November 19, 2024 |City of Lynn, City Services, Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, Education, From the Mayor, Lynn Public Schools, News, Op-ed

Op-Ed | City of Lynn/Lynn Public Schools opposes KIPP Academy Lynn expansion

Share

• F
• T
• L

On November 18, 2024 Mayor Jared C. Nicholson, Lynn Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Evonne Alvarez and Lynn Teachers Union President Sheila O’Neil testified at the Board of Elementary and Secondary meeting in opposition to the proposed KIPP Academy Lynn charter school expansion.

Below are the testimonials from each, submitted to us as an Op-Ed by Mayor Jared Nicholson’s office:

Testimony of Dr. Evonne Alvarez, Superintendent of Lynn Public Schools

Good morning, members of the Board and Commissioner Johnston, I am here today to urge you to reject the designation of KIPP Academy Lynn Charter School as a proven provider under Massachusetts statute and regulations. My comments focus solely on the proven provider criteria and do not address the broader question of whether KIPP’s expansion request merits approval under other statutory or regulatory guidelines.
The data is clear: KIPP Lynn fails to meet the threshold of academic success as defined in Massachusetts charter school regulations. The regulations require proficiency levels and growth measures on MCAS or equivalent assessments that are comparable to statewide averages for all students and targeted subgroups over a three-year period. KIPP Lynn’s performance falls significantly short of this benchmark.

After careful analysis of DESE data of ELA proficiency rates from the last three years, KIPP Lynn has lagged behind state averages by as much as 15 percentage points. For mathematics, the gaps are smaller but practically significant with a deficit of up to 8 points. In science and technology, the gaps widen to an alarming 17 to 18 points for peer groups. These results clearly do not satisfy the standard of being similar to statewide averages.

Moreover, KIPP Lynn’s struggles extend beyond test scores. The school serves a markedly different and less diverse and representative student population than Lynn Public Schools (LPS). For instance, only 15.1% of KIPP Lynn students are English Learners compared to 43.4% in LPS a difference of over 28 percentage points. The disparities are similarly striking for low-income students and students with disabilities, English Language learners in their first or second year in Massachusetts both of whom are underserved at KIPP Lynn relative to LPS. These percentages are 1.7% for KIPP Lynn compared to 23.8% for LPS. In the letter dated November first, from Mayor Jared Nicholson, President of Lynn Teachers Union, Sheila O’Neil, and me, further data analysis of DESE data is included (click here for PDF download).

These discrepancies raise serious questions about whether KIPP Lynn can effectively serve the full range of students in the Lynn community. Designating KIPP Lynn as a proven provider under these circumstances would set a troubling precedent. It would suggest that academic success and equitable service to all student populations are no longer the cornerstones of Massachusetts charter school standards.

I urge you to uphold the proven provider criteria as required by the statute. The data demands it, and our students deserve it.

Testimony of Jared C. Nicholson, Mayor of City of Lynn

Thank you for this opportunity. We are here to speak in opposition to the proposed expansion of charter school seats in Lynn.

The proposed seats are available because of pandemic learning loss in a city that was hit hard the pandemic. Adding the seats would devastate the turnaround efforts currently underway and already having success. It would also undermine the intended impact of the Student Opportunity Act, a cumulative budget cut of $24 million.

Slashing the budget of a district hit hard by pandemic learning loss is not a good policy response, but we’re told the availability of seats is required by state charter laws.

Those same laws require KIPP’s proposed expansion to be denied. As we showed in a letter to the Acting Commissioner, no reasonable interpretation of the data would suggest that KIPP’s test scores are similar to state averages.

New charter seats cannot go over the 9% cap unless the applicant is a proven provider. As KIPP is not a proven provider, this should not be moving forward. We are waiting for the Acting Commissioner to make that determination.

In the meantime, we will defend the Lynn public school system from the false narratives put forward by the proponents.

KIPP has been putting up a series of social media posts to make the case for their expansion. In a video on October 7, their leadership said “our students reflect the beautiful and vibrant diversity of the City of Lynn.” The next day, they said “We operate on a truly blind lottery system.”

I want to share the results of that lottery system. Last year, 23.8% of our English Learners were in their first or second year in Massachusetts. That number for KIPP is 1.7%. 23.8% vs. 1.7%. The lottery itself maybe blind, but clearly sign-up is not.

We are proud of the fact that the Lynn Public Schools welcomes all students from all backgrounds at all times of year, and feel we need to point this out when irresponsible comparisons are made.

In sum, we respectfully ask the Acting Commissioner, and, if necessary, the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, to deny the expansion.

Testimony of Sheila O’Neil, LTU1037 President

Good Day Secretary Tutwiler, Commissioner Johnston and Members of the Board,

KIPP Lynn has been enrolling students since 2004 and over the years I have attended and testified at several hearings regarding their applications for expansion. In the past the testimonies given during hearings for KIPP expansion have only created a greater division in our community. LPS and KIPP students are students of LYNN and should not be pitted against one another. The educators of LPS respect the students and staff at KIPP Lynn and applaud their hard work. This expansion application and the necessity of combatting the false narrative creates a further divide in our city. Commissioner Johnston has the power to end this fissure in our community.

As stated by Mayor Nicholson and Dr. Alvarez the data clearly proves that KIPP Lynn is not a proven provider and therefore is not eligible to apply for expansion at this time. We ask the Interim Commissioner to make this determination prior to January 2025 so the educators of Lynn can solely focus on the students of Lynn and their academic needs. Thank you for your time and consideration.

The above testimonials were submitted to us by Mayor Nicholson’s office.