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Portsmouth School Board: Change Rules On School Choice

By Joey Cresta
October 12, 2011
Portsmouth Herald

PORTSMOUTH — The School Board has drafted a letter to N.H. Commissioner of Education Virginia Barry urging her to change the state’s policy on school choice, a controversial provision of the No Child Left Behind law that disrupted city elementary schools this year.

The law allows parents of students at Title 1 schools designated as “in need of improvement” to transfer to a non-Title 1 school in the same district. In Portsmouth, Dondero and New Franklin elementary schools are Title 1 and Little Harbour is not; over the summer, 35 students transferred to Little Harbour, including some children of parents affiliated with the Dondero Parent-Teacher Association, Dondero Principal Kate Callahan revealed at Tuesday night’s School Board meeting.

The letter to Barry, signed on behalf of the board by Chairman Mitch Schuldman, states that school choice “has had a profoundly negative impact on our school community,” particularly at Little Harbour.

According to the letter, Little Harbour recently lost its Title 1 status and has been a “school in need of improvement” each of the past two years. It has also long been considered overcrowded and its class sizes now average 23 to 24 pupils in all grades but kindergarten, well above the district’s stated ideal class size.

School choice altered how district funds are spent in multiple ways, the letter said. The district diverted Title 1 funds set aside for tutoring to provide transportation for the 35 transfer students, hired six paraprofessionals and delayed capital improvements, like replacing a boiler at New Franklin.

With school choice expected to continue to affect Little Harbour in future years — enrollment is projected to still be above 500 students in 2012-13 — the board is requesting the state change its policy starting next school year.

Superintendent Ed McDonough has explained in the past that the U.S. Department of Education guidance on school choice makes clear that states may decide whether non-Title 1 schools that miss Adequate Yearly Progress for two or more years may be offered as transfer options. If the state changes its stance, then Little Harbour would not be a viable school choice option in future years.
“To permit choice to a school where there is already overcrowding, no Title 1 supports, ever-increasing class sizes and significant fiscal impacts makes little sense,” the letter states.

If school choice has negatively impacted the city’s schools, that was not evident in presentations made by the three elementary principals Tuesday night. All three reported strong starts to the year thanks to community support.

Little Harbour Principal Charlie Grossman said he had a “nervous August,” but things were “nailed down” for the most part from day one, thanks to his staff and nearly 200 parent volunteers.

“We have our challenges,” he said, but cited long lunchroom lines as the only explicit example.

At Dondero, school choice was a blessing in disguise, Callahan said, adding, “We have really come together as a team.”

Board members noted that both principals have answered some tough challenges and thanked them for their efforts.