Hi,

In the coming weeks, the Department of Education will propose the phase-out and truncation of schools that have
failed to advance student learning. Under the new school governance law, each proposal will be followed by a
public comment period of 45 days, during which time a public hearing on each proposal will be held. The Panel for
Educational Policy will vote on the proposals on January 26, 2010. Below I’ve listed the first four schools whose
phase-out and truncation we’re proposing. I’ve included relevant information about each school. Educational Impact
Statements for phase-out proposals will be posted on the panel’s website as these proposals are announced publicly.

I will continue to update you on phase-out proposals as they are rolled out.

Thanks,
Will Havemann

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Announced 12/02
Truncation of Frederick Douglass Academy III’s middle school grades (09X517)
• While FDA III’s high school has been successful, its middle school has failed to help
students make progress.
• Despite the fact that it has a selective admissions policy, FDA III’s middle school
underperforms other District 9 middle schools in both ELA and math:
o 52.1% of FDA III middle school students are proficient in ELA, compared to 52.2%
of students district-wide.
o 68.4% of FDA III middle school students are proficient in math, compared to 71.6%
of students district-wide.
o ELA proficiency is lower in 2009 than it was two years ago in 2007 (52.1% compared
to 53.6%).
• In both of the last two years, FDA III’s middle school received an “F” on the progress
section of its Progress Report.
• The school received a “B” on its 2006-2007 Progress Report, a “D” on its 2007-2008
Progress Report, and a “C” on its 2008-2009 Progress Report.
• In its current configuration, FDA III is not fulfilling its purpose of offering students a
seamless educational experience from sixth grade through high school graduation. Only half
of FDA III’s 8th graders choose to reenroll for 9th grade. These students compose only 30% of
FDA III’s 9th grade class. We propose phasing out the middle school grades to allow the
principal and school staff to focus on —and build on the success of — the high school.

To be announced 12/03
Phase-out of William H. Maxwell CTE High School (19K660)
• Fewer than half of W.H Maxwell’s students graduate.
o In 2008, the graduation rate was 43.2%.
o In 2009, the graduation rate was 43.4%.
• Demand for the school is low and declining. In 2008-09, 920 students enrolled in
Maxwell. This year, enrollment declined to 863 students.
• Credit accumulation at Maxwell – a key predictor of graduation – is low. It increased
during the 2008-09 school year, but not sufficiently to reverse the school’s longstanding
history of failure.
• Average attendance at Maxwell last year was 72.1%.
• The school received an “F” on its 2006-2007 Progress Report, a “D” on its 2007-2008
 Progress Report, and a “D” on its 2008-2009 Progress Report, including an “F” on the
“Performance” section.

Phase-out of Academy of Environmental Science (04M635)

• The graduation rate at the Academy of Environmental Science has been consistently
low:
o In 2008, the graduation rate was 51.6%
o In 2009, the graduation rate was 51.1%
• Students at the Academy of Environmental Science fall behind early, and the school
has not been able to get these students back on track:
o Fewer than 65% of first-year students accumulate ten or more credits, a key
predictor of graduation.
o Though credit accumulation did increase slightly this year, it did not improve
sufficiently to reverse a longstanding pattern of failure.
• Demand for the school is low and declining. Student enrollment in 2008-09 was 551
students. This year enrollment dropped to 452 students.
• The school received a “C” on the 2006-2007 Progress Report, a “C” on the 2007-2008
Progress Report, and a “D” on the 2008-2009 Progress Report.

Phase-out of KAPPA II (05M317)

• The school has persistently failed to help students make progress. In 2008-09, a year
when large gains were recorded at most schools citywide, KAPPA II made negative progress
on annual State math exams.
• Student performance remains well below the District 5 average:
o Only 53.5% of students are proficient in math, compared with 72.0% district-wide.
o Only 43.6% of students are proficient in ELA, compared with 59.1% district-wide.
• Demand for the school is low. In 2008-09, 232 students were enrolled at Kappa II. This
year, 142 students are enrolled, with only 25 6th graders.
• The school’s Progress Report grade has declined over each of the last three years, with a
“B” in
2007, a “C” in 2008, and a “D” in 2009.
• This year, the school earned an F on the “Environment” sub-section of the Progress
Report, reflecting widespread dissatisfaction expressed by all constituents on the school’s
learning environment survey.