Lafayette Academy Charter School

Description

Many of the low-income children in New Orleans enter elementary school without the language and reading experience common to middle class children of the same age. All too often no one has read to or with these children and they have little experience with books. They start school at a disadvantage and with the passing of each year they fall farther behind their more fortunate peers. The school has addressed this problem by hiring two reading specialists, but they only work with first graders, due to budget constraints. This leaves the older children feeling frustrated, apathetic and angry that they can never catch up. We must rely on community volunteers to work one-on-one with the students who need extra help on reading or math. Another significant factor which contributes to the sub-par performance of our students is the lack of parental involvement. We would like help in identifying ways to attract parents to attend school conferences and Open Houses. In addition, we would like to establish a Family Education Center on campus where we would provide computer literacy training, GED training and parenting classes as well as offer other resources to attract parents to school.The most essential short-term and long-term goal is increasing student performance. This will be accomplished by a strong shared leadership model which collects and analyzes student data and uses this data to drive instruction and professional development. Other short-term goals include increasing faculty retention and parental involvement since both are essential to improving student achievement. Long-term goals include increasing extra-curricular opportunities for student enrichment and talent development. These will include but are not limited to a sports program, chess team, and drama club. Operational short-term goals include building improvements and renovations to further accommodate optimal student learning. Long-term operational goals include possible campus expansion to include a gym and performance space.