We concluded last week with a vote by the D.C. Public Charter School Board to begin the revocation process for Imagine Southeast Public Charter School. We also learned the rational behind this facility being focused on for closure rather than those that comprise the list of Performance Management Framework Tier 3 schools. It turns out that Imagine Southeast had gone through its five year review which highlighted the charter's extremely low academic achievement and student attendance rates, among other serious issues.
The leaders of Imagine Southeast said they were surprised by PCSB move. I sincerely hope this was not the case and that there was close communication between PCSB staff and the school's board and administrators letting them know of the pending action.
I also wish that the board will not wait for a five year or annual review before investigating whether the schools on the Tier 3 list should no longer be operating.
Imagine Southeast currently enrolls 601 students in grades Pre-K 3 to 7. Now that it looks that this site will be shuttered the PCSB should act responsibly by finding a high performing charter to take its place. This will minimize disruption and provide a needed hand to the children of Ward 8.
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