Community Day Students Earn Top Honors in Teen Writing Contest

Six students from Community Day Charter Public School (CDCPS) have been selected as winners of The Boston Globe Scholastic Art and Writing Contest, the most CDCPS students ever to win these awards in the same year.

The Scholastic Art and Writing Contest, entering its 90th year, is the nation’s oldest continuously run art and writing competition and is a source of scholarships for young artists. The Awards recognize student achievement in the visual and literary arts in 28 categories, including poetry, graphic design, fashion, science fiction, video game design and more. The Awards have acknowledged and inspired millions of students including Andy Warhol, Robert Redford, Zac Posen, Sylvia Plath, Joyce Carol Oates, who won when they were teens. There are over 100 regional programs across the country, offering students in grades seven through 12 an opportunity to submit their work for the chance of receiving scholarships and national recognition. In Massachusetts, the contest is run through the Boston Globe.

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Commissioner of Education to Present City on a Hill Charter Public School with the 2012 Blue Ribbon School Award

In November, the U.S. Department of Education honored two representatives from City on a Hill Charter Public School with the 2012 National Blue Ribbon School Award in Washington D.C. based on its overall academic excellence.  City on a Hill Charter Public School was one of only four schools in Massachusetts and 269 nation-wide recognized for this honor.

On Friday, February 15, 2013 the Massachusetts Commissioner of Education Mitchell Chester will be at City on a Hill to present the award to the entire CoaH community in a ceremony beginning at noon.  

Film, "Doors Open," Features Three Innovative Schools

A new short film, “Doors Open” features three new schools that opened in the Fall of 2012: KIPP Academy Boston, a charter middle school launched by a national network of high-performing charter schools; Margarita Muñiz Academy, an Innovation School and Boston's first two-way bilingual Spanish-English High School; and the Dudley Street Neighborhood Charter School, an "in-district" charter school and a partnership between a great neighborhood organization and a teacher training program modeled after medical residencies in teaching hospitals.

On its own, each school offers a compelling story – one of vision, mission, and bright hopes for kids. Yet, looked at together, they are also part of a bigger story about breakthroughs in old debates about public education. These schools were all made possible by new education legislation passed in 2010. “An Act Relative to the Achievement Gap” gave Massachusetts districts like Boston new tools for helping struggling schools, and also for expanding their portfolio of choices with new, innovative schools, like Muniz, Dudley, and KIPP Boston.

Doors Open from Barr Foundation on Vimeo.

SABIS Students Take Home Team, Individual Awards at Model Congress

SABIS Model Congress TeamSeventeen students from Sabis International Charter School in Springfield, MA recently competed in the 73^rd Model Congress of 2013.  The students ranging from grades 9-12 took home 4 of the 11 individual and team awards along with over $100,000 in scholarship money.

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Senator Eldridge Visits Local Charter School

Senator James Eldridge (D-Marlborough) recently visited the Advanced Math and Science Academy Charter School in Marlborough to learn more about the school’s operations.  Eldridge met with AMSA’s executive director, took a tour of the school’s campus and visisted three classes.  Eldridge also attended the school’s “Back to the Future” event during which recent graduates return to talk about their college experiences and answer other students’ questions.