Case Study: Sustainable School Improvement Supports

Located in Springfield Massachusetts, Baystate Academy Charter Public School supports students in grades 6 – 12 who are interested in preparing for college through an interdisciplinary curriculum that offers enriched experiences in health sciences.

As a term of its charter renewal with the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, Baystate contracted SchoolWorks in 2018 to conduct a focused needs assessment and to assist in the development of a cohesive action plan based on findings.

The Challenge
  • Identify evidence-based strengths and weaknesses to inform sustainable improvement.
  • Develop a multi-year improvement plan with measurable goals and strategies.

SchoolWorks Approach
  • SchoolWorks conducted an initial School Quality Review in March of 2018 and worked with the school team develop a multi-year improvement plan based on the review findings.
  • During implementation, SchoolWorks provided monitoring supports through regular virtual meetings and coaching visits.
  • To establish a clear and unified understanding of instructional expectations across the school and elevate the use of instructional best practices associated with positive student outcomes, SchoolWorks delivered instructional trainings for administrators and staff and implemented a regular cycle of observation and feedback.
  • Monitoring site visits took place in November 2018 and December 2019 to assess the school’s progress in executing the strategies identified within the plan.
The Results
  • According to the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education 2019 Official Accountability Report for Baystate Academy Charter Public School, the school is now achieving substantial progress toward targets.
  • The school’s 2019 data demonstrated improvement and/or met/exceeded targets for achievement in ELA, math and science as compared to 2018 data. (View Data)
  • SchoolWorks continues to engage in coaching, instructional supports, and progress monitoring to support the ongoing implementation of the plan.
"We initially engaged SchoolWorks to provide a needs assessment and planning support as a term of our charter renewal. We found great value in this service, and were happy to welcome the SchoolWorks Team back to provide ongoing support for our plan implmentation through coaching and instructional interventions. We are now beginning to see the impact of these efforts in our state accountability data. "
- Timothy Sneed, Executive Director of Baystate Academy Charter Public School
    Dates: Spring 2018 – Present

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