Vote to add Hayley Suffriti as a new member of the MCCPS DEI committee postponed to next month.

MA Charter Public School Advocacy Week Feb 3-7, 2025.  Events planned throughout the week (see flyer) but it is particularly beneficial to participate in the Email Your Legislators event planned for Feb 4th. Additional details to be sent out by Lindsay.  Committee members are encouraged to participate.

1.  How to frame MCCPS, its attributes, and contributions:

• Charter story - Movement started in 1995 to make education more equitable to all students. Offer more autonomy with greater accountability.  Looking to close gaps and serve underserved communities.  Goal is for successes to become best practices for the greater public-school community to adopt.
• MCCPS Charter specifically provides in-depth learning, values academic rigor, participates in open communication, collaboration, and diversity.  Places high value on integrated arts.  Focuses on a whole child approach to learning - academics as well as social/emotional learning.  Provides students with the necessary skills for upper grades (resilience, confidence, self-advocacy, etc.). Promotes essential habits. Small environment lends itself to an inclusive school, easier to get a handle on issues than bigger schools.  MCCPS has the capacity and staff to address issues as soon as they arise. Message consistently reinforces that students are in control of their destiny and are active collaborators with teachers, staff, etc. in driving their learning.  Small school environment creates opportunities for students to push themselves outside of their comfort zone in ways they might not otherwise.  As a non-union school, there is an inherent flexibility for staff to adapt to changing needs, etc. Teacher leadership is built from the ground up instead of top-down, and school leaders also teachers in the classroom.  

2. Current political environment - The executive orders from current administration may make some nervous regarding DEI policies but the work is necessary.  

3. Factors affecting MCCPS currently:

• MCCPS' requirement is to accept 80% Marblehead/Swampscott/Nahant students, 20% students from other communities.  MCCPS is currently at ~66%/34%. Despite having added Swampscott and Nahant to our charter in 2020, our enrollment from sending districts has been recently impacted by the new school in Swampscott and low student population in Nahant.  We have spots available but fewer students coming from the sending districts.  There is interest from families of other districts but that leads to a compliance issue. It is unclear if DESE will allow more out of district students as there are already charter schools in Salem, Lynn, etc.

4. Charter school misconception regarding the funding impact to district public school budgets for students attending charter schools

• This impact is minimal under MA state laws which provides funding for all district students (whether attending a charter school or not) at 100% in Year 1 and partially through Year 3.

5. Drafting a DEI statement will be pushed to next month.  Note: This statement will be for the committee (not the school) at this point.

An agenda item will be added for all future meetings to identify events, etc., (such as the MLK breakfast) that might be of interest.  Please share any of which you are aware.  Meg Upton can also share with the greater MCCPS community (as applicable).

Not discussed.

DEIA - Think about adding Accessibility to our future discussions, etc.