We wanted to provide you with information regarding the recent town hall meeting we held where we engaged in a meaningful discussion with parents and staff about our strengths, challenges, and our upcoming charter renewal.
To facilitate this conversation, we presented a comprehensive slideshow that outlined our current situation and our plans for the future. During the presentation, we emphasized our unwavering commitment to academic excellence and the community school ideology.
One key aspect we addressed during the meeting was the fact that our school has been classified as low-performing based solely on the state CAASSP test results from the 2021-2022 and 2022-2023 school years. We understand that this classification could cause concern and wanted to emphasize that being classified as low-performing does not equate to low quality. We took this opportunity to shed light on the significant impact that our school's size can have on our data.
For example, 95% of our students in grades 3-8 must participate in the state test or it will result in a penalization under the formula set by the California Department of Education. Last year, Alma Fuerte only had 81 students in grades 3-7, as 8th grade did not exist. Given our relatively small student population, this means we truly need every single student to test!
To provide an understanding of our test participation and results over the years, we presented a detailed breakdown, showcasing the challenges we have faced due to our cohort sizes. Despite these obstacles, we wanted to emphasize the remarkable growth our students have consistently demonstrated in English Language Arts and Math. This growth is a testament to their resilience and the dedication of our staff. Our nurturing and secure environment allows our students to feel safe, supported, and challenged to reach their full potential.
Furthermore, we demonstrated that we are meeting or exceeding our comparable residential schools in the area, and our accelerated growth over the past two years gives us confidence that we will continue to meet and exceed standards moving forward.
In addition to highlighting our academic achievements, we wanted to underscore the impact of our student demographics on our scores. With over 30% of our students being English Language Learners and over 80% coming from low socio-economic backgrounds, the significance of our achievements becomes even more apparent. We take pride in reporting that our internal benchmarking assessments indicate accelerated progress among our students.
We believe in providing a holistic approach to education, addressing the needs of the whole child. Our commitment to this approach is evident in the additional staff we have hired for targeted interventions in English, English Language Arts, and Math. We do continue to face spatial challenges and are in ongoing discussions with the district to alleviate this challenge and despite the spatial challenges we face, we constantly explore innovative ideas to maximize our limited space.
Financially, we are secure and well-prepared to navigate budget cuts and the eventual sun-setting of one-time COVID funds. Alma Fuerte will not have to cut any positions due to funding. In fact, our projections are the best they have ever been!
We take pride in having achieved 100% staff retention last year, which speaks to the supportive and stable environment we have cultivated. Although we have experienced some turnover this year due to illness and familial issues in one grade, our students have remained resilient and continue to make remarkable progress with the support of our dedicated teachers.
During the question and answer period of our town hall meeting, and in subsequent conversations, we were thrilled to receive repeated inquiries about the possibility of expanding to Grade 12. This overwhelming support and trust from our community truly warmed our hearts. As we approach our charter renewal, we are confident that we can demonstrate our worth, growth, and impact in the community.
This year we have a lot to celebrate.
ALMA FUERTE FARM
Our farm construction was finished just before Spring Break! Please swing by to visit. If you come on a Wednesday afterschool, you’ll catch our Garden Ranger Bianca working with our students.
Over by the fence, next to the shaded tables, you’ll also see our chickens.
AFTERSCHOOL SPORTS
Our afterschool sports programming continues strong. Under Mr. Padilla’s leadership, our Alma Fuerte athletes remain undefeated against Stratford! We love to see how committed students are to their teammates and to achieve their personal bests.
CULINARY
Chef Matthew is helping students connect with the food they eat. The engagement and joy we see in our Instructional Kitchen has been inspiring. We have applied for the Farm to Fork Grant to help continue and expand this programming. Our goal is to cook 40% of our school meals right here at Alma Fuerte!
CHEER
The Alma Fuerte Cheer team won 2nd place in this year's Black History Month Parade! We are so proud of our students for their dedication, hard work pays off!
AFTERSCHOOL MURAL CLUB
Our afterschool mural club caught the attention of the local news, inspiring others to learn about and celebrate our History.
This news also led to the Dodgers including us in their Jackie Robinson Day celebration.
Once again, I want to express my sincere gratitude for your support.
Please fill out the Intent to Return Form here, this form is incredibly important for us to plan for next year as well as provides the opportunity for parents to give feedback on how our school is doing.
We look forward to 100% participation in this survey!
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