Pa. Charter School Struggles With Massive Enrollment Growth – GovTech

Report on Commonwealth Charter Academy’s Enrollment Growth and Alignment with Sustainable Development Goals

Introduction

This report analyzes the operational and academic challenges faced by Commonwealth Charter Academy (CCA), Pennsylvania’s fastest-growing public school, amid a period of unprecedented enrollment expansion. The analysis focuses on the implications of this growth in relation to key United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 4 (Quality Education), SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), and SDG 16 (Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions).

Analysis of Institutional Strain and SDG Alignment

Unprecedented Growth and Operational Pressure

CCA has experienced a tripling of its student body in the last five years, adding over 25,000 students. This rapid scaling has created significant operational pressures, particularly concerning human resources and the maintenance of educational standards.

• Massive Staff Expansion: The school hired approximately 1,000 new employees in under two years to manage the influx of students.
• Impact on Working Conditions (SDG 8): Reports from staff indicate a work environment characterized by exhaustion and overwhelming workloads. This raises concerns about the institution’s ability to provide “decent work” as outlined in SDG 8, which emphasizes productive employment and safe working environments for all.
• Shift in Institutional Priorities: Several former and current employees report a cultural shift, where the institution began to operate more like a business focused on enrollment metrics rather than an academic body committed to student performance.

Challenges to Achieving SDG 4: Quality Education

Concerns Regarding Educational Quality and Equity

The core mission of providing inclusive and equitable quality education (SDG 4) has reportedly been challenged by the school’s growth strategy. Staff have raised concerns that the focus on increasing enrollment numbers has come at the expense of academic quality and student support.

1. Recruitment and Student Preparedness: Recruitment messaging allegedly shifted from emphasizing the challenges of a cyber school environment to a more aggressive marketing approach. This resulted in the enrollment of a higher proportion of students who were reportedly unprepared for the demands of online learning, impacting overall student engagement and academic outcomes.
2. Teacher and Administrator Overload: The rapid increase in student numbers, including those with specialized needs, has strained teaching and administrative staff. A special education administrator noted managing 50% more students than the target caseload, impacting the quality of support and oversight provided.
3. Erosion of Student Accountability: Teachers reported spending excessive time attempting to contact and engage non-participating students and families, detracting from instructional duties and undermining the goal of ensuring effective learning outcomes (Target 4.1).

The institution itself has acknowledged to the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) that its large size makes compliance with certain administrative and quality assurance requirements “unreasonable and impossible of execution,” further highlighting the tension between scale and quality.

Governance, Accountability, and SDG 16: Strong Institutions

A Case Study in Institutional Transparency

The 2021 termination of Provost Adam Fraser, the school’s highest-ranking academic officer, serves as a case study in institutional governance and its alignment with SDG 16, which calls for effective, accountable, and transparent institutions.

Key Events and Implications

• Conflict Over Academic Standards: Mr. Fraser was reportedly dismissed after raising concerns internally that rapid growth was undermining the school’s academic quality and mission. The official charge was “actions detrimental to the mission and effective operation” of the school.
• Lack of Transparency (Target 16.6): Despite significant support for Mr. Fraser from parents and staff during a special board meeting, the board proceeded with the termination. Board members later cited confidentiality requirements as a reason for not disclosing the full basis for their decision, raising questions about institutional transparency.
• Suppression of Dissent (Target 16.7): Staff reported fear of reprisal for supporting Mr. Fraser, with some alleging they were monitored during the public meeting. The board president suggested that disaffected staff members should seek employment elsewhere. This environment challenges the principles of responsive, inclusive, and participatory decision-making.

Conclusion: Key Findings on Growth and Sustainability

The analysis of Commonwealth Charter Academy’s expansion reveals a significant conflict between rapid growth and the principles of sustainable development in education.

1. Compromised Educational Quality (SDG 4): Evidence suggests that the singular focus on enrollment growth has created conditions that may compromise the delivery of high-quality, equitable education.
2. Detrimental Working Conditions (SDG 8): The pace of expansion has led to reports of an unsustainable work environment for staff, potentially conflicting with the goal of providing decent work.
3. Weakened Institutional Accountability (SDG 16): The handling of internal criticism and the dismissal of a senior academic leader indicate potential weaknesses in institutional governance, transparency, and accountability.

While CCA leadership maintains that its growth reflects public trust and that it is successfully managing challenges, the reported experiences of numerous staff and specific institutional actions suggest that the school’s operational model may be misaligned with the long-term, qualitative goals central to the Sustainable Development agenda.

Analysis of Sustainable Development Goals in the Article

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

1. SDG 4: Quality Education
   • The entire article revolves around the quality of education at the Commonwealth Charter Academy (CCA). It discusses the tension between massive enrollment growth and maintaining academic standards, which is the central theme of SDG 4. Concerns are raised by former and current staff that the school’s focus has shifted from “academic performance” to enrollment, potentially compromising the quality of education provided to its students.
2. SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth
   • The article highlights the working conditions of the school’s staff. It describes teachers as “exhausted” and “overwhelmed” due to the rapid growth and increased workload. Mentions of staff working “long hours” and “till one in the morning” directly relate to the goal of achieving decent work for all. The massive hiring spree and subsequent management challenges also touch upon aspects of productive employment.
3. SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities
   • The article touches upon the school’s responsibility to serve vulnerable student populations, including those with special needs and those experiencing homelessness. The challenges faced by the special education department in managing contractors and the overload in the department for homeless students suggest potential inequalities in the quality of support and educational outcomes for these groups compared to the general student population.

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

1. Under SDG 4 (Quality Education):
   • Target 4.1: “By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes.” The core conflict described in the article is whether CCA’s rapid growth is undermining the “quality” and “effective learning outcomes” of its education. Staff concerns that “academic performance was suffering” and that the focus was no longer on “the education we were providing” directly address this target.
   • Target 4.5: “By 2030, eliminate gender disparities in education and ensure equal access to all levels of education and vocational training for the vulnerable, including persons with disabilities… and children in vulnerable situations.” The article explicitly mentions the challenges of serving “special education students” and “homeless students.” The special education administrator’s description of being forced to manage 50% more students and the overload in the department for homeless students indicate a struggle to ensure “equal access” to quality support for these vulnerable groups.
   • Target 4.c: “By 2030, substantially increase the supply of qualified teachers…” The article details a massive hiring effort, with the head of academics “hiring around 1,000 new employees in less than two years.” However, it also questions the quality and support for these new teachers, stating the school “no longer had the bandwidth to give sufficient attention to how these teachers were performing,” which is crucial to ensuring the supply of *qualified* teachers.
2. Under SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth):
   • Target 8.5: “By 2030, achieve full and productive employment and decent work for all women and men…” The article provides evidence of issues with “decent work” conditions. A special education teacher stated that “teachers were exhausted trying to keep up,” and a principal noted, “There were times that we were working till one in the morning because we had to.” These accounts suggest that the workload and pressure on staff may not align with the principles of decent work.
3. Under SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities):
   • Target 10.3: “Ensure equal opportunity and reduce inequalities of outcome…” The article implies a risk of growing inequality in educational outcomes. When teachers are overwhelmed and support departments for vulnerable students are “overloaded,” it becomes difficult to ensure that all students, particularly those requiring more support (like special education or homeless students), have an “equal opportunity” to achieve positive learning outcomes. The concern that the school was attracting students “insufficiently prepared to succeed in a cyber environment” also points to potential inequalities in outcomes.

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

1. For SDG 4 (Quality Education):
   • Academic Performance and Test Scores: The article implies this is a key indicator. A former leader, Adam Fraser, was “critical of the participation in test scores being down,” and staff worried the school was less focused on “students’ academic performance.”
   • Student Engagement and Attendance: This is implied through teacher testimony. A history teacher stated that “very few students would come to his classes,” and another teacher described spending hours “trying to track down students who might not have been the best fit for cyber school.”
   • Student-to-Staff Ratios / Workload: The article provides specific examples, such as a special education administrator managing “50 percent more students than CCA said was the target” and a teacher’s class size growing to “60 students.”
   • Teacher Supply and Retention: The article mentions the hiring of “around 1,000 new employees in less than two years.” In contrast, a school spokesperson cites a positive indicator, claiming CCA has “one of the lowest staff turnover rates.”
2. For SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth):
   • Staff Working Hours: This is directly indicated by the statement from a principal about “working till one in the morning.”
   • Staff Morale and Burnout: This is implied through descriptions of teachers being “exhausted,” “overwhelmed,” and some staff being “afraid to show up to the Zoom meeting, let alone testify.”
3. For SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities):
   • Provision of Support for Vulnerable Students: The article implies this can be measured by the capacity of specialized departments. The challenges in managing contractors for “special education students” and the department for homeless students being “so overloaded” serve as negative indicators for the provision of adequate and equal support.

Summary of Findings

Source: govtech.com