The document summarizes a working session on improving the odds for chartering schools serving high-risk youth. It provides strategies for schools to use quantitative data and evidence of their unique design elements and value-added approach. Schools are encouraged to align data collection with their mission and student population. Establishing connections to authorizers and other organizations is also suggested. The document offers frameworks and metrics that schools can use to measure social-emotional learning and non-academic outcomes.

1. Improving the Odds for
Chartering Schools
Serving High-Risk Youth
Improving the Odds for
Chartering Schools
Serving High-Risk Youth
A Working Session
Facilitated by: Leslie Talbot
January 16, 2018
In Washington, DC | For: DCPCSA Members
A Working Session
Facilitated by: Leslie Talbot
January 16, 2018
In Washington, DC | For: DCPCSA Members

2. Why Schools Serving High-Risk Youth are
not Granted Charters Or are not Renewed
Why Schools Serving High-Risk Youth are
not Granted Charters Or are not Renewed
Often, schools and authorizers do not speak the same language. Try:
 Using more quantitative and less anecdotal evidence of success
 Measuring your school’s unique key design elements
 Identifying your school’s value-added and establish/report on
accountability measures that reflect these results
 Frequent and diverse connections with your authorizer to ensure
your authorizer understands your model
 Creating a network of schools serving high-risk students with the
same authorizer
Often, schools and authorizers do not speak the same language. Try:
 Using more quantitative and less anecdotal evidence of success
 Measuring your school’s unique key design elements
 Identifying your school’s value-added and establish/report on
accountability measures that reflect these results
 Frequent and diverse connections with your authorizer to ensure
your authorizer understands your model
 Creating a network of schools serving high-risk students with the
same authorizer
2

3. The Importance of Aligning School Design
Elements with Outcomes Data
The Importance of Aligning School Design
Elements with Outcomes Data
Your data collection, analysis, and reporting should be both mission- and
design-elements-aligned:
 Know your typical student profile and track data specific to your
population
 Look at the academic and nonacademic strategies you employ
 Quantify your model components – this is your value-added
 Find and leverage the link between school design elements and
outcomes data
Your data collection, analysis, and reporting should be both mission- and
design-elements-aligned:
 Know your typical student profile and track data specific to your
population
 Look at the academic and nonacademic strategies you employ
 Quantify your model components – this is your value-added
 Find and leverage the link between school design elements and
outcomes data
3

4. Evidence Of Value-Added when
Students Enter Your Schools Off-Track
Evidence Of Value-Added when
Students Enter Your Schools Off-Track
Be sure that your schools:
 Have evidence-based design elements proven effective with
high-risk student populations
 Have future-focused design elements that demonstrate long-
term achievements and positive outcomes
 Create frameworks for academic and nonacademic measures
to include absolute, growth and comparison measures
 Use established metrics to measure academic and
nonacademic indicators
Be sure that your schools:
 Have evidence-based design elements proven effective with
high-risk student populations
 Have future-focused design elements that demonstrate long-
term achievements and positive outcomes
 Create frameworks for academic and nonacademic measures
to include absolute, growth and comparison measures
 Use established metrics to measure academic and
nonacademic indicators
4

5. Key Essentials For Chartering Schools
Serving High-Risk Youth
Key Essentials For Chartering Schools
Serving High-Risk Youth
 You’re a school, so yes, you must demonstrate academic
achievement and value-added
 Measure growth: both academic and nonacademic
 Identify an accurate comparison measure or peer school(s)
(i.e., don’t just use FRL)
 Think longitudinally: Measure postsecondary success
 You’re a school, so yes, you must demonstrate academic
achievement and value-added
 Measure growth: both academic and nonacademic
 Identify an accurate comparison measure or peer school(s)
(i.e., don’t just use FRL)
 Think longitudinally: Measure postsecondary success
5

6. Next Steps:
Improving Authorizer/Alternative Charter
School Connections
Next Steps:
Improving Authorizer/Alternative Charter
School Connections
 Connect to the various education and youth development
organizations (i.e., AAPF, JFF, Reengagement Network, etc.)
 Extract key lessons from successes and failures of places like
Colorado’s Alternative Education Campus’ (AEC’s),
Philadelphia’s Renaissance Schools, innovative school models
like HSRA, LEAD, and NYC’s Transfer Schools
 Support each other through gatherings like these
 Seek assistance as soon as it is needed
 Connect to the various education and youth development
organizations (i.e., AAPF, JFF, Reengagement Network, etc.)
 Extract key lessons from successes and failures of places like
Colorado’s Alternative Education Campus’ (AEC’s),
Philadelphia’s Renaissance Schools, innovative school models
like HSRA, LEAD, and NYC’s Transfer Schools
 Support each other through gatherings like these
 Seek assistance as soon as it is needed
6

7. Post-SessionPost-Session
Follow Up Information Provided ParticipantsFollow Up Information Provided Participants
7

8. Frameworks to Measure SELFrameworks to Measure SEL
Popular SEL frameworks are comprised of various youth, program and systems
indicators or measures. Typical youth measures may include, but are not limited to
self-awareness, social awareness and relationships, decision-making and choices,
mindsets, and self-management. By establishing and aligning your SEL framework
to your school’s design elements, you’ll be able to articulate wider evidence and
rationale for your approach (i.e., program and systems measures). SEL frameworks
we’ve seen in the schools and youth development programs with whom we work
have included:
 CASEL;
 Every Hour Counts;
 Habits of Success (we wrote a cross-walk between our client school’s design
elements and those located within the table on slide 4)
 Forum for Youth Investment Skill Areas;
 Transforming Education’s MESH; and
 CCSR Noncognitive Factors (document pages 8-14, chapter 2)
Popular SEL frameworks are comprised of various youth, program and systems
indicators or measures. Typical youth measures may include, but are not limited to
self-awareness, social awareness and relationships, decision-making and choices,
mindsets, and self-management. By establishing and aligning your SEL framework
to your school’s design elements, you’ll be able to articulate wider evidence and
rationale for your approach (i.e., program and systems measures). SEL frameworks
we’ve seen in the schools and youth development programs with whom we work
have included:
 CASEL;
 Every Hour Counts;
 Habits of Success (we wrote a cross-walk between our client school’s design
elements and those located within the table on slide 4)
 Forum for Youth Investment Skill Areas;
 Transforming Education’s MESH; and
 CCSR Noncognitive Factors (document pages 8-14, chapter 2) 8

9. Metrics Used to Measure SELMetrics Used to Measure SEL
As we discussed during our working session, it is important to align the metrics or
surveys you use to your design elements, SEL framework (see article pages 5-10
for how-to’s), and student performance. For example, it’s great if students
increase performance around self-management measures as evidenced by
SEL metrics over time, however, can you attribute that growth to a reduction in
disciplinary actions? Metrics we’ve seen employed by schools with whom
we’ve worked include:
 CASEL (You’ll have to join to garner access to sample surveys);
 California Healthy Kids Survey, California School Staff Survey and California
School Parent Survey (includes FAQs for implementing outside of California);
 Habits of Success (using a Likert Scale);
 Core SEL Metric;
 SAYO and sample from Kentucky; and
 Others (page 9).
Lastly, we did not discuss digital platforms upon which to store the data you
collect. Selection of the correct platform is very important.
As we discussed during our working session, it is important to align the metrics or
surveys you use to your design elements, SEL framework (see article pages 5-10
for how-to’s), and student performance. For example, it’s great if students
increase performance around self-management measures as evidenced by
SEL metrics over time, however, can you attribute that growth to a reduction in
disciplinary actions? Metrics we’ve seen employed by schools with whom
we’ve worked include:
 CASEL (You’ll have to join to garner access to sample surveys);
 California Healthy Kids Survey, California School Staff Survey and California
School Parent Survey (includes FAQs for implementing outside of California);
 Habits of Success (using a Likert Scale);
 Core SEL Metric;
 SAYO and sample from Kentucky; and
 Others (page 9).
Lastly, we did not discuss digital platforms upon which to store the data you
collect. Selection of the correct platform is very important.
9

10. CONTACTS:CONTACTS:
Ramona Edelin: redelin@dcpcsa.org
Leslie Talbot: leslie@talbotconsulting.com
Ramona Edelin: redelin@dcpcsa.org
Leslie Talbot: leslie@talbotconsulting.com
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