Avalon School

Why Avalon School was nominated

Although Avalon's student body is not racially diverse, the schools attracts many students who were looking for a school environment that supports their well-being (100% of parents and 97% of students say Avalon is a safe and a positive learning environment, and many students are from the LGBT community). They also serve a high needs population, with 36% of Avalon students identified as special education. Avalon uses a teacher cooperative model. Their teacher team has autonomy in all 15 potential areas and their board has a teacher majority. The Avalon teacher team chooses to use a self-directed project-based learning program and 360-degree teacher evaluation. They have have very low teacher turnover rates (5.3%). They also take seriously the notion of educating the whole child, and along with traditional assessments use the Hope Survey to assess students' non-academic outcomes, such as self-efficacy, optimism, and problem-solving ability, so the teacher team can evaluate what areas of school design the team needs to adjust in order to better help its students improve these outcomes. The teacher team believes it is important to model collaborative leadership to their students and therefore decided to make the student body a voting branch of the school government, with students passing bills (for example, on acceptable cell phone and school attendance policies). Teachers secure autonomy via: charter school contract and school bylaws. Very innovative personalized approach to learning. No set courses, entirely project-based and experiential. Teacher-run. Student safety is priority. Social justice focus. This is a long-standing teacher-powered school that serves many students who may have a difficult time in traditional school settings. They get amazing student outcomes and focus on the individual learning and social-emotional needs of students. Avalon serves a high percentage of learners with special needs or IEPs (nearly 30%), and has also become an informal hub for young people who are wrestling with gender or sexual identity issues. It is a teacher-powered charter school that serves middle and high schoolers. It has a commitment to flexible staffing and deep professional learning among staff to better serve the needs of its learners. They are competency-based, allowing learners to identify and develop projects that meet their interests. They are also committed to allowing learners to develop agency and ownership of their learning, accounting for this transition on the part of learners who may take months to settle in, but then accelerate into their competency-based program to complete on time. Allowing fluidity by not having grades (freshman, junior, senior) makes this more possible. The school does a lot to expand the universe for learners, making connections in person and virtually to people who can help learners with projects. Learners develop a real sense of project development, pacing, time management and self-reliance through this process.