----- Forwarded by Sandra P. Moscoso/Person/World Bank on 06/03/2010 06:21 AM -----

From:	Sandra P. Moscoso/Person/World Bank
To:	working-group-for-montessori-expansion-@googlegroups.com, Colleen Cancio & Rodolfo Soto Jacobson (Mila Soto) <ccancio@gmail.com>, Ulrike Reichert (Isabella Morris) <ulrike.reichert@yahoo.com>
Date:	04/30/2010 01:38 PM
Subject:	Montessori Town Hall 4/29 - Summary of Discussion
	458-0667 CTRKD

• For those of you interested in getting involved in the Montessori expansion effort specifically, please join the working group: http://groups.google.com/group/working-group-for-montessori-expansion-
• For those interested in keeping up with the Capitol Hill-wide proposal to strengthen our middle schools, please visit (or join): http://capitolhillmiddleschools.ning.com/. You can also join the Capitol Hill Cluster School Discussions group that contains additional, Cluster-specific information that is only open to Cluster families (in your request for access, please identify your child's grade and teacher)

Internal Needs
- Demand for program exceeds capacity (1 in 15 who apply have a chance of getting in)
- Expanding would offer more DC families access to the Montessori program and to the Cluster
- ‘Vertical Integration’: Many (not all) Montessori families want to pursue Montessori through middle schools and the Cluster loses these families when they choose private schools or other non-traditional programs for in lieu of Stuart Hobson
- Opportunity to grow the middle school program options within the Cluster (Stuart Hobson + Montessori = additional resources and opportunities to share)

External Needs
- The landscape of DCPS offerings has changed in DC. Parents who want options, now have them and are working really hard to make their individual schools successful
- There is competition out there and we need to think about how the cluster is going to fit in and avoid getting lost in the crowd among schools who are doing a great job of ‘branding’ and marketing themselves
- Montessori is 100% out of boundary. It includes families from most Wards (and receives transfers from other Montessori schools). It creates a good opportunity for the
Cluster and DCPS for drawing families in

WHAT IS PROPOSED? (read the CHPSPO proposal here: http://capitolhillmiddleschools.ning.com/ )
- Expand Montessori through 8th grade, and add additional classes at 3-year old through 4th
- High demand for Montessori education (389 applications for 26 openings this year warrants expansion of program)
- Keeping the Montessori program in the Cluster, identify new location for Montessori program – Must be close to one of the Cluster campuses
- ACTION ITEM: Need to communicate to entire Cluster that the Montessori program expansion is meant to strengthen the Cluster as a whole. We want to keep this relationship alive and continue to share resources
- We expect to hear back from DCPS with a counter proposal the first week of May

KEEPING THE PROGRAM STRONG
- The Out of Boundary process is not taking into account the Montessori approach
- The Montessori program is being forced to absorb children at age 4, which will be disruptive to the Montessori model, the new students, the existing students and the teachers
- The teachers need support from Cluster families on advocating for the Montessori program to stay true to AMI principles – stay tuned for how we can help

A MONTESSORI NIGHT'S DREAM - OUR AUCTION
• June 12 @ Eastern Market’s North Hall
• Contact Amy Jones (amyxon@yahoo.com), Susan Drake (sddrake@comcast.net) or Khai Booker (goddessbc@hotmail.com) to help

Thank you,

The Montessori Expansion Team

(See attached file: Montessori Town Hall Presentation 4_29_2010.pdf)

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Montessori Town Hall Presentation 4_29_2010.pdf 120K Download