PARCC Results are Here!

The District of Columbia's annual assessment of mathematics and English language arts/literacy (ELA) was released today, September 2, 2022. Known as PARCC, The Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers is an assessment based on the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). Mundo Verde administered the PARCC assessment in English Language Arts (ELA) and Math in the spring of 2022 for the first time in three years. Our results reflect the participation of 218 Mundo Verde students in grades 3-5. 

As in past years,  the District’s Office of the State Superintendent (OSSE) OSSE makes available data on how students across the District of Columbia performed at each of the five performance levels:

• Level 1 – Did not meet expectation

• Level 2 – Partially met expectations

• Level 3 – Approached expectations

• Level 4 – Met expectations

• Level 5 – Exceeds expectations

The results by level are also shared for each school, grade, and demographic group  – race, ethnicity and gender, as well as whether students are identified distinctly as English learners, in need of special education, or economically disadvantaged.

 The data is very useful -- and easily misunderstood due to the statistical complexity.  Interpreting PARCC results for the 2021-22 school year will be difficult, as it is the first somewhat normal year after two years of disrupted learning. Whether the scores are measuring the impact of the pandemic, student progress from two years prior, the consequences of the “great [teacher] resignation” or some combination will no doubt be the source of much discussion once the scores are released and analyzed.  As always, Mundo Verde will make our analysis available to all members of the community.

Mundo Verde’s Expanded Definition of Student Success

PARCC assessment results are one of several measures that together create a broader picture of a child’s progress at Mundo Verde. The measures include academic reports; NWEA MAP tests in English Language Arts, Spanish Language Arts, and Math; oral Spanish proficiency assessments, reading assessments in English and Spanish; classroom performance; teacher feedback; and – for 5th graders – evaluations of Spanish comprehension, writing, reading, and speaking through STAMP. Learn more about Mundo Verde’s expanded definition of student success in this Chan Zuckerberg Initiative’s report profiling schools that are expanding the definition of student success.

Mundo Verde Statement on Shooting and J.F. Cook Campus Lockdown

The excitement and joy of the first day of school for Mundo Verde’s J.F. Cook campus was shattered early this afternoon by a nearby shooting on O Street that left two individuals dead and at least three others wounded. While our staff performed emergency procedures incredibly well, and our 560 students remained safe, a situation like this leaves students, staff, and families understandably frightened. In our nation’s capital, gun violence has killed 237 individuals and wounded another 703 since August 24, 2021, according to Gun Violence Archive. 

We are a school community that is diverse by design and grounded in what we call ESPICA: our habits of community stewardship, which include inquiry. In that spirit, we teach our students to think deeply, to question and keep questioning superficial answers. Yet, how do we explain that what is shocking occurs regularly? 

Whether on the street, in a school, or in a grocery store, gun violence is a plague in our local community, and an indicator of both entrenched racism and governance gone horribly wrong. While a shock to some, shootings are an all too commonplace and deeply painful occurrence in neighborhoods across Washington, DC. Why does this uniquely American form of violence persist? 

Adelante! Teaching Now for a Better Tomorrow

Dear Mundo Verde parents and caregivers,

As we look to the start of a new school year, I am excited today as I was 29 years ago when I started teaching. The energy and enthusiasm I perceive as our professional development with all staff progresses on our campuses is tremendous. I welcome all new families, leaders, teachers, and staff to Mundo Verde’s 12th year, during which we will serve over 1,000 students across two campuses in grades PreK-3 through fifth grade.

Mundo Verde offers a unique experience to students and families. We are an Expeditionary Learning (EL) Education School dedicated to education for sustainability and biliteracy. As a public school, Mundo Verde is free and open to all Washington DC students and actively promotes equity and inclusion for all.

In the Spring of 2022, the school leadership examined the views of our stakeholders alongside student performance and teacher/student retention. Below you will find some additional insight into how that data informed the four organizational priorities you learned about in Executive Director Kristin’s letter last week:

• Drive improved learning for students - Student learning is core to our work. We have particular commitment to creating a quality, equitable learning experience for students who have been historically underserved.

• Creating strong staff culture - Our people are the most critical resource. Key to the sustainability of our people is a strong school culture. Feedback from staff during the 2021-22 school year highlighted these areas as key cultural areas of growth for us.

• Strengthening systems - Family, leader, and staff feedback and third party evaluations have made clear that we need to improve in these areas. A foundational part of setting us up to succeed here is continuing work we have begun to get the right systems in place and ensure they are used consistently.

• Promote anti-racism and equity - Racism and all other intersections of oppression shape opportunity and access in U.S. society. Everyday, people of marginalized groups will face the brutal realities of systemic oppression, stereotype threat, and micro-aggressions in their everyday pursuits. It is critical that we work together in the school to dismantle racism — individual, institutional, and structural — in service of equity and justice for all**.

As has been announced, changes are underway that will further support students and teachers and allow principals to better engage with the parent and caregiver community. 

The addition of academic deans to our campus leadership structure is strengthening individual teacher support, recognition and accountability; establishing strong school culture and climate; and upholding high levels of academic achievement throughout the entire school. The lower school deans will work with PreK to 2nd grade teachers and students (one at each campus), and the upper grade dean will engage with 3rd to 5th grade (at J.F. Cook campus, and as Calle Ocho campus grows we expect to have an upper grade dean as well). In addition, two newly appointed directors and two managers of teaching and learning are now improving our campuses by strengthening the curriculum consistency and quality, and leading professional development all year long - on Wednesdays, and in other settings and formats. Mundo Verde believes in grassroots growth of our employees. As such, many of our new leaders have been with Mundo Verde several years. 

Mundo Verde is also pleased to announce program enhancements that will ensure the most vulnerable students are fully served. We are launching a classroom that will be specially designed to meet the unique needs of students with autism, while still aligned to education for sustainability and biliteracy. In addition, across the grades, special education teachers will be working closely with general education teachers as we transition to co-teaching in classrooms in support of the social, emotional and academic development of all students. 

Mundo Verde understands the success of our school is only possible with the support of parents and caregivers. During the first six weeks of the school year, teachers will be working with students to establish expectations and routines that ensure the foundation is laid for a productive and cooperative year of learning. Even as teachers are experts on curriculum and pedagogy, we know that parents and caregivers are experts on their own children—how the children absorb information, what delights them, how they show that they’re upset, what comforts them. In the coming weeks, teachers will also be working to establish a climate of respect, trust, and collaboration with families, as valuable partners in the emotional development and learning of students. (Please visit the first six weeks of school section in the Family Handbook in English-page 15 or Spanish-page 16  to continue learning more.) The Meet and Greet this coming Monday, teacher and family Welcome Meetings, and Back to School Night are all part of how teachers deepen relationships with parents and caregivers.

I want to thank the organized caregiver groups for their recent collaboration and encourage all families to learn more about these active groups. In the spirit of CREW (where none of us are simply passengers), I look forward to ongoing engagement with parents and caregivers, and hope to see everyone at our school events and activities.  

Thank you for being part of Mundo Verde. Thank you for your support. We are excited to see our smiling students soon. 

¡Adelante Mundo Verde!

Joseph Rodriguez
Interim Chief School Officer

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**This organizational priority is grounded in and extends SY21 and SY22 org priority – Mundo Verde is committed to a focus on belonging and uplifting the experience of Black students, families and staff to ensure equitable access to student achievement. The rationale was informed by Overcoming Racism and The Equity Lab

Mundo Verde Statement on Covid-19

Click here to find the SY22-23 Covid-19 Policy in English / Spanish.

Mundo Verde’s layered approach to limiting the spread of Covid within our community is grounded in our values; guided by science and data; informed by professional in-depth and periodic opinion research; and respectful of the diversity of individual medical histories, living situations, and perceptions of risk. It takes account of the age of our students; the movement across grades, classrooms and campuses; results of student and staff testing; confidential vaccination status of students and staff; and local regulations and guidance from the D.C.  Department of Health, the CDC, as well as data and practices of other local schools.

Proof of mandatory vaccination is required of all staff and families are strongly encouraged to have children vaccinated to the greatest extent possible, pending guidance from health care professionals. Because our school population is composed almost entirely of children under the age of 12, most of our students cannot be required to vaccinate. The risk of students thus bringing the virus into the school is higher than would be the case among a more fully vaccinated population.  

Therefore, to reduce transmission of the Covid virus (specifically variant BA.5) as we return to school, students and adults are required to wear properly fitted masks when inside Mundo Verde buildings. Initially, and so that we can establish a baseline profile of our community, masking will be enforced during the first trimester of the school year (October 14, 2022) unless CDC lifts its guidance for mandatory isolation of 5 days for anyone testing positive.  Individuals seeking to enter school buildings without a mask will be stopped and provided a high quality mask at no charge.

As we learned over the past two years, mandatory isolation periods significantly disrupt teaching and instruction. To limit as much as possible the need to immediately begin shifting responsibilities, and finding substitutes to ensure 100 percent on campus instruction, we are enforcing a masking policy for the first few months of school. In addition, test to stay protocols will allow students or staff identified as a close contact of someone with Covid to remain in school pending serial testing and being asymptomatic, while also supplementing baseline data. 

These and other important safety layers form our plan for a strong reopening with a healthy staff and student population. To learn more about the above strategies as well as others such as ventilation, cleaning protocols, Covid testing, please see our SY22-23 Covid-19 Policy in English / Spanish.

Thank you in advance for understanding that in addition to protecting the health and safety of everyone in our community, our core focus is on providing the best possible education and support to our students for their academic progress and social/emotional development. 

NOTE: Our Covid policies and procedures are subject to periodic review for which community input is welcomed. We regret that we are not able to accommodate individual requests or respond to all comments on our policy and approach – although all are read and evaluated. 

Ready, Set, Go!

Even though it is August, which for some is a slower time of year, in a school, these days move faster and faster as we prepare to welcome students back to campus on August 24. Lesson plans are being refined, lists and directories of new and old students are being prepared. We’ve been working as a team to hone in on priorities and we have established four overarching priorities for the school year (aligned with our overall mission).

• We close the performance gap for black students at Mundo Verde as well as those who are at-risk, special education and English learners groups. 

• We dedicate ourselves to reinvigorating our on-campus team culture to ensure leaders and staff are given support and shown appreciation.

• By strengthening our core systems, we will improve communications, collaboration, accountability and performance.

• We will create a strong sense of belonging for Black students, families, and staff through the promotion of anti-racism and equity.

We know that staffing is on the minds of families - and I am grateful to report that 97 percent of our full-time staff of 235 is in place. Overall, 155 positions are focused on teaching and learning – teachers, teaching support positions, or other instructional and learning positions. Across both campuses, we do still have a few positions open (an academic dean, an operations position, a communications support position, and two teaching positions) with strong candidates, including a strong candidate to serve as our new head of Student Services. (For descriptions of our positions we have recently been recruiting for, along with those that remain open, see the school website).  

In the coming weeks, you will see new faces across the entire Mundo Verde team: teaching staff, campus staff, and network staff. Among the new faces and structures you will see are: 

• Including our principals, we have nine instructional leaders working to support quality teaching and learning on each campus. Three academic deans take the place of assistant principals, working in collaboration with principals to establish a strong campus culture and educational program (three total, one vacancy). Four new positions focus on improving teacher practice and ensuring that general and special education staff have feedback and advanced training every week (two managers & two directors of teaching and learning, fully staffed). 

• Our new chief operating and sustainability officer oversees a team of 32 people working to ensure that our students are safe and healthy, that families have the services they need, that our spaces are clean and beautiful, and that staff have the resources they need to support students and families. This team has one vacancy - one of two facilities managers.

• The restructuring of the student services team is underway with the explicit goal to improve the quality and timing of services for students. This team is fully staffed other than the director position, and we are excited to be in the final stages with a strong candidate to lead this important team.     

Please be on the lookout for a letter from interim Chief School Officer, Dr. Joseph Rodriguez, with a focus on teaching and learning, and the work of our instructional leadership and student services teams as we start the school year.

As families already familiar with Mundo Verde know, we speak of community and collaboration that years of research shows is critical to successful education: collaboration between adult caregivers/parents/families and students. Whether through valuable community-wide initiatives organized by our active parent/family groups, or in the quiet of 1:1 conferences with teachers, we work together for the benefit of our students. Please consider connecting with other parents/caregivers by joining one of the following organized groups: Padres (at the J.F. Cook campus), Communidad (at the Calle Ocho campus), Black families affinity group, across both campuses.

As our team prepares for the new school year, please help your children (and yourselves!) get ready for the first day of school by carefully reviewing this issue of the Family Update, as well as new materials on the website. You will find important information about required medical forms, how to access meals, extended day, or uniforms, playdates, and much more. If you have additional questions, please feel free to stop by or call the front desks at either campus.

As the days fly by, our team is more and more excited to greet you and your children and to launch a new school year grounded in our core values, ESPICA: empathy, speak your truth, perseverance, inquiry, collaboration, and appreciation. 

In community,

Kristin Scotchmer

Summer and Beyond! (Calle Ocho Campus)

Greetings Calle Ocho Campus Families!

I hope you all are enjoying plenty of sun, fun, and connection with your family. Currently, Mundo Verde staff members are diligently working to ensure everything is in place to kick off the 2022-2023 academic school year on August 24! I am confident that this year will bring deep learning, impactful experiences, and meaningful peer connections for your children.

As a valued member of our Mundo Verde Community, you are a part of our community, our Crew. As many of you know, in the network of EL Education schools, we uphold the wisdom, “We are Crew, not passengers”. This means we each contribute to making our school a community where a high sense of belonging and excellent education is a reality for all of our children. 

It is in that spirit I like to lean on the wisdom of the Maasai, an East African ethnic group, and offer Kasserian Ingera- Are the children well? This routine greeting highlights the collective responsibility of ensuring and protecting the wellness of our children, which reflects the wellness of the community as a whole.  At our Calle Ocho campus, the interconnectedness comes in our sense of Comunidad - Community. The word Comunidad represents our commitment to nurturing a collaborative relationship between Mundo Verde Staff and families for the betterment of our students’ experience. Comunidad is also the name of our parent organization created to help fulfill that commitment. Comunidad is eager to engage with new and returning families! The following is a welcome message from members of Comunidad that includes some of the upcoming opportunities to engage with the school:

Hello, fellow caregivers!  Congratulations on making it through last school year.  We are excited about all Comunidad has accomplished, from Hispanic Heritage Month to Earth Day and everything in between, and are looking forward to next year! If you would like to get involved in planning or volunteering, there are lots of ways to do so and a variety of time commitments. We would love additional support and to see new faces with new ideas as well! Please email comunidad.calle8@gmail.com or call 202-922-6272 with questions or to get involved!

I cannot stress enough the importance of an engaged parent/caregiver in our children’s educational journeys. Beginning this month, playdates and our upcoming on campus Meet & Greet are two ways for families to build community.

PlayDates

We thank Comunidad parent volunteers for coordinating these upcoming community building opportunities: These playdates are a casual get together, there is no need to sign up and you can join as your schedule allows.

• Campus-wide Playdates

  • Tomorrow! Saturday, July 30 from 10:00am to 12:00pm- Turkey Thicket Playground 1100 Michigan Ave. NE

  • Sunday, August 7 from 10:00am to 12:00pm- Calle Ocho (Pre K students only) 4401 8th St. NE

  • Tuesday, August 16 from 4:00pm to 7:00pm- Michigan Park Community Playground 1200 Varnum St. NE

Welcome Back! Meet and Greet August 22

Save the Date! Our School Leadership is planning to host a casual “meet and greet” on campus during the afternoon of Monday, August 22. We are finalizing the details, but anticipate a schedule with rotations per grade during the window 1:00-5:00pm. Specific information about specific time/grade will be announced in the Family Bulletin once it resumes circulating early August. 

And Beyond

As we move closer to school start you will also hear details about welcome meetings which purpose is to get to know our families and students better.  It is a time for caregivers to share their hopes and dreams about their children for the upcoming school year.  This is also a time for families to let the teacher know about any special concerns or even share different ways that you know would be effective for the teacher to make a connection with your children. 

With the transition to the new year we continue our commitment to deeper dialogue focused on equity, engagement, and meeting structure for collaboration across the community, with parent/caregiver groups* (Padres, Comunidad, and affinity groups) and School Leadership. This collaboration is crucial  to achieve common goals and success for our students. If you are a new family, please consider participating in an upcoming meeting so we can grow them into even more strong, positive, collaborative spaces. A list of dates for meetings, activities and events will be shared at the start of the year.

Updates on Calle Ocho Space Needs

Finally, for those of you who have been tracking our need for space for our future 4th and 5th graders and thus our plans for growing physical spaces at our Calle Ocho campus, we reached an important milestone this month. The filing of an integrated bond application will, in part, finance the purchase and reconstruction of a property at 817 Varnum Street, NE - kitty-corner to the existing Calle Ocho Campus at 4401 8th Street NE. Pending successful financing and securing additional approvals,  this proposed new building would support additional classrooms needed and bring other benefits to our Calle Ocho campus services and facilities as soon as  Fall of 2024. 

I hope we have an opportunity to meet before the school year starts, and if not, I look forward to seeing everyone on the first day of school. For your convenience, in this link you will find our finalized Academic Calendar for SY22-23 in English and Spanish. 

Please enjoy the sunshine and loved ones in your life! 

In Partnership,

Principal Jenn
Calle Ocho Campus

Summer and Beyond! (J.F. Cook Campus)

Dear J.F. Cook Campus Families,

I hope that you are having a wonderful time this summer enjoying the weather, family and friends, and activities that make summer so much fun. Taking time to rest and rejuvenate is so important for each member of our community, from students and families to staff and leaders.  It is during this time of rest and reflection that we are able to celebrate our accomplishments and make plans to have a calmer, more peaceful, and successful coming year.

Our team is working and getting ready for the first day of school. Teachers will be back in the building before we know it, and we will be looking forward to that first week of school! As excitement about the new year begins to kick in, we wanted to send a few announcements on opportunities to begin making connections:

Summer Playdates 

PADRES Parent volunteers (J.F. Cook Campus Parent and Caregiver Organization) have coordinated two opportunities for getting to meet each other and begin to build community before the school year starts. These play dates are a time and opportunity for students to meet and have fun, there is no need to sign up and you can join as your schedule allows. They are usually held in a local park that is easily accessible so that everyone can feel included and able to participate.  Details are below, if you would like more information you can email mvpadrescomms@gmail.com subject line “Summer Playdate”

J.F. Cook Campus Playdates (open to all grades PK-5):

• Tomorrow! July 30, 10:00am Watkins Splash Park & Playground near Eastern Market Metro

• August 14, 10:00am Kennedy Rec Center (Splash Park & Playground)

Welcome Back! Meet and Greet

Save the Date! Our School Leadership is planning to host a casual “meet and greet” on campus during the afternoon of Monday, August 22. We are finalizing the details, but anticipate a schedule with rotations per grade during the window 1:00-5:00pm. Specific information about specific time/grade will be announced in the Family Bulletin once it resumes circulating early August. 

As we move closer to school start you will also hear details about welcome meetings which purpose is to get to know our families and students better.  It is a time for caregivers to share their hopes and dreams about their children for the upcoming school year.  This is also a time for families to let the teacher know about any special concerns or even share different ways that you know would be effective for the teacher to make a connection with your children. 

With the transition to the new year we continue our commitment to deeper dialogue focused on equity, engagement, and meeting structure for collaboration across the community, with parent/caregiver groups* (Padres, Comunidad, and affinity groups) and School Leadership. This collaboration is crucial to achieve common goals and success for our students. If you are a new family, please consider participating in an upcoming meeting so we can grow them into even more strong, positive, collaborative spaces. A list of dates for meetings, activities and events will be shared at the start of the year.

Again, we are excited about the opportunity to connect over the summer and look forward to the first day of school on August 24. For your convenience, the final calendar for SY22-23 is attached in this link in English and Spanish.  Please come out and connect with us. It is through these shared experiences that we deepen our connection to one another and strengthen our school community.

In Partnership,

Principal Netta
J.F. Cook Campus