Boston Day and Evening Academy

20 Kearsarge Street - Roxbury MA - 02119
Type of autonomy arrangement: Charter-TPP Contract
Basic Profile

Opened In

1996

Grades

Ages 16-23

Environment

Online, Urban

Type

District - Pilot
Autonomies

Program

Determine learning program
Set school-level policy
Determine professional development
Determine authorizer assessments
Determine state assessments

Personnel

Select colleagues
Evaluate colleagues
Transfer or terminate colleagues
Determine tenure policy
Select leaders

Administrative

Determine school budget
Set staff pattern
Determine compensation
Determine teacher workday
Set schedule
Teacher Authority Is...
De Jure and De Facto

Boston Day and Evening Academy is a Horace Mann Charter School. These schools are independent public schools in Massachusetts that operate under a 5-year charter granted by the state’s Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, receive their per pupil allocation from the Boston Public Schools district, and whose teachers are part of the collective bargaining unit. Although Horace Mann charter schools operate as district schools, they possess certain autonomies, as well as increased accountability. They have dejure autonomy in faculty/staff hiring, budget organization, access to state and federal funding, curriculum development and content, school year and day length, and hours of operation, and de facto autonomy in the other areas above. Horace Mann charter schools differ from Commonwealth charter schools in that they abide by collective bargaining agreements with teachers. Horace Mann Charter schools grant public school diplomas.

About the Learning Program

Both the Day and Evening Academy programs serve over-age students (16-23 years old) who are graduating from middle school unprepared for high school, or who have attended high school, had an unsuccessful or interrupted experience, and are now returning to earn their diploma. Many of these students have significant gaps in their learning, especially in the core areas of literacy and numeracy. However, some students come to the program with strong skills and are attracted to the school’s small, community-based educational environment.

Life skills are often the topic in daily advisory sessions during which teachers help students to address their individual growth and to develop essential skills such as self-discipline, goal setting, and anger-management. Advisory also focuses on health and wellness, personal/civic responsibility, career success, social and life skills, and college/post-graduate planning.

One of the ways in which BDEA addresses the unique needs of our students is through the use of an innovative competency-based assessment system around which the curriculum is built. Progress is benchmarked when students demonstrate skills at their own speed, as they catch up to grade level and advance in their studies. The four competency areas and the corresponding number of required competencies in which students must demonstrate proficiency in order to graduate are: Science (72), Math (107), Humanities (119), and Technology (19).