BPS Celebrates Twelve Schools Rising to Level 1 Status in New DESE Accountability Data

BPS Celebrates Twelve Schools Rising to Level 1 Status in New DESE Accountability Data

District reaches a major milestone as 46 schools are designated in the state's top two tiers

Boston, MA. - Monday, September 26, 2016 - Working toward closing the achievement gap in the Boston Public Schools, several schools around the city demonstrated improved performance in various key assessments, according to the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education's 2016 accountability results. Altogether, 12 schools in the Boston Public Schools system this year rose to top Level 1 status for meeting assessment targets, bringing the total number of BPS schools presently in that top accountability level to 21. In addition, BPS now has 25 schools designated as Level 2. The combined 46 schools in either Level 1 and 2 are the most for the district since 2012.   The newly designated Level 1 schools include: Boston Arts Academy, Boston International and Newcomers Academy (BINcA), Bradley Elementary, Fenway High, Harvard/Kent Elementary, Umana Academy, McKay K-8, Mildred Avenue K-8, Mozart Elementary, New Mission High, Otis Elementary, and Quincy Elementary. "Our top priority is creating a public school system that gives all of our young people an opportunity to succeed," Mayor Martin J. Walsh said. "I am proud of the improvements we have made across so many of our schools as a result of the hard work of our students, teachers and staff. We will continue working everyday so that every single one of our schools has the resources to prepare our students for a bright future." Six schools moved from Level 3 to Level 1, the state's top accountability designation for schools: Boston Arts Academy, the city's public high school for the visual and performing arts, experienced strong gains in the performance of Hispanic/Latino students, who outperformed 94% of students in similar schools statewide in English Language Arts (ELA)  and 92% of students in Math. Boston International Newcomers Academy, a Dorchester high school, achieved an increase of 7.8 points over the past year in ELA in the Composite Performance Index (CPI), which measures the performance of a given group of students. This helped boost the school's proficiency rate in ELA by 23 percentage points, from 66 percent to 89 percent. Harvard/Kent, a Charlestown elementary school, increased its overall CPI in ELA by 11.9 points and its overall Math CPI by 10.1 points. In ELA, every student subgroup experienced "high" levels of growth, indicated by a median Student Growth Percentile (SGP) of 60 or higher. McKay, a K-8 school in East Boston, increased its overall CPI in ELA by 10 points and its overall Science CPI by 13.6 points. Every student subgroup in this school similarly experienced "high" levels of growth. Mildred Avenue, a Mattapan K-8 school, continued to meet performance targets for all students and the high-needs student group for the second year in a row. Mozart, a Roslindale elementary school, was formally commended by the state for narrowing proficiency gaps. In ELA, the "all students" subgroup experienced an exceptionally "high" level of growth, achieving a median SGP of 70. The overall CPI for every subgroup increased by more than 10 points, with economically disadvantaged students showing the greatest gain, moving up 16.8 points to 85.2. "Our most improved schools are serving some of our most vulnerable populations, which shows that Boston Public Schools is a leader in this work," Boston School Committee Chairperson Michael O'Neill said. "Our teachers in all of our schools are fearless in tackling challenges and doing everything possible to close the opportunity and achievement gaps." Guided by BPS' three core values of equity, coherence and innovation, schools are continuing to find ways to support students throughout the district. "Our schools are empowering talented teams of educators who consistently collaborate to ensure every student succeeds," BPS Superintendent Tommy Chang said. "Our newly designated Level 1 schools serve as bright spots for the district as we enhance student achievement." PARCC, MCAS, and ACCESS Scores The district also saw improvement in its PARCC, MCAS, and ACCESS scores. The English Language Arts proficiency rates for all 10th-grade BPS students on MCAS improved to 83 percent, part of a promising 19-percentage point increase since 2009. Proficiency rates improved across most subgroups, including economically disadvantaged students, English Language Learners (ELLs), and students with disabilities. The increase in the percentage of ELLs scoring Proficient or Advanced on MCAS jumped 7 percentage points in 2016 to 58 percent, making the proficiency rate 42 percentage points higher than in 2009. In addition, 61 percent of ELLs made progress toward attaining English language proficiency, as measured by preliminary results from the ACCESS for ELLs Assessment. The median student growth percentile for ACCESS (SGPA) was 60 in 2016, indicating "high growth," continuing an upward trend of a 50 SGPA in 2014 and 54 in 2015. Grade 10 Black and Hispanic students also experienced gains in 10th-grade ELA MCAS in the 2015-16 school year, helping to close the achievement gap. The proficiency achievement gap in ELA between White and Latino students shrunk from 16 percentage points in 2015 to 10 percentage points in 2016, while the gap between White and African American/Black students narrowed from 15 percentage points to 7 percentage points during that same period. In the lower grades, the district also continued an improvement trend. The percentage of grade 3-8 students in the district "meeting" or "exceeding expectations" on PARCC increased from the prior year, rising to 40 percent in ELA and 37 percent in Mathematics. More School Accountability Results While a number of BPS schools have made significant strides, some have experienced setbacks. DESE has chosen to move Brighton High School and Excel High School in South Boston into Level 4 status, which will require the Superintendent and his team to develop turnaround plans for rapid improvement at both schools. The Mattahunt Elementary School in Mattapan has been deemed "Level 4 -- under review." Mattahunt has been in Level 4 status for the past three years and has not experienced the rapid improvement necessary in order to exit that status. The district awaits further communication from DESE Commissioner Mitchell Chester and his team regarding next steps. The English High School, which had made significant gains in MCAS scores in the 2014-15 school year, did not improve enough this past school year to exit Level 4 status. The state moved the school into underperforming status in 2010. Any Level 4 designation is at the discretion of the DESE commissioner. Additionally, the accountability levels for Boston Latin School, Boston Latin Academy, and Clap Innovation School dropped from Level 1 to Level 2 because each school tested less than 95 percent of students in one or more student subgroups, in one or more subjects. In order for a school to be classified as Level 1 - in addition to meeting gap-narrowing targets for all students and "high needs" student groups -  the test participation rate for all groups in the school must be 95 percent or higher. For Boston Latin School, White students had test participation rates of 94 percent in ELA and 93 percent in Mathematics. The low participation rate for the White student subgroup in both subjects is primarily due to 13 students whose parents/guardians requested that their children be opted out from PARCC testing and two students who were absent during PARCC testing due to medical reasons. At Boston Latin Academy, students with disabilities had a PARCC test participation rate of 97 percent in ELA and 90 percent in Mathematics. The low participation rate is due to absences from three out of 29 students in the students with disabilities group. For the Clap School, two out of 29 students did not take the PARCC ELA test, resulting in a 93 percent assessment participation rate, which is below the 95 percent threshold. Boston Public Schools has formally appealed to DESE to reconsider the lower classifications of Boston Latin School and Boston Latin Academy, at the request of those schools.

新英格蘭台灣學聯BBQ

奧巴馬訂10/2和影星狄卡皮歐談氣候變化

 THE WHITE HOUSE 

Here's what -- and who -- you'll see at South by South Lawn:

Earlier this year, President Obama stopped by South by Southwest ® to issue a challenge to creative thinkers, innovators, and entrepreneurs across the country:

"We are at a moment in history where technology, globalization, our economy are changing so fast," he said. "How can we start coming up with new platforms, new ideas, new approaches across disciplines and across skill sets to solve some of the big problems that we're facing today?"

On Monday, October 3, President Obama is bringing the creative thinkers and innovators who work at the cutting-edge of the changing world we live in to help answer that question. From filmmakers and artists to entrepreneurs and public leaders, the White House will host inspiring and effective people who are dedicated to change to discuss how we can leverage our newest technologies to tackle our toughest challenges.

It's called South by South Lawn -- and here's a taste of what you can expect to see.

INTERACTIVE:

President Obama in Conversation with Leonardo DiCaprio and Dr. Katharine Hayhoe

President Obama will join a conversation with Academy Award-winning actor Leonardo DiCaprio and climate scientist Dr. Katharine Hayhoe about the importance of protecting the one planet we’ve got for future generations.

Following the conversation, attendees will watch the domestic premiere of DiCaprio’s new climate documentary film Before the Flood presented by National Geographic in a first-of-its-kind film screening on the South Lawn of the White House.

FILM:

SXSL presents The White House Student Film Festival

On Sunday, October 2, the American Film Institute (AFI) will welcome the young artists of the 3rd Annual White House Student Film Festival with a day to premiere some of their work. Students in grades K-12 submitted more than 700 short films on this year's theme: The World I Want to Live In. Some of these aspiring filmmakers from around the nation will be joined by professional artists who work behind and in front of the camera. Special guests will include Stranger Things creators Matt and Ross Duffer, Executive Producers Dan Cohen and Shawn Levy, and President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities member Alfre Woodard.

EXHIBITS:

6'x9

Learn firsthand what it’s like to be locked up in solitary confinement. This virtual reality experience places the viewer inside a 6-foot by 9-foot cell with little more than a bed and toilet. People can experience the psychological impacts of confinement, like blurred vision, hallucinations, and a sense of floating that may occur after long-term sensory deprivation. The Guardian used game engine technology and The Mill worked from first-person accounts of cell design and spatial audio capture to create this groundbreaking and innovative documentary.

And don't miss special musical performances by Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings, the Lumineers, DJ Beverly Bond, and more!

Get all the details here to learn how you can tune in and participate in this one-of-a-kind event at the White House: www.whitehouse.gov/SXSL

全球台商返台開年會 總統籲引介外資來台

統蔡英文（立者）26日出席世界臺灣商會聯合總會第二十二屆年會暨
第三次理監事聯席會議開幕典禮致詞。

總統蔡英文26日向來自六大洲的近1200海外台商表示，為擴展台灣對外經貿，請扮演台灣招商代言人的角色，運用在地人脈，引介外資投資台灣。僑務委員會委員長吳新興則提到，明年將舉辦3場大型人才媒合博覽會，為台商找人才，也為台灣年輕人找出路。

.僑務委員會委員長吳新興（立者）26日出席世界臺灣商會聯合總會
第二十二屆年會暨第三次理監事聯席會議開幕典禮致詞。

世界臺灣商會聯合總會25日至27日在台北舉辦第二十二屆年會暨第三次理監事聯席會議，共有來自六大洲1200位台商會員與會。蔡總統26日出席開幕典禮致詞時表示，世界台商這幾年以實際行動，組團拜會美國、歐盟與東協，加速台灣加入全球經濟整合的歷程。政府也會加快腳步，致力於轉型台灣產業及改善投資環境，並做好與各國洽簽經濟合作協定的準備工作，強化台灣與全球市場的連結。

蔡總統提到，在台灣拓展對外關係時，有3件事需要台商的協助，第一是運用長期深耕的僑居地人脈資源，扮演台灣民間智庫的角色，讓世界看見台灣。其次是深化產業合作，與當地產業建立穩固的夥伴關係，為台灣產業發掘更多商機。第三，擔任台灣招商的代言人，引介外資來台布局，同時請投資故鄉，共同為台灣拼出更好的未來。她也期許世總在既有的基礎上，繼續強化會務發展，並整合全球台商力量，協助台灣向全球展現真正的經貿實力。

世界臺灣商會聯合總會青商會25日舉行第六屆年會暨第三次理監事
會議，僑務委員會委員長吳新興（左三）恭喜第七屆會長邱臣遠
（右二）及監事長畢詳笙（左二），並慰勉第六屆會長王儷靜
（右一）及監事長王筱蕓（左一）。

吳委員長表示，海外台商的優秀表現讓台灣成為「日不落國」，僑委會將持續辦理各項培訓班及參訪活動，協助海外台商提升經營知能及企業競爭力，以面對國際市場的挑戰，並將經驗傳承給僑界年輕一代。

配合政府新南向政策，吳委員長指出，僑委會除由僑商處密切聯繫亞洲與大洋洲的台商，研討推動政策的具體做法。明年4月也規劃結合東南亞台商企業，舉辦3場大型人才媒合博覽會，預計有6000位以上的台灣畢業學生及僑生參與，除了能為海外台商找到優秀人才，同時讓台灣年輕人走向全球各地拓展國際視野，台灣的競爭力也能因此更加茁壯，歡迎全世界台商一同參與這項攬才活動。

外交部政次侯清山、經濟部政次楊偉甫、立法委員羅明才、徐國勇及陳歐珀、總統府副秘書長姚人多、新北市副市長葉惠青、行政院政務顧問楊信都出席開幕典禮。世界臺灣商會聯合總會總會長李耀熊在開幕致詞時提到，蔡總統上任後面臨諸多國內外的變化與挑戰，而改革是一條艱鉅漫長的路，總會與海外台商願意成為政府的後盾，支持政府各項施政作為。

世界臺灣商會聯合總會青商會25日也舉行第六屆年會暨第三次理監事會議，會中選出第七屆會長與監事長，由僑居越南的邱臣遠當選會長、僑居法國的畢詳笙當選監事長。吳委員長出席主持監交與全體幹部宣誓，見證新一屆青商會的誕生。(僑委會堤供)

張欽棠:波士頓公校致力包容保障安全

Statement from Superintendent Tommy Chang:

““The Boston Public Schools (BPS) is committed to ensuring that Boston Latin School — along with all of our schools — fosters a safe, welcoming and inclusive environment for each and every student. We and the leadership of Boston Latin School are fully committed to implementing the recommendations in the voluntary resolution agreement reached with the United States Attorney’s Office to ensure all reports of racial bias are fully, promptly and effectively addressed at Boston Latin and every Boston public school. BPS will also continue our ongoing district-wide work to educate students and staff on adopting culturally and linguistically sustaining practices, recognizing bias-based behavior and closing opportunity and achievement gaps.”

---

 

Boston Latin School Head Master Updates September 26, 2016 Dear Boston Latin School Community, I am writing to inform you that this afternoon the United States Attorney’s Office (USAO) has released a letter explaining the USAO’s findings from its now concluded review of alleged bias-based conduct at Boston Latin School (BLS) along with a resolution agreement that the Boston Public Schools has signed. BLS will fully cooperate with Superintendent Tommy Chang and the commitments he has made in regards to Boston Latin School, including working to improve our ability to prevent and respond to peer-on-peer harassment based on race or color, characteristics that are protected by federal civil rights laws. We are doing so because the BLS action plan in the agreement makes good educational sense in teaching students about how to improve the racial climate that exists throughout this country. In fact, we at BLS already had in place plans and programs to deal with this issue before the USAO proposed its consent agreement. BLS will also fully support Superintendent Chang in his effort to allow the US Attorney’s Office to monitor the plans and programs already in place at BLS. Last spring, a non-profit agency, Visions Inc., spent many hours auditing the racial climate at BLS. The agency has more than 32 years of experience in examining schools all across the country. In its final report, Visions concluded that the racial climate at BLS was comparable to many schools with similar demographics across the country. We at BLS do not want to be comparable to other schools; we want to be a leader in this regard as we are in many other educational endeavors. We welcome any efforts by BPS or the US Attorney’s Office to monitor our progress in fulfilling this commitment. Boston Latin School continues its work around building cultural proficiency with staff and students. This month we greeted returning teachers with an inspirational presentation by Dr. Robert Brooks, a national expert on building relationships with students and establishing a positive school climate. We are additionally providing sessions titled, “Courageous Conversations” around race and culture with staff through the spring. We have also increased training to ensure equitable protocol around discipline;  appointed a Diversity Officer; and added more culturally diverse coursework and texts. As BLS moves forward, we ask that everyone in the school community to unite in promoting a diverse and welcoming environment for all. We have over 2,400 outstanding young people at Boston Latin School and we, along with our dedicated faculty and staff, are committed to ensuring that every one of them feels safe, supported, and appreciated. Sincerely, Michael Contompasis                                 Jerry Howland Interim Head Master                                 Associate Head Master

海外華人企業家協會年會邀蔣華，陳叔奇分享創業經驗

波士頓僑胞歡迎前副總統吳敦義等人到訪 (圖片)

逾百名僑胞出席接待會，歡迎中華民國前副總統吳敦義。(周菊子攝)

波士頓華僑文教中心主歐宏偉(左起)，經文處副處長陳銘俊，波士頓僑界大老陳毓璇、陳毓禮和兩名波士頓僑務委員梅錫銳，蔣宗仁等人在歡迎會中合影。

中華民國前副總統吳敦義(左)和紐英倫中華公所主席陳家驊(右)互贈禮物。(周菊子攝)

吳敦義也穿上波士頓華埠巡邏隊員隊服。(周菊子攝)

到訪嘉賓全都成了波士頓華埠巡邏隊隊員。左起，蔣宗壬，羅智強，郝龍斌，李潔英，陳家驊，黃海龍，以及陳文浩(右一)，珠蘇珊(前)等人手牽手。(周菊子攝)

中華民國前副總統吳敦義(右二)拜訪紐英崙中華公所時，與中華公所主席陳家驊(右往左)，單鳳琴，余麗媖，鄺坤珍等人合影>

吳敦義夫婦(右)稱讚泰勒街上的旗幟飄揚美麗，謝陳家驊。(周菊子攝)