exams (used for pre-advancedplacement classes inUpper School)include mostlyteacher-writtenquestions.Onthe contrary,ComprehensiveExams include more external questions withatleast75%comingfromthe BASIS questionbankorexternal experts,andthe AP Exams are completelyexternal exams,created andevaluatedby outside experts.

Instructional approach

Creatingandreinforcing acultureof academicexcellence

The BASIS school culture makes highacademic achievementandintellectual engagementthe normandallows students torealize theirowngreatacademic potential.

Recruitingknowledgeableteachers

Hiringteachers withsubject matter expertiseis especiallyimportantatBASISbecause teachers playa criticalrole incurriculum developmentandsyllabi design.As a growing school BASIS DC sought manydiverse avenues torecruitthebestandthe brightest teachers throughavarietyofsources.

BASIS DC strives tocreate a culture ofongoingprofessional developmentin which teachers are accountable for improvement.

Trainingteachers for success

Once prospective teachers are hired,theybeginto prepare for thedemands ofthe BASIS classroomandare supported inavarietyof waysthroughour teacherinduction and mentoringprogram.The firststep inthisprogram is attendingasummer training session.Duringthis training,veteranfacultymembers throughouttheBASIS network share theirknowledgeofclassroommanagementtechniques,teaching methods,and pedagogical researchwithnewteachers.The goalis toexpose BASIS teachers to variousinstructive strategies and methods toallowthem,as professionals,todetermine whichapproach worksbestfor them.

Throughoutthe school year BASIS DC teachers are partnered witha veteranteacher chosentobe theirInstructionalAdvisor.This advisor builds uponknowledge of classroommanagementtechniques,teaching methods andpedagogical research that was reviewed inthesummer trainingandhelps themimplementthis inreal time. The BASIS modelis unique inboth curricular designand instructionalmethodandit is veryimportantthatinthe start-up year,professionals whoare wellversed inthe model guide the school. Inparticular,the mathematics programatBASIS schools requires a unique pedagogical approach.

Teachingpersonalresponsibility

BASIS aims toteachstudents thatsuccess is the resultofhard work.Whether theyare at the top oftheirclass orstrugglingtokeeppace withthe demands ofthe BASIS curriculum,everyBASISstudent is supported andencouraged toimprove andtoreach for his orher highestacademic potential.

Teachingstudents totakeresponsibilitystarts inthemiddle school.Teachers focus on helpingstudents buildorganizational skills,proper note-takingtechniques,andgood studyhabits.

Beginningin6thgrade,students are required topasscomprehensiveexams ineach core subjectinorder toprogress tothe nextgrade level.Comprehensive exams ensure students are preparedtoadvance tomore difficult material.Knowingthey will be held accountable for information,students taketheir educationseriouslyandlearntoownit.

Asthe school matures andstudents’progressfromone grade level toanother,they become models for younger students andhelp reinforce theculture ofpersonal responsibilityandpositive peersupport.

Forstudents thatneedadditional support,BASIS DC provides anAcademic Support

Program.Academic supportadvisorswork withidentified studentsonspecific

interventionsinthe areas determinedbyassessmentthroughbreakoutclasses,small groups,andone onone.The academic supportadvisor will workindividuallyandin small groups withidentified studentduringnon-academic periods withintheschool day.This mayinclude time duringthe student’s lunchperiodorbefore or after school.

TheAcademic Supportteam will communicatedirectlyandindirectly(i.e.throughthe

Communications Journal)tothe student’s teachers andparents.

2.SchoolProgram. Parentinvolvement.

BASIS DC continues to work hard developing acommunityamong our students,theirfamilies andour faculty.The work we require ofstudentsis difficult. Thus,engagingparents around our expectations toensure alignmentbetweenthe school andfamiliesis ofthe utmostimportance.Aswithour academic program,we have made effortsto replicate the manner inwhich we engage parents intheDistrict, all the while being mindfulthatnotall familieswanttoengage withtheschool inthe same way.Tothatend,we endeavortoconnect withparents in wide varietyof wayssothatcommunication flows freely.

TheCJ.Oneofthe most criticalforms ofparentcommunicationandinvolvement occurs throughthe BASIS CommunicationJournal-- referred toatBASIS as “TheCJ”.

This notebookthatstudents essentiallylive byis more thana placetorecord class notes andassignments.Itismore thana planner.Itis the preferred methodofalerting parents totheirchild’sacademic progress onadailybasis.Atthe startofthe school year,parents receiveandcommittotheguidingprinciplesandrules inthe Parent StudentHandbook.Whena parentagrees tothat which isoutlinedinthe Handbook, theyare agreeingtonotonlythe hard workthatandhighexpectations thatBASIS demands,buttoworking withtheirchild’s teachers throughTheCJ.

In our second year of operation, use of the CJ was well established by most students at the school, and our new entries in the lower grades quickly adopted regular use. Our management team also implemented a new system of CJ accountability, such that lapses in CJ efficacy were addressed by Deans or School Directors to streamline communication and afford teachers more time to focus on instruction. We also required teachers to post a CJ entry for their class in a regular place in each classroom, with specific necessary details, to make the process of CJ entries a more uniform endeavor.

BASIS ParentBoosters.Oneofthe mostcritical waysin whichBASIS DC involves all familiesis through the communications andengagementeffortswithour parent partners whocome together as theschool’s ParentBoostersOrganization.The HeadofSchool, Head of Operations,andthe Boosters workhandinhandtoensure that messagesarecommunicatedtimelyandthatthe school managementisintune withour parents. In our second year we saw increased collaboration with our Booster organization in implementing different forms of communication with BASIS DC families. The followingevents are allexamples of the manywaysin which parentswere involvedat BASIS DC duringthe 2014-2015school year:

  • Back to School Picnic & Potluck – In October of 2014, BASIS DC families, teachers, and staff came together for a picnic at Garfield Park to welcome students to the 2014-15 school year.

Annual Teacher Fund Gala–Bettering the inaugural 2014-2015 Gala, the BDC community joined together in supporting the Annual Teacher Fund (ATF) by throwing the mid-year, 2014-2015 ATF Gala. The event was welcome to all BDC families and was received even more favorably than the gala the year before. Attendance, donations, and enjoyment of the event rose considerably. The ATF is the primary fundraising effort of the school and all money raised goes directly to teacherbonuses.

  • FamilyNights–Building upon last year’s success, throughput the year the Parent Boosters hosted family nights at nearby restaurants. This proved an opportunity for BASIS DC families to build community and support local businesses and neighborhood relationships.

Monthly Boosters Meetings–Held monthly on Wednesday evenings, Boosters meetings allowed parents the opportunity to receive in-person “state of the school” addresses and to interact with school administration.

  • Exam Prep and Analysis Open Houses – Prior to our pre-comprehensive exams in February, parents were invited to attend a Pre-Comp Prep Night where teachers reviewed study strategies, highlighted important topics, and clarified the test design and question types. After the exams, the Head of School reviewed performance of DC students as compared to the other schools in the BASIS network to give context for our results and provide guidance as to how families could interpret their student’s scores to develop plans for improvement.

Town Hall Meetings–BDC hosted town hall style meetings to discuss the direction of the school, improvements to the staffing model, and to answer as many of the community’s questions as possible.

Spring Ensemble – BDC music and choir students performed in late May to BDC families who were invited to this special event. Artwork from across grade levels was displayed for enjoyment between performances.

Special Year-End Events– in June of 2015, Boosters and school management planned a year-end picnic and field day to be held on the National Mall and open to all BDC families.

Friday Updates–BDC sent weekly, Friday Updates to all community families detailing achievements of BDC students and opportunities such as extracurricular activities, special events, community offerings, and city services.

  • Recruitment Events – Parents helped organize and recruit new families interested in enrolling at BASIS DC for the 2015-2016 school year. These events included booths at large conventions, panel participation at neighboring elementary schools, meet and greets with veteran BASIS families, teachers, and staff.
  • School Store – Parent volunteers ran a small school store two days each week that opened immediately at the conclusion of scheduled classes. This gave students an opportunity to get an affordable snack before heading to afternoon tutoring or extracurricular activities, and funds raised went toward other events like school dances.

II.SchoolPerformance

A. PerformanceandProgress

1.PerformanceandProgress.MeetingourMission.

BASIS DC is strivingeverydaytofulfill our missionofprovidinganacademicallyexcellent andrigorous liberal arts college preparatoryeducationtoall middle andhighschool students inthe DistrictofColumbia.BASIS DC is doingthis byservingstudentsfrom across the Districtand bymaintainingour highacademicstandardsandprogramming.We know thatwe will notfulfill our missionif wecompromiseour high expectations.

OurPhilosophy.OneofAmerica’s mostenduringtraditions has beenthe practice of educationas anequalizer.Nomatter a child’s economic background,geographic location,culture or ethnicity,a qualityeducationaccessible to all students breaks downthe barriers ofpovertyandthe self-fulfillingprophesyoflow-expectations,and prepares students tocompete ina global economy.This traditionis threatenedas long as our schools are notsuccessful.The firststep inreversingthis trendis toencourage innovationineducation.BASIS was foundedtoraise academic expectations,student achievement,andacademic accountability.The modelhas provensuccessful in ArizonaandBASIS DC is ontracktodemonstrate thateducational excellence canbe replicatedtofitthe needs ofdiverse studentpopulationsindifferingjurisdictions.BASIS DC strives toserve students byhelpingthemreachtheirhighestacademic potential by raisingacademic standards,teachingquality,andexpectations for studentsupport.

Inthe second year ofoperation,BASIS DC continued to build onpast programmatic successtoboth maintainfidelity toour school modelandensure academic success for all BASIS DC students.

OurStudents.Our students are atthe core ofeverything we doatBASIS DC.The BASIS DC studentdemographic for the 2014-2015school yearis representedinthis chart:

Furthermore, the students at BASIS DC represent not just a demographically diverse population, but also one of geographic diversity. In the 2014-2015 school year, BASIS DC drew students from every residential zip code in the District, as seen in this map:

OurTeachers.BASIS places a strongemphasis onensuringour teachers are ofthe highestacademic caliber andhave deep subject matter knowledge ofthe area that they will teach.While several of our veteran teachers went on to graduate programs, medical school, or other industries,we were pleased withthe teachers whoreturned and excited by the new additions to the team.As is reflected inAppendixA, our teachershailed froma broadspectrumofhighlyregardedcollegesanduniversities.Asnapshotofthe data shows thatinadditiontobeingHighlyQualified:

100%ofall BASIS DC academic teachers have aBachelor’sdegree.

67.6%ofall BASIS DC teachingfacultyholdaMaster’sdegree.

14.7%ofall BASIS DC teachingfacultyholdaDoctorate degree.

29.4%ofall BASIS DC teachingfacultyearned their Bachelor’s degreefroma

Washington DC baseduniversity.

We will continue torecruitandretainthe bestteachingforce toensure our students reachtheir academicpotential as we strive tofulfill our mission.

OurResults.Ofcourse,the mostpromising measure of whether BASISDC is ontrackto fulfill our missionis theacademic success ofour students.The bestmeasure available for the 2014-2015schoolyear for this metricis the DC PARCC. Students will take PARCC at the end of 10th grade for English, Integrated Math 2 at the end of Pre-Calculus (unless Pre-Calculus is completed prior to 9th grade). The PARCC scores will not be available until the end of the 2015.

2.PerformanceandProgress.MeetingourGoalsandAcademicAchievement

Expectations.

BASIS DC is meetingitsgoals andacademicachievementexpectationsthatare detailed inourcharter.

Goal / Assessment Measure(incharter)
Middle School / 1)Prepared for Upper
School / 1)Pre-ComprehensiveExams
2)Comprehensive Exams
3)PARCC
2)Internationally
Competitive / 1)IGSCE
Upper School / 1)College Readiness / 1)College Acceptance Rates
2)Internationally
Competitive / 2)AP ExamResults

Studentgoals:MiddleSchool

Goal1: Studentswillbepreparedfor successful completionofthe demandingBASIS Upper Schoolprogram.

Asoutlinedinthe BASISDC CharterApplication(November 2011),the assessment measures for Goal One wouldbe the Pre Comprehensive Exams,the Comprehensive Exams andthe DC PARCC.

Students will beprepared for the successful completionofthe demandingUpper School programbydemonstratinganaverage pass rate ofat least65%, 75%and85% respectivelyinthe firstthree years ofoperationonthe DC PARCC.

Curriculum

The curriculumat BASIS DC isconsistent withthe highestinternational academic standards andis designedtohelpstudents developacademic andorganizational skills thatprepare themforincreasing demands of later years.Byintroducing high-level contentstandards inlower grade levels,BASIS DC helps toensure studentsare exposed totheseconcepts earlyandoftenandhave masteredthe material bythe time theyenroll intheHonors andAP-level courses found in our Upper School Curriculum.Adhering to the BASIS model,BASIS DC’s 5thgrade students tooknine separate classes includingIntroductiontoScience, Physical Geography,Math,English,Latin, Classics, Art,PE,and Music.In6th-8thgrades students tookBiology,Chemistry,and Physics as separate subjects,like many top-performingpeers in EuropeanandAsiancountries. By 7th grade, students begin taking additional supplementary courses like Logic and Economics, and even are exposed to college level material in their History coursework, with some students opting to take the AP World History exam at the end of 8th grade.

Assessment

Toensure students master grade-level material,all BASIS DC students ingrades 6-8 were required topass comprehensive exams insevencore subjectsatthe year’s end. Students were preparedfor these exams bytakingpre-comprehensive exams inthe middle ofthe year andbycompletingfinal reviewunitsincorporated ineach subject.

The Value of Pre-Comps

•Pre-Comp exams giveteachers excellentquantitative dataonhow well students are retaininginformation. This gives the teachers anopportunityto evaluate instructional methods andtoadjustaccordingly for the remainingschool year.

•Pre-Comp exams are alsoanopportunityfor studentstogetstrongfeedback ineachoftheir core courses (Math, History, English, Biology, Chemistry, Physics andLatin/ForeignLanguage).Withthis feedback, familieslearn more about the effectiveness ofstudyhabits, andhopefullyenter the secondhalfofthe year witha goodidea ofwhat strategies work well and where improvement is required.

•Pre-Comp exams are goodindicators ofstudents whoare struggling, whichhelps our StudentSupportstaffidentifyneeds andimplement plans tosupportthe individual student.

BASIS performsexhaustive data analysis on allofour internal exams.We use datato drive decision-making inthe classroom –sothatteachers have accurate measures of whatis and is not working withtheirstudents. These analyses include overall comparisons, subject comparisons, and item-level analysis, as seen in these examples:

Goal2: Studentswillbepreparedtocompeteagainsttheirinternationalpeersin highly performingeducationsystems.

BASIS DC,likethe bestschool systems inthe Europe andAsia,breaks the hardsciences downintotheiressential elements inmiddle school.

BASIS is competitive atall levels,including withour sistercampusesonthe other side of the country.Inthe veryfirst year ofBASIS DC,the dataanalysis revealedthatBASIS DC outscoredlegacyand mature BASIS schools insome English& Sciencecomprehensive exams. These trends continued into our second year, where we also saw significant advancements in Math results, specifically Algebra I and Algebra II.

These legacy schools are thesameschools thathave recentlydemonstrated student achievementthatoutpaces eventhe top schools inShanghai ontheinternationally benchmarkedOECDTestfor Schools (based onthe PISA). Last year two more BASIS Schools reached this performance benchmark, results that suggest that BASIS DC’s growth will set our students up for similar levels of success.

This accomplishmentis unique inthatitis onemore proofpointthattheefforts atBASIS DC inthe 2014-2015 school year todeliver aninternationallycompetitive educational programwere onthe righttrack.

Comprehensive Exam Results

Results from year three show that, while students at BASIS DC are experiencing the benefits of a maturing campus, challenges still remain to bring our results to higher levels. While BASIS DC outperformed younger schools in the network, the graph below demonstrates an example of the performance levels of the growing body of mature and legacy campuses as they compare to BASIS DC after three years.

In each of these exams, BASIS DC students not only outperformed schools at similar maturity, but also several of our legacy schools whose students rank in the top 5% of the world. Of course we are pleased to see these results as an indicator of our goals and look forward to future years when these students are eligible to participate in new assessments designed to gauge not just content mastery but problem solving and

AsBASIS DC matures,itwill become eligibletoparticipate inthe Programme for