Juneteenth - A Testament to and Celebration of the Unyielding Spirit of a People

“The significance of Juneteenth is, thus, part of a continuum of moments where African Americans have advocated for their full participation in American citizenship and commanded the maintenance of the memory of our history and culture in the face of resistance and racism.” – Angela Tate, The National Museum of African American History and Culture Curator of Women’s History

“… the proliferation of Juneteenth events is taking place at the same time as the banning of critical race theory and curricula focused on slavery’s lasting effects. It is impossible to celebrate Juneteenth and simultaneously deny the teaching of America’s foundational legacy.” - Kellie Carter Jackson, The Atlantic (June 18, 2021)

January 1, 1863 marked the day that President Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation would take effect, marking a major turning point in the hard fought battle to end slavery nationwide. But not everyone in Confederate territory would immediately be free. Freedom finally came on June 19, 1865, when Union troops arrived in Galveston Bay, Texas and announced that the more than 250,000 enslaved black people in the state were free by executive decree, two months after the end of the Civil War and nearly two a half years after President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This day came to be known as "Juneteenth," by the newly freed people in Texas. The Emancipation Proclamation marked “only the beginning” of our country’s work to deliver on the promise of equality(*).

Although only recently in 2021 designated became a Federal holiday to mark the end of slavery in the United States, Juneteenth has been recognized for over one hundred and fifty years in Black communities across the United States. A combination of "June" and "nineteenth," the day is also known as Juneteenth Independence Day, Freedom Day, or Emancipation Day, and Jubilee Day. (The National Museum of African American History and Culture)

Juneteenth commands each of us to honor the courage, strength and determination of Black Americans, and to consider the progress made and the work yet to be done to build a more equitable, just, and inclusive America. With that commitment in mind, families/caregivers will find below resources for honoring the resilience of Black Americans and for talking with children of all races and backgrounds about Juneteenth, along with two core readings for adults to reflect on race and privilege.

Resources for Talking to Children: English

• Juneteenth Digital Toolkit | National Museum of African American History and Culture

• Understanding & Celebrating Juneteenth - National Museum of African American History and Culture

• 20 Inspiring Activities To Celebrate Juneteenth - We are teachers 

• Talking to Young Children About Juneteenth - Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum  

  Resources for Talking to Children: Spanish

• Juneteenth  Diversas Historias Americanas - Diverse American Stories

• La Importancia de Juneteenth - Language Workers 4 Black Lives, Solidarity network of translators, interpreters, and language activists creating multilingual resources and providing language support for #BLM

• “Estados Unidos celebra Juneteenth y muchos no saben por qué. Así impacta lo que las escuelas no enseñan a los niños” - Telemundo 

• Qué es el Juneteenth y por qué se celebra -  Clarín, sitio de noticias de Argentina

Para Adultos / For Adults

• The Role of Privilege (ENG) / El Rol del Privilegio (SPA)

• The Intersectionality Wars (ENG) / Las guerras de Interseccionalidad (SPA)

(*) President Biden’s remarks after signing the bill creating the federal holiday in 2021, "the truth is, it’s not — simply not enough just to commemorate Juneteenth. After all, the emancipation of enslaved Black Americans didn’t mark the end of America’s work to deliver on the promise of equality; it only marked the beginning.”

Giving Thanks June 2023 - From Kristin Scotchmer

There is much to be grateful for as our community brings the 2022-2023 school year to a close this coming week.

• Tuesday’s 5th grade promotion ceremony celebrates the hard work of 68 students and families/caregivers in their Mundo Verde journey, whose learning has been supported by over 60 individual educators over the last eight years.

• In the last three weeks, the school celebrated the learning of 938 students with expos across both campuses, welcoming families and friends to participate in showcases from this spring’s eight different expeditions: trees (PreK), animals and habitats (Kinder), our roles in producing /reducing waste (1st), geological changes on Earth (2nd), our rights and responsibilities to water (3rd), living within our means (4th), and design thinking (5th).

• Every one of our 235 staff members work extraordinarily long hours to deliver an incredible experience for each of Mundo Verde’s 938 students – whether substitute teachers or cross-campus leaders, whether new to the community or experienced, whether the principal or the person responsible for feeding food to students or for nourishing students’ minds and hearts, or keeping students safe or scheduling events, or keeping track of addresses, assessments and grades. I am deeply grateful for the service of our staff and it brings me tremendous joy that at least 88 percent of them firmly intend to return to continue in service to their Mundo Verde for the 2023-2024 school year.

• Mundo Verde’s parents and caregivers support students in innumerable ways; parents/caregivers are at times happy and at other times frustrated; parents/caregivers love the school and our ambitious educational model, and yet at times may doubt whether this is the right model for their children. I am grateful for each family/caregiver for your hard work and diversity of views. 

• I recognize the deep passion expressed by the 3rd grade parents that protested outside our J.F. Cook campus on Wednesday and Thursday the same days as our 4th and 5th grade expos. I understand the drive to be a part of our continued improvement – and I know we still have work to do to ensure that each and every student benefits from the promise of the Mundo Verde educational model at its best.

• The school’s seven board trustees volunteer their time and skills to help the school navigate what has been an exciting, busy, productive, and at timesturbulent year. I appreciate the board’s determination to listen well, ask questions to understand deeply and make decisions for the long-term interest of our school and community. I also offer my thanks to the eleven parents/caregivers that applied and are being considered for service on the board for the coming two years.

• The school’s facilities and finance committee, including school leaders and board members, spent the last two years working on a comprehensive long term facilities and financing plan for the school. Thanks to this diligent effort we have stabilized long-term facilities financing at an average interest rate of 3.6 percent, purchased the 4401 8th Street Calle Ocho main building, and recently purchased three acres of land to round out the space needs of the Calle Ocho campus. These steps ensure that all of our students and staff will have access to quality indoor and outdoor learning spaces!

Are we there yet? No. The road ahead is not simple and improvements need to be made. Though our job is not done, we have accomplished much together and there is tremendous promise in what more we can still do, together. I will be sharing more on that path forward in the coming weeks, in the meantime, all my gratitude and best wishes for a rejuvenating and restful summer break.

In community,

Kristin Scotchmer, Executive Director

Fifth Grade Capstone Trip: Discovering Puerto Rico’s Cultural and Natural Richness

This past week, the fifth grade class had the privilege of visiting Puerto Rico for their Capstone trip to discover Puerto Rico’s cultural and natural richness. Fifth graders interacted with the impacts of climate change on the costal reefs and mangroves and saw the beauty of one of the worlds few bioluminescent bays near Puerto Parguera. The Yaucocromatic Outdoor Art Gallery in the town of Yauco, La Parguera bioluminescent Bay, and a wind farm are some of the places they visited. Fifth graders also experienced the richness of the Puerto Rican food like mofongo, pastelones, plantains, and limbers.

We look forward to celebrating their 5th grade promotion ceremony in a few days!!

Investing Families in School Success - From Kristin Scotchmer

Dear Mundo Verde Families,

A couple weeks ago, in my message Invest in School Success for SY23-24 I shared with our school community how every year our school offers multiple ways for parents and caregivers to engage and participate, and pointed to some specific opportunities for engagement for next school year 23-24. Today, as a continuation to that message, I want to share updates of the efforts school leaders have undertaken this school year to create spaces for engagement and channels that can help improve the collaboration between school leaders and parent/caregiver organized groups. A diverse group of parent/caregiver leaders works to support the success of our students, staff and school in the following organized groups:

• COMUNIDAD - Calle Ocho Organized Parent Association

• PADRES - J.F. Cook Organized Parent Association

• Parents/Caregivers of Black Students

• Parents/Caregivers of Students with Special Needs

• Parents/Caregivers of Hispanic/Latino students (recently emerging!)

• Classroom Liaison Coordinators at each campus

As part of our commitment to enhance our work with organized caregiver groups, in SY22-23 we launched a pilot for a Network Engagement Steering Committee. The space was created by the school as a way to provide a regular space for meeting between executive leadership, campus principals and standing members of organized parent groups leading a variety of efforts in the school. The goal for the Steering Committee this year was to work on an agenda that addressed not only short term and campus specific issues, but school-wide and long-term strategy, school improvement and alignment of the different groups’ initiatives to the school’s mission, strategic plan and organizational priorities. The group met in September, October, December, April and May. During our last meeting with caregivers, we reflected on this pilot. In addition to appreciating its benefits, we reflected on ways we can improve this structure as we plan for next year. You can see a summary of our takeaways in the table below. As school leaders we will continue to reflect on this over the summer as we plan and design engagement structures for next school year.

Stars (glows)	Stairs (grows)
the space allowed for cross campus collaboration, providing formal insight on what's happening on the other campus valuable collaboration with open minded communications between groups appreciation for school leadership collecting feedback the notion that this pilot group is setting foundation for future generation of parents/caregivers with students enrolled in our school	establish metrics of success for the steering committee increase clarity of roles, responsibilities and decision making define ways for committee members to support each other in between meetings to keep traction and accountability of this collective work boost transparency in communicating the work of this group to the larger school community expand diversity and representation

The Network Engagement Steering Committee and the recently developed (and published earlier this year) set of guidelines for volunteer parent and caregiver associations are concrete actions we have taken as part of our commitment to effective and equitable engagement and offer a framework to guide coordination and to streamline collaboration both at the campus and the network level between school leaders and parent/caregivers.

Although the school year is coming to an end, our work around family engagement never stops. We will be active during the summer designing and planning engagement for the next year. We currently have two initiatives currently underway to inform next year’s planning: The first one is a survey that will help us better understand families and caregivers’ perspectives around raising funds, fundraising activities and their views regarding areas of investment so that common efforts can support our campus communities. The second one, summer playdates and other initiatives to help us welcome new families during the summer and into the Fall. Make sure to read all details and find more information in the sections below.

To all of you, for everything you do to support your child, our students and our school - thank you. We are excited to continue this valuable partnership.

In community,
Kristin

A Snapshot of the In-Depth Spring Survey - From Kristin Scotchmer

As we get closer to the end of the school year, I want to share with you a few snapshots from our in-depth Spring survey of families, with approximately 250 parents/caregivers participating (about 20% of the adults in our caregiver community). The school leadership is in the midst of reflecting on results. 

Throughout ten years, a broad sense of feeling a part of our school community has been remarkably consistent, with a large majority of parents and caregivers responding they feel a sense of belonging in our community.

We continue learning more about how we meet parents and caregivers’ overall expectations, ~60% of respondents across all major ethnic/racial cohorts report that “Mundo Verde has met my expectations.” Among those who reported their expectations are not being met, the top three areas that school leaders will use to continue planning for next school year are the academic focus, staffing stability, and firmer approaches to bullying and security.

We are thankful for parents and caregivers who participate in the community in different ways. The survey shows significant differences in participation across racial/ethnic groups - Latino parents/caregivers tend to volunteer as chaperones, while Black parents/caregivers participate more in the Coffee with their Principal, and White parents/caregivers volunteer in class as well as collaborate with other families.

To learn more, please click here for a blog highlighting core survey findings related to belonging, enrollment, expectations, participation, involvement, communications, and race. 

In Community, 
Kristin Scotchmer

Check Out Results From Our In-Depth Survey of Families

Based on recent, monthly “pulse” surveys conducted in collaboration with Possip, as well as results from our in-depth spring survey of the parent/caregiver community, this blog highlights core findings related to belonging, enrollment, expectations, participation, involvement, communications, and race.

But first, to clarify any misunderstandings about how and why we do this research, a few methodological notes are in order. First, while the number and demographic characteristics of respondents to any one survey can be indicative of the larger community, they are not statistically representative.  That said, detailed analysis of respondent demographics over time with actual school demographics do show a very high degree of alignment (and also enable us to see where respondents might be over- or under-represented.)  Second, some questions (and answer sets) are intentionally framed narrowly so that school leaders can learn how respondents are thinking and feeling about specific school activities or priorities. This is neither inadvertent nor manipulative but rather an explicit means of assessing community attitudes and values.  On the other hand, broad and/or open-ended questions are also posed to ensure that we also capture opinions and views beyond what might already be in the purview of school leadership.

Using these and other well-tested survey research techniques, we thus now know that between 67% and 90% of respondents feel a sense of belonging.  As can be seen below, this broad sense of feeling a part of the community has been remarkably consistent for 10 years.

Similarly, 92% of respondents indicate that bilingual immersion was the primary reason for enrolling at Mundo Verde -- with the relationship with DCI, diversity, location, and reputation each drawing roughly the same percent of respondents as the primary reasons for much smaller groups of respondents.

Notably, related to fundamental pillars of the school that do not seem to be major drivers of enrollment, respondents come from experience to value the positive impact of such as EL (expeditionary learning), learning with peers, social/emotional development, and sustainability.  

More broadly related to expectations overall, ~60% of respondent across all major ethnic/racial cohorts report that “Mundo Verde has met my expectations.”

Among respondents who report that their expectations have not been met, the top three areas identified for adjustments are indicated below: academic focus, staffing stability, firmer approaches to bullying and security.

Beyond views on enrollment and expectations, the chart below shows how, in practice, respondents participate in the community. As is also clear below, there are significant differences in participation across racial/ethnic groups - some of which are noted with stars:

To build an even more robust understanding of how the community see involvement, we also posed that as a direct question -- and then examined satisfaction with diverse levels of involvement. As indicated below, two-thirds of respondents describe themselves as being quite a lot, a lot, or somewhat involved; an additional 25% see themselves as a little involved. Thirteen percent feel not much involved. Across this full spectrum of involvement, please note from the pie chart on the right below that 62% are content with the extent of their involvement.

The extent of that satisfaction, however, is not evenly reflected across ethnic/racial cohorts. For example, 46% of Black respondents would like to be more involved compared to 29% of White respondents.

Examining the flip side of parental/caregiver involvement with the school, we have also examined the school’s outgoing communications with parents/caregivers.  As seen below, a majority of responses show that (56%) would like communications more “streamlined,” while 42% are seeking more detail, 25% want materials sent more quickly, and 19% of responses favor greater frequency.  In its ongoing efforts to meet everyone’s needs, the school will continue to balance the desire for streamlined communications with the desire for more details, more quickly, and more frequent.

An additional aspect of both involvement and communications was also examined in the Spring Survey. Opinions are dispersed across a range of issues, from carline to staffing, as indicated below.

As noted above, opinions are not always consistent across ethnic/racial cohorts. At a school that is diverse by design, this may not come as a surprise.  But as a community it is profoundly important.  We thus asked a battery of questions about race that provide us with a baseline moving forward. While complex and sensitive, unravelling views and experiences about race are fundamental to ensuring that all students are served equally well during their time at Mundo Verde. The chart below contains a lot of information.  And note, please that the right-hand bar graph is from March 2022. Among the many things it shows us, one jumps out. 

While essential, being “aware” of race and racism, and even assessing its impact on “student success” at Mundo Verde, are both profoundly different from the actual “experience” of prejudice.  A challenge that goes well beyond the walls of the school, awareness alone is not enough.

If you have questions or would like to discuss these findings, please contact the schools strategy and communications consultant, Jonathan Halperin: jhalperin@mundoverdepcs.org

Invest in School Success for SY23-24 - From Kristin Scotchmer

Celebrating the diversity of our school community, and knowing that many other factors impact parents/caregivers' capacity to engage; every school year Mundo Verde strives to offer multiple ways to engage and participate. Volunteer parents and caregivers are crucial collaborators in creating and maintaining a school community welcoming, diverse and inclusive of all.

Spring is a time of many emotions in schools. On one hand we all remain focused on finishing this year strong and are sad to say farewell to some friends. On the other hand, we all are filled with excitement, the promise of new beginnings and opportunities, and are hard at work envisioning and imagining the next school year. As you go through this process at home, consider the many ways you could be engaged in the greater school community for the coming school year.

• Serving our school community as a classroom liaison in your class (For Calle Ocho email Lindsey Elman (lindsey.elman@gmail.com) and for JF Cook email Emily Adeleke (emilyreinhart@gmail.com)

• Volunteering your time serving in any capacity in Comunidad o Padres o Affinity Groups

• Serving as a parent/guardian trustee in the Mundo Verde Board of Directors (Find here the description of the role in ING y ESP, and the application form)

In the spirit of being Crew, not passengers, I encourage every family that can to consider one of these wonderful opportunities!

In Community,
Kristin Scotchmer

A Sustainable Role for Principals … The Spirit of a Smaller School - From Kristin Scotchmer

Mundo Verde is indebted to Principals Netta and Jenn for all that they have contributed – over many years, in so many ways; and are continuing to contribute as school leaders reimagine how best to structure our academic leadership team. One priority that is clear from teacher, staff, family and academic leader feedback: the importance of ensuring that principals have a sustainable role and that students, families, and staff have access to their principal. 

With between 500 to 600 students, each Mundo Verde campus is relatively large. Learning is directly supported by 55 to 75 instructional staff, along with  25-30 other staff supporting other critical school functions. Students are connected to as many as 800 individual parents and caregivers. While there are efficiencies that come from this structure, with campuses this large, it is difficult for school leaders, principals in particular to have personal contact — and deep relationships — with students, families, and staff. 

Building on changes already in place – with academic deans, directors and managers of teaching and learning, and coaches in residence – we are capturing the spirit and intimacy of a smaller school by refining and narrowing the role of principal to focus on a smaller band of grades (either PreK-1st OR  2nd-5th).  This shift will support Mundo Verde’s ongoing effort to improve school culture and better set its principals and other instructional leaders up for success in promoting student well-being and achievement:

• Students will benefit from a team that more deeply knows their strengths, interests, and developmental stage

• Parents and caregivers will be more quickly informed on time-sensitive topics and be more connected to the specific individual /team guiding their child’s teacher

• Teaching staff have greater access to their principal and to a team that more deeply knows their specific curriculum

• Principals will be able to focus more deeply on a narrower curriculum, and will have more time for guiding teachers, planning forward and implementing improvements

This approach — of placing principals in charge of smaller bands of grades within a single campus — has been used successfully by a range of other charter schools for a number of years. Their experience demonstrates that with the right execution, this model leads to increased efficacy in the work of leaders and deepens relationships between leaders and the community they serve. 

Principals and Deans by Campus
At J.F. Cook, one principal and one dean will serve PreK-1st grade. A second principal and a second dean will serve 2nd-5th grade. 

At Calle Ocho, one principal and one dean will serve PreK-1st grade. A second principal and a second dean will serve 2nd-4th grade (and then likely 2nd-5th grade beginning with SY24-25).

Principals at each campus will continue collaborating with each other and the Chief School Officer (to whom each principal reports) to ensure campus alignment with Mundo Verde culture and instructional vision. Principals will collaborate with the operations team and other non-instructional teams. 

Instructional Leadership for SY23-24 From Kristin Scotchmer

In case you missed my message with important news about personnel and structural changes underway inside Mundo Verde sent to all families on Thursday, April 27, click AQUÍ to read it on ParentSquare.

Welcome Back to the Last Stretch of Our School Year 2022-23! From Kristin Scotchmer

I hope you and your family enjoyed the Spring Break and had a chance to enjoy and recharge. Teachers, staff, and leaders are eager to have our students back and we look forward to end the year strong. As we come back, I am happy to announce the dates for Spring Celebrations of Learning (please find them right below my message) - powerful opportunities for students to make learning public. We hope to see you there!

As you know, parents and caregivers are graciously organizing celebrating teachers and staff the week of May 1-5. The traditional collection is open through May 5 (via PayPal or by scanning the QR code included below in this Family Update). Other activities are also being organized, please be on the lookout for information from your Classroom Liaisons.

In Community,
Kristin Scotchmer

Spring Break Is Here! From Kristin Scotchmer

Dear Mundo Verde Parents/Caregivers

Warmer weather and Spring Break are here!

You all have been busy and working hard. Whether traveling or staying close to home, I encourage you to take some time to engage in activities that bring you joy and relaxation. Take the opportunity to care for you and your family mental, emotional and physical well-being.

Some of our staff take time during this break to recharge; others use the time to help focus on important work needed to end the year strong or get ahead on planning for summer and fall. For families, my hope is that even if you are not able to pause this coming week, that you have a chance to simply enjoy your child/ren in a different way.

The next eight and a half weeks of school are packed with learning and celebration:

• Expos showcase student spring expedition work,

• Coffees provide time for parents to connect with each other and principals,

• 4th graders camp overnight in Nature Bridge,

• 5th graders put their Spanish language and sustainability expertise to work with an expedition to Puerto Rico,

• Parents/caregivers connect with teachers through Student-Led and Parent-Teacher Conferences,

• A school-wide field day engages students in cooperative and team games, and

• A promotion ceremony honoring the Class of 2023 - Mundo Verde’s 7th class of 5th graders! as they transition from 5th grade to middle school!

Spring break is also a time to reflect on the year. I am grateful for the work of parents/caregivers, board members, teachers, staff and students, each of whom works hard to make our school community better every day. It is with the commitment of each individual in our community that we improve and continue growing. As we look forward to the new school year, please take a moment to complete the re-enrollment process.

In Community,
Kristin Scotchmer

Speak Out to Support Equal & Fair Funding for Charter Schools - From Kristin Scotchmer

Dear Mundo Verde Families/Caregivers,

I want to highlight my concerns for how the proposed DC budget for the upcoming fiscal year will affect Mundo Verde staff and students. Mayor Bowser’s proposed budget provides more than three times as much funding to increase staff compensation for DCPS educators ($207 million) as it does for charter school educators ($59 million), even though the number of students in each sector is roughly equal.* As you know a critical factor in retaining teachers is ensuring that their compensation is appropriate to the work. While Mundo Verde has made good strides in improving compensation in recent years, the school’s ability to continue to improve compensation and to compete with DCPS for staff depends on the funding we receive from the District.

On Wednesday Director of Data and Accountability Rodrigo Salgado, and 5th Grade ELA Teacher at Cook Campus and DCACTS Acting President Kelley Ukhun joined me and 100 other witnesses asking the City Council to provide equitable funding for charter school staff and students.

Please join me in public action to support equal and fair funding for charter school staff and students. Our goal is to have as many members as possible in our school community (including parents, teachers, leaders and board members) reach out directly to the City Council, pointing out the funding inequities in the proposed budget, and pushing for common sense fixes. Before April 12, please do one or more of the following:

• Sign this petition in support of fair teacher compensation today!

• Share this 30-second video about education inequities in DC with friends, family, and colleagues

• Tell DC Council directly to support equity for DC’s Public Charter School Students and Educators - Click AQUÍ

• Send written testimony to the Committee of the Whole no later than April 12 in support of equitable funding cow@dccouncil.gov. Watch some of yesterday’s hearing or read some of the testimony, if you’d like to get a sense of how to do this.

• Call or write to share with your Councilmember what you love about attending a charter school https://dccouncil.gov/councilmembers/

As over 100 witnesses in the April 5 public hearing explained, Mayor Bowser’s proposed budget provides DCPS with more than three times as much funding to increase staff compensation for educators ($207 million) than it does for charter school educators ($59 million) even though the number of students in each sector is roughly equal.* (See a few numbers in the chart below)

All educators deserve fair and competitive compensation for the hard work they do to support and educate our students all year long - regardless of the type of school in which they work.

In Community,
Kristin Scotchmer

Public School Educator Compensation By the Numbers: Mayor Bowser’s FY24 Budget:

Sector/ Factor	DCPS	Public Charter Schools
Students	52,873 (52.5%)	47,918 (47.5%)
Forward pay	$59 million (60.2%)	$39 million (39.8%)
Back pay	$148 million	$20 million (11.9%)

Earth Day all Month! By Kristin Scotchmer

Since we opened our doors almost twelve years ago, celebrating the natural environment -- and sustainability more broadly -- has always included not just global issues but also the issue of importance to our local community. This year, we have adjusted the timing of the celebrations. Rather than scheduling large celebrations after school, we are embedding activities such as making trash art and planting seeds within the instructional day. In this way students whose parents/caregivers may not be able to join us in the middle of the afternoon can fully participate. Preparing for Earth Day has also always been a time when parents/caregivers, students, and staff all work together collaboratively. To those busy parents and caregivers who have volunteered this year, our heartfelt thank you for all that you have done and are doing. The gift of time that you have given to the community is seen and deeply appreciated; and to all the staff who have devoted significant time to make Earth Day a month-long educational celebration at Mundo Verde, please know that you too are seen and appreciated.

Please consider supporting as a volunteer. To check the schedule for when each class is participating in the activities, please see the following links:

Calle Ocho Campus: Apr 4
Earth Day Schedule & Volunteer Sign Up

JF Cook Campus: Apr 14
Earth Day Schedule & Volunteer Sign Up

In Community,
Kristin Scotchmer

Are We There Yet? from the Executive Director

“Are We There Yet?”

Whether traveling with a young child in a car or on a bus, in a train or a plane, I imagine that everyone of us has heard/been this plaintive little voice longing to know where they are and wanting to have finally arrived at that long awaited destination. As adults we too need to situate ourselves, to know where we are and where we are headed. We learn that the journey itself can be its own destination.

This year’s Mundo Verde journey has been to reconstruct and reimagine many of the traditions through which our students learn, experience, and celebrate what it means to be a global steward. Even as our school is still managing the lingering impact of the Covid pandemic on our community - it is in the daily routines and traditions that individual community members live and see evidence of the Mundo Verde Way. 

Over the last few weeks, students, families and staff gathered together twelve times for Expos celebrating student learning - one for every grade on each campus. Over and over again, parents/caregivers could be heard breathing in deeply to say some version of, “so, this is the Mundo Verde I signed up for” or for those reentering the school after three years of pandemic exclaiming, “Ahh - this is the Mundo Verde I remember and have missed.” Having every single Expo happen robustly in person for the first time in three years is an important step along the school’s recovery journey. Witnessing these simple and profound moments demonstrates how much our community members have craved being together to support students' success and reflect on their achievement.

Last week, at approximately the midpoint of the academic year, school leaders participated in a formal review of the school priorities and work plan facilitated by our EL Education school coach. We examined the specific goals set last summer, identifying and celebrating accomplishments, while also narrowed in on areas of growth or improvement and recommitting to progress between March and June.  A snapshot of a few highlights are:

Priority #1: Drive Improved Learning for All Students

• Celebration/s: Students demonstrated growth in reading in English and Spanish (MAP Assessment results) and have nearly met goals for mid year achievement. 

• Area/s of growth: Students also grew in math, but in some grades are further from meeting goals for mid-year achievement. 

Priority #2: Create Strong Staff Culture

• Celebration/s: Our mid year survey of staff results show that 85 percent of the staff are planning to return/leaning towards returning next year, 75 percent of staff report a sense of belonging at Mundo Verde, and that 72 percent of staff are receiving appropriate recognition, along with helpful feedback, and coaching on doing things better from their manager.

• Area/s of growth: Only 50 percent of staff reported consistent weekly meetings with their supervisor.  

Priority #3 : Strengthen Systems

• Celebration/s: Lattice has now been fully launched to support and track 1:1 meetings and teacher observations. On the parent/caregiver side, there was progress made in understanding the caregiver perspective to better meet the needs of families.

• Area/s of growth: Managers are still working on consistency in support staff through weekly meetings and observations. 

Overarching Priority : Promote Anti-Racism & Equity

• Celebration/s: In walkthroughs and a race and equity audit, there is evidence that a majority of classroom spaces reflect the racial and ethnic background of students, and that they also arranged to accommodate discussions. Further, noted that the majority of teachers used body language that conveyed the message that each individual student’s questions and opinions mattered - they used proximity with students equitably and culturally appropriate eye contact with students across groups. 

• Area/s of growth: While mid-year staff turnover has declined overall, deeper examination shows that the percent of Black staff leaving is disproportionately high. On the parent/caregiver side, it is clear the school needs to work harder to ensure that our survey results and caregiver involvement is more representative of Black and Hispanic families.

As teachers return from a much needed rest over Mid-Winter Break, excitement will be in the air with the continued return of traditions we paused during the pandemic. Building from celebrations of learning, our community is actively working to be ready for many more – student-led conferences, biliteracy week and book fair, sustainability week and Earth day celebration, fourth grade trip to Nature Bridge, and fifth grade capstone trip to Puerto Rico - with 55 of our 67 5th graders confirmed to participate!! 

Are we there yet? We are on our way getting stronger every week, persevering to make our school community better every year. We are resilient and we continue to rebuild.

We are honored to have you and your children with us on the Mundo Verde journey.

In community,

Kristin Scotchmer
Executive Director

Community Dynamics: Expansive Interactions and Partial Familiarity with Educational Model

Reported Highlights from December 2022 and January 2023 - Community Pulse Surveys

Reviewing findings from the two most recent Possip pulse surveys in December 2022 and January 2023, several findings are noteworthy based on the responses of 363 members of the community (169 in December and 194 in January).

Overall sentiment continues to track consistently within a band where the number of respondents characterizing themselves as ‘unhappy’ hovers in the teens (17% in December and 12% in January. A majority of respondents generally describe themselves as ‘happy’ and more than one-third consistently perceive themselves as ‘mostly happy.’ 

Assessing two distinct but related aspects of the relationship between parents/caregivers and the school, we see a solid majority of respondents reporting “valuable interactions” and one-third describe themselves as being ‘very familiar’ with the “educational model.”  More specifically and as indicated below, 60% of respondents reported in December that they had already had more than four valuable interactions with the school - and 15% mentioned eight or more such interactions. Seven percent reported having had no valuable interactions.

Regarding “familiarity with the educational model,” a plurality of respondents in January characterize themselves as ‘somewhat familiar’ with the remaining respondents split: 34% being ‘very familiar’ and 15% ‘not familiar.’  While the survey did not seek to establish a baseline for the extent to which respondents want to be familiar with the model, we see opportunities for the school to expand understanding and further enhance interactions through “education about education.”

Finally, we call attention to a shift in topical concerns in the two-month span covered by the surveys reported here. The comparative graphic below shows a four-fold increase in comments about academic issues and the curriculum (from 8% to 34%) and a three-fold rise in comments volunteered about schedules and activities. Notably, concerns about staffing also dropped significantly.

Please keep an eye out for another survey in February. In keeping with past practices, we will complement these quick ‘pulse’ surveys with a more in-depth survey in early Spring. We are very grateful to everyone who has completed one or more Possip surveys and encourage everyone to do so.  

If you have questions that are very specific about an issue related to your child/ren’s day at school (about meals, assignments, late arrivals, and so forth) please address them directly to the appropriate member of the staff using Direct Messages in Parent Square. To see who best to contact with personal questions, please visit the “Who to go for What” in English or Spanish. Because it takes time to read and analyze all the Possip comments, contacting the appropriate person on staff at the school will more likely ensure that you receive a response within 48 hours.

Connection and Community - Recent Findings from Monthly Pulse Surveys

So far this year, 436 members of our community have taken the time to complete one or more of the recent ‘pulse’ surveys by Possip. The thoughtful feedback is very helpful to the school as one of many ways we stay connected with parents/caregivers to help ensure that we are effectively collaborating in supporting our students.

Among the key findings from recent surveys is that parent/teacher conferences continue to be highly valued, with 85% of respondents rating them as very or somewhat useful, 60% and 25% respectively.

Comparing the usefulness of parent teacher conferences with classroom familiarity, (the question posed in October) respondents are much more enthusiastic about the value of the conferences, with only 41% describing themselves as being ‘very familiar’ with what their ‘child is learning and doing in class.’

While perspectives on parent teacher conferences do vary a little across campuses and among different racial/ethnic groups, more notable variations are seen based on grades. Grade breakdowns show 1st grade respondents have the highest level of appreciation, with 70% of respondents deeming conferences to be ‘very useful.’ Conversely, only 42% of respondents with child/ren in 2nd grade believed they were ‘very useful.’

More broadly, the three surveys conducted this year show that roughly half of respondents are consistently ‘happy’ with Mundo Verde while less than 20% are ‘unhappy.’  The remaining ~25% characterize themselves as ‘mostly happy.’

In terms of topical resonance, staffing and academic/curriculum considerations draw the most comments from respondents in the two most recent surveys. Mentioned by 16% of respondents in October, Covid was not mentioned by anyone responding to the November pulse check.

Based on Possip research, our community’s emphasis on academics, staffing and teacher communications aligns trends nationwide. By contrast, increased mention nationally of safety and bullying concerns are not worries articulated by Mundo Verde respondents, despite incidents in the neighborhoods around the two campuses. The school’s ongoing training and attention paid to safety and bullying issues, of course, does not fluctuate based on survey findings but is a daily priority.

Also in contrast to what the team at Possip generally sees from other schools in fall/winter surveys, the uptick in Mundo Verde respondents characterizing themselves as “happy” is  not typical. It is, however, a welcome indicator of recognition of the steps the school is taking to continue the recovery from pandemic conditions: from on-campus gatherings to expanded professional development and training, and students going on field work as a part of their expeditions. 

Please keep an eye out for another survey in December. In keeping with past practices, we will complement these quick ‘pulse’ surveys with a more in-depth survey in early Spring. We are very grateful to everyone who has completed one or more Possip surveys and encourage everyone to do so. 

If you have questions that are very specific about an issue related to your child/ren’s day at school (about meals, assignments, late arrivals, and so forth) please address them directly to the appropriate member of the staff using Direct Messages in ParentSquare. To see who best to contact with personal questions, please visit the “Who to go for What” in English or Spanish. Because it takes time to read and analyze all the Possip comments, contacting the appropriate person on staff at the school will more likely ensure that you receive a response within 48 hours.

Equitable Access to Mundo Verde

Guided by its mission, Mundo Verde aims to foster high levels of academic achievement among a diverse group of students by offering equitable access to DC students. The equitable access preference is an optional preference schools in the District of Columbia may offer during the application lottery process, similar to other preferences Mundo Verde already has in place. After seeking feedback from stakeholders and a robust Board discussion and vote of approval, Mundo Verde applied and was approved for the equitable access preference in August 2022. 

A task force of parents, caregivers, and staff was then created to guide the implementation of the preference. The task force includes parents/caregivers from both campuses and a range of staff including instructional, student support, data, operations, and human resources expertise. Two parents/caregivers from each campus were nominated by Comunidad (Calle Ocho) and Padres (J. F. Cook), caregiver organizations representing each campus.

Right as the school year began, school leaders learned new information about implementing the preference from MySchoolDC, including one key early deadline, which was the need to decide the method of implementation. After two meetings, the task force recommended the designated seats option, which will allow Mundo Verde to designate a specific number of seats for each grade at each campus for equitable access applicants. The exact number of designated seats will be finalized in March 2023. 

From the beginning of this process, Mundo Verde school leaders have been attuned to the additional resources and complexity of implementing an equitable access preference. The task force sees this as an opportunity to stay true to Mundo Verde’s mission and to take some planned and managed organizational shifts to increase its support for individuals facing what often look like insurmountable challenges.

Overview of the Application and Implementation Process

May-June 2022

• Information sessions held with interested staff and caregivers

• Feedback survey sent to school community 

• Initial feedback included questions about the timing for implementation, concern about support for the behavioral challenges of at-risk students

July 2022

• Mundo Verde Board considered staff and caregiver feedback, and unanimously approved the equitable access preference application, after a robust discussion about the application

• Mundo Verde Board felt strongly that providing more opportunities for equitable access to admission through the lottery is an important tool to support Mundo Verde’s mission and founding principle of serving a diverse student body, including students designated as at-risk

August 2022

• DC Public Charter School Board approved Mundo Verde’s application to implement the equitable access preference

September 2022

• Implementation task force formed, comprising staff and caregivers from both campuses, as well as network staff

• Leadership meeting with My School DC; informed of October 11 deadline for decision about if/how to implement approved application

October 2022

• Initial task force meetings to better understand the two options for implementing the equitable access preference

• The task force unanimously recommended implementing the equitable access preference for the 2023-2024 school year, using the designated seats method

• Exact number of seats per grade will be finalized by March 2023, per My School DC timelines

November-December 2022

• Task force meetings with Mundo Verde leadership about current supports and structures, gathering information to inform recommendations, and gathering feedback from other staff and caregivers

What’s Next

The task force continues to seek input from staff and caregivers to inform their recommendations through sessions and confidential individual interviews. Feedback gathered last year showed an overriding concern for ensuring the school would have the systems and resources in place to fully support all students with any needs, including accessing social services and academic support. In order to understand the current supports and needs, the task force will focus on feedback from: 

• Current families who meet the criteria for the equitable access preference, particularly those receiving social supports 

• Families of children receiving special education 

• Families who joined in upper grades and didn’t speak Spanish

• Spanish speaking / immigrant families

The task force will meet in the new year with school leaders to make recommendations regarding additional structures and supports for students and staff. The task force will also make recommendations about how many designated seats should be reserved for equitable access applicants. The recommendations will inform decisions made by Mundo Verde’s Executive Director regarding the implementation of the preference and will inform the budgeting process, which is finalized in a board vote. 

• Additional information on the equitable access preference is available here. 

• Individuals interested in providing feedback may complete this form or email the consultant supporting the process (Alison Collier) at alison@acollierconsulting.com.

Strengthening Teaching and Learning

Dear Mundo Verde Families,

With the completion of our first trimester of learning, I’m writing to provide updates on progress towards the school’s priorities, specifically through the launch of expanded school structures that ensure our faculty are well supported and that students, including those with individual educational plans (IEPs), have the additional assistance they need.

Creating a Strong Staff Culture

Furthering our organizational priority of creating a strong staff culture, the academic leadership team has expanded to better meet the faculty needs. The principals, academic deans, directors and managers of teaching and learning, and coaches in residence (11 instructional leader positions in total - see in the Academic Team chart below) have together been focused on engaging teachers with a focus on curriculum and instruction, supervision, coaching, and management, school culture, student assessments, and ongoing professional learning. Every teacher is assigned to one of the above instructional leaders to receive personalized feedback and support on a weekly basis over the course of the school year. Instructional leaders also meet weekly with grade-level teaching teams to focus on planning for the needs of specific students. The coaches in-training, each deeply experienced early childhood educators with more than a decade of experience at Mundo Verde, are provided release time from their teaching schedule to support PreK teachers across their respective campuses.

Academic Team Organizational Structure

To support teachers in their learning and development, the Directors and Managers of Teaching and Learning have refined and updated professional development materials to be uniquely relevant for the 2022-2023 school year, a year of continued recovery for students and their families, as well as staff, and a year in which everyone is eager to re-establish a sense of normalcy. The professional development being implemented is aligned to organizational priorities; focused on teaching and learning, data analysis, or practice and planning; and differentiated, that is, specifically designed to meet the varied needs, experiences and interests of individual teachers.  Among the structures to support these goals are:

• A professional development facilitation guide with learning targets that are clear and measurable, practical, and offer high leverage for implementation into everyday practice.

• Protocols that support educators in building trust, taking risks, and exploring new practices that will lead to increased student achievement. 

• A Strategy Café, a once-a-month a la carte professional learning experience that provides an opportunity for teachers to choose from a menu of sessions designed to meet individual interests and needs.

Promoting Anti-Racism & Equity

In addition to changes that benefit all students, and in line with our organizational priority focused on anti-racism and equity, I am  happy to announce continued improvements to our support for individual students. We welcomed the new Director of Student Services, Ms. Delmy Rodriguez in early September and she is working alongside Co-Director, Mr. Fikayo Olu-Ayeni, who counts on deep recent experience in the classroom as a special education teacher. Delmy and Fikayo are leading our school’s transition to a co-teaching model, in which special education teachers work inside classrooms for the full day alongside lead teachers. The pairing of general and special education teachers in this way better meets the needs of individual students that need additional support, better meets the needs of the entire class, and ensures a more inclusive classroom for all students.  

In addition, to more deeply meet the individual needs of some of our most vulnerable students, we have added two new layers of service  for students receiving services under an individualized education plan (IEP): an enrichment program and a self-contained classroom. Each campus counts on an enrichment classroom where students receive individualized services while still remaining within a general education class for most learning. The self-contained classroom allows students with high levels of need to participate in a smaller class and receive dedicated small group and one-on-one lessons. I am grateful to the leadership of Delmy and Fikayo, as well as to each special education and intervention staff member for leaning in to lead these wonderful programs.

Driving Improved Learning for All Students

As a base of understanding how students are doing, the school is sending individual PARCC reports to all students that participated in testing in Spring of 2022, and has developed a short report on our school’s results, including performance by grade level and among specific groups. I encourage you to take a look at that report, linked here. 

As part of their learning and growing, students are now busy at work on their first expedition of the school year. The school’s expeditionary learning (EL Education) curriculum is designed around expeditions - long-term, in-depth studies of real-world sustainability issues grounded in social studies and science concepts. Students make connections across core content areas, such as reading to research and writing to teach or engage in the persuasion of others. Regardless of their grade or ability, these hands-on projects are meant to spark curiosity, promote active learning, encourage teamwork, build character, and enhance students’ innate spirit of adventure. I encourage parents/caregivers to ask your child about their expeditions, and to join us when students present their expedition work in January.

In addition, our faculty and staff are launching Personalized Learning Time (PLT) for students, intentionally aligned with our organizational priority of driving improved learning for students. This additional daily academic support is tailored to individual student needs, and is built into the Master Schedule. To prepare for this structure, teachers review student data in student profiles, running records, and classroom-based assessments. The PLT approach benefits from having more adults in our classrooms - I am grateful to Academic Helper volunteers for making this possible! If you are interested in volunteering to support students in this way, please contact your school principal. 

The entire team is looking forward to seeing parents and caregivers during Parent Teacher Conferences today and tomorrow, Thursday! Conferences are designed to provide parents/caregivers the opportunity to discuss with teachers current student strengths and needs. Also, I am pleased to announce that Mundo Verde will be reintroducing student portfolios in Kindergarten through Second Grade (you may hear teachers refer to this as a student portfolio or a planner). The portfolios/planners will be used to communicate with parents/caregivers of the school’s younger students on a more frequent basis, to support you in seeing the work your children are doing in the classroom. You can expect to receive weekly updates from teachers via ParentSquare, and can count on us to continue returning over this school year to Mundo Verde’s Core Elements of Communication re: Student Progress, as outlined in pages 41-42 of the family handbook (English / Spanish).

As I close, I want to thank parents and caregivers for choosing Mundo Verde and for continuing to give our school the opportunity to educate your children, and to thank our faculty and staff for their daily commitment to the school’s priorities and for making the Mundo Verde learning experience possible.

¡Sí se puede!

Joseph Rodriguez
Interim CSO

A Window into Mundo Verde’s SY21-22 PARCC Results

In the Fall of every year, the District of Columbia releases the results from the prior school year’s PARCC assessments (Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers). Due to the pandemic, this statewide mandated assessment of Mathematics and English Language Arts (ELA) had not been conducted by any District of Columbia school since the 2018-19 school year. For more information on PARCC, please visit the Office of the State Superintendent of Education’s website: https://osse.dc.gov/parcc.

Mundo Verde Overall Results

In Math, overall scoring declined by 15 points from 48 to 33 percent of Mundo Verde students meeting or exceeding expectations (4+); in ELA, overall scoring decreased by eight points from 42 to 34 percent of Mundo Verde students meeting or exceeding expectations (4+). While the drop is consistent with District trends across the period of the pandemic, Mundo Verde students outperformed the charter school sector and the District, in both subjects, as has been the case in prior years.

As we know, Mundo Verde was not immune to the ‘great resignation’ of educators in massive numbers across the country. It is important to keep in mind that while students take the tests, we don’t know the extent to which mid-year shifts in teachers might have affected results. 

Mundo Verde and the Charter School Sector

We also recognize the importance of relative performance compared not to all schools in the district but to other charter schools. As indicated below, Mundo Verde ranks in the top 10 or better of charter schools reporting results for the grades we serve.

Mundo Verde Performance Over Time By Specific Demographics

• We observed the most dramatic decrease in scores among students designated by the District as “At-Risk” (3rd grade Math) and among students with disabilities (4th grade ELA). We also saw decreases for Mundo Verde students designated by the District as “At-Risk” in 5th grade for both subjects.

• In other grades, students with disabilities (3rd Math & 5th ELA) and students as “At-Risk” (4th ELA) improved their performance in comparison to three years ago.

• English Learner students saw significant gains in performance in comparison to three years ago in fourth and fifth grade in ELA and in third and fourth grade in Mathematics. 

• Mundo Verde Black or African American Students in 3rd grade ELA improved performance in comparison to three years ago. However, in all other grades and subjects we saw decreases  similar to other students for Black students.  

Mundo Verde Performance Over Time

The tables below provide information on the performance over time of all tested Mundo Verde students by proficiency levels 1 to 5. The Red Line shows what % of District of Columbia students tested at or above a 4 (meeting or exceeding expectations).

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For a more detailed report on Mundo Verde’s SY21-22 PARCC results in historical context, please click here for English / Spanish.

Community Pulse - Findings from Possip September Parent/Caregiver Survey

Mundo Verde values community especially because we are a community. One of the ways we stay connected is by listening to community opinions, understanding community values, and respecting that our community is diverse – by design. Monthly ‘pulse’ surveys (‘Possip’) sent to all families and caregivers help school leaders stay in touch with what people are thinking and feeling. The school uses a different mechanism to learn what the staff is thinking.

If you have questions that are very specific about an issue related to your child/ren’s day at school (about meals, assignments, late arrivals, and so forth) please addressed them directly to the appropriate member of the staff using Direct Messages in ParentSquare. To see who best to contact with personal questions, please visit the Who to go for What in English or Spanish. Because it takes time to read and analyze all the Possip comments, contacting the appropriate person on staff at the school will more likely ensure that you receive a response within 48 hours.

Highlights From September Survey

• Happiness - 249 community members responded to the survey and of those 50% indicated that they were either ‘happy’ (51%) or ‘mostly happy’ (40%).  There were also 9% of respondents who described themselves as ‘unhappy’. 

• Topics - At the start of the year, when families were learning about school operations and procedures, information and communications were very much on the minds of respondents, with roughly one-third commenting about these linked issues. A little less than one-fifth of respondents shared their views, mostly negative, related to the school’s masking policy (established to determine baseline levels of community spread) surveyed before the masking policy updated. Staffing, academic progress, and the curriculum were the subject of what another fifth of the respondents noted.

• Race-Ethnicity - Regarding racial and ethnic diversity, core to the school’s mission, Hispanic respondents were most likely to identify as being ‘happy’ (58%). More than other cohorts, 58% of White respondents identified as ‘mostly happy’. Black respondents were evenly split between being ‘happy’ and ‘mostly happy.’  

• Topics by Race-Ethnicity - Respondents from Black families were much more likely to identify extended day as an important topic (14%); by contrast, the extended day was not mentioned by White families. Black respondents were also significantly more likely than other groups to draw our attention to issues around academics and curriculum. Hispanic families were also much more likely than other cohorts to show appreciation for staff (22%).

With every subsequent survey school leaders both expand and refine their understanding of community needs and priorities. Please keep responding to Possip pulse surveys and tell us what you want us to know in the space provided for open-ended comments.