Performing Arts Middle & High School

[gigawatts]

We are leaving Longleaf at the end of this year. The problems we have had with the school have become too large and too numerous for us to deal with. It has been a horrific experience. Our daughter can’t wait to go back to her base school, despite having only one year of high school after this one.

There are very serious problems with this school - the biggest issue is the AWFUL leadership, the worst I have ever seen. I have personally heard the principal use foul language and make demeaning comments about minority students. And would you want someone suspended from public school teaching by the state of NC appointed as the assistant principal at your child's school? Look it up if you don't believe me. All sorts of laws being broken at this school (a simple Google search will yield the results) high student and teacher turnover, etc. These are just the general oversight issues but there are grave issues with the "academic" side of things, as well. My daughter’s junior class is half the size it was two years ago! Three of her teachers left in the middle of this year. Now I know why. If you're thinking about this school for your child, I urge you to do some serious research. Happy teachers and students don't leave in such high numbers unless something is seriously wrong.

No matter how many people express concern over the exact same things, or how many students or teachers leave, the school board (mostly Longleaf parents!) will not address or even admit that there are issues. They are so myopic it’s ridiculous. Their strategy for everything is to steer attention away from the red flags and shrug off the problems, all with an unwavering arrogance. As a parent, I feel a tremendous amount of pressure to align myself with the parents on the board/staff and be a cheerleader for everything they represent, even when I don't agree. To do otherwise will harm you and your child.

Their website shows that they have already gone through their very short enrollment waiting list for next year. It gets shorter every year. This is not a good sign and not at all surprising.

[Pearlsb4swine]

My child goes to this school and loves it. There are many inaccuracies with this post. The reason the wait list is empty is because the school is moving to a larger building. Their test scores rank high and their kids go off to places like UNC, Johns Hopkins and include a National Merit Scholar and a Parks Scholar finalist. I can't speak for all the teachers but the ones that left that my child had ended being replaced by far superior teachers! We were glad for the change. Sorry to hear that this experience was so bad, but mine and many of my child's friends have been nothing but wonderful!

[2Loud]

This is an unfortunate post. Our experience is 180 degrees the opposite of gigawatts. The best example I have is my own child that attends there. Mine goes there as well and has absolutely flourished. She has attended all 4 years there and her confidence to face higher education could not be greater. So many teachers pushed her because they knew she could succeed. Their encouragement through the years has her ready for the next level. She graduates this year and could not be prouder. She applied to 5 schools and was accepted into all of them. Including the prestigious "School of the Art Institute of Chicago" earning a $20k/year scholarship.

Apparently many of last years 20 graduates flourished in the school as well, as they collectively were awarded more then $860,000 in scholarships for college. No small feat. Some have even spent the past year studying abroad. All built on the foundation they received at LSA. This does not exactly point to a poisonous environment as indicated by the above post.

So let's look the accusations:

The various "laws" that were being broken as referenced by the post is exaggeration. Full disclosure - An NC Policy watch group had issues with items in the schools student handbook. Namely regarding circumstances where a student can be ejected from the school. (1) The school mandated that students keep grades to a standard and a pace for a four-year graduation, (2) Too many tardy days (Getting into school late everyday for example) thus the student not getting the required course hours in to pass the class, or (3) failing to serve detentions. All could lead to instances of losing a seat in the charter. However no student has seen this action in 4 years of operation. In fact, the school is finding ways to help those students. Dave Machado, director of the NC state’s charter office, in January commented that no student has been impacted by this to the media. So this is really moot since it has never occurred in 4 years as admitted by the state. In fact, Machado indicated to the media he was not concerned about LSA, which he described as a “very good school.”

Regarding minorities - With the lottery selection system for student admission it eliminates any instance of "suppressing minorities". All are absolutely welcome to apply. LSA does not even require artistic performance auditions or art work submissions to get into the school. Not many creative focused schools can say that. New students can however request one or show their visual arts abilities to skip classes (Start in drawing II or dance II for example), but it is in no way a requirement. All are able and welcome.

Speaking of diversity specifically at LSA... Let's look at the numbers.
- North Carolina public schools have a diversity score of 0.45, which is higher than the national average of 0.31. LSA is 0.54 with 35% of the students that attend LSA being minorities. (a school closer to 1.0 indicates a more diverse student body).
- Secondly LSA provides free and reduced lunches to students whereas very few charter schools do this. They don't even get Federal funds for it, but feel it's vital that low income students are able to nourish the body in order to feed the mind.
- Thirdly, while LSA charter like most charters does not provide transportation for students, LSA lies directly on the public transportation routes. 30% of the students use the cities public busing system making it accessible to all. This was a major consideration in selecting the new school location for next year as well. That will continue with drop offs close to the school.
- Lastly along with Film Club, Art Club, etc...there are also LBGTQ and Black Union clubs which are supervised by teachers who serve as club advisors at the school.

According to the Public School Review website, the average student:teacher ratio at LSA is 12:1 which is lower than the NC average of 16:1. At LSA The number of teachers has grown by 12% over four years. The student population has grown by 39% over four years.

Regarding teacher turn over, 3 teachers have left this year. One because of career opportunities, another because of personal reasons (spouse's job), and a third because of performance. Out of 25 teachers meaning a 10.7% teacher turn over rate which matches the 11% for Wake County public schools.

Not exactly loosing students or teachers. In fact, busting at the seams and moving to a new building 3 miles south for next year.

Is the curriculum rigorous? Absolutely. Longleaf requires more credits for graduation than a traditional school. Teach time management? It's a constant for students. Will your child be prepared for University? No doubt.

It sounds to me we have a disgruntled parent and/or a student that could not keep up.

[BoBromhal]

this is why you have to not rely on "greatschools" for your impression of a school. In every part of life, it's the unhappy folks who will speak loudest, not those who are content

[LLN]

While I realize the thread is old, if your kid is committed, you might consider the high school program at UNCSA, over in Winston. They have a vocal program for 11th and 12th graders,

Here is a link: http://http://www.uncsa.edu/high-school/

[gigawatts]

Originally Posted by 2Loud

It sounds to me we have a disgruntled parent and/or a student that could not keep up.

Actually, my child is an honor student, making at least the A/B honor roll every semester.

This is precisely the kind of arrogance that I referred to in my original post. According to the school, anyone who is dissatisfied with Longleaf must be the one with the problem. This has been our experience with the school all along.

The statements used to try to shut down my "accusations" are not at all relevant to my concerns.

Many schools have strong graduates, some of whom go to A list colleges and/or earn scholarships. Longleaf is no exception. I agree that there are good teachers and other strengths at this school. My issues with the school’s academics don’t involve these things, but are about other problems which I did not address in my original post. For the sake of brevity, I tried to keep my post to the school's lack of leadership and the very serious issue of attrition and teacher turnover, which is not a new problem. I pointed out the recent teacher departures as an isolated example.

I suggest viewing the various data shown here. You can see the pronounced decrease in class size from year to year. The same office states that any charter attrition over 9% is a red flag. Yes, some of those may be "students that can't keep up" but that's not all that's going on here. Longleaf has grown but they've also added two grade levels. They also accept a large freshman class every year to help pad the enrollment because of attrition. According to the school’s website and board minutes, the number of applicants for next year has stayed about the same and the number of acceptances is also about the same as it was last year. There are also several board meetings where they discuss their concern over the number of students who leave the school. Where is it shown that the waiting list is shorter because the new building is larger?

I know what the numbers are in terms of class size, minorities, public transportation, etc. I never said that the school has an issue with minority students. I’m saying that I have personally heard such language come out of the mouth of school leadership. I would swear to this under oath if asked. So you can list all of the statistics that you want, but I know what I heard.

My take on the article you mentioned was quite different. A lay person should know that these policies don’t sound right. So as long as no students are affected, it’s okay to make policies that violate the law? And I would still love to know why someone whose license was suspended for cause is a good choice for an administrator at a charter school. Charter law states that a charter school may not employ anyone whose license was suspended. Longleaf's own amendment to the charter says that both administrators must have a teaching license. I wonder if the school board knows about this. I would like to think that had they known, they would not have appointed this person.

This school has a ton of potential and I wish them well, but they need to make some serious changes.

[nurseme2health]

As an active member of the LSA community, it's unfortunate that the Gigawatts family has had the experience they've had. It's also too bad that someone who has had such a negative experience resorts to voicing concerns here, rather than looking to help resolve issues in a relatively new community. I wonder if Gigawatts has attended open forums and listening sessions the school has had to help develop solutions, because each year there have been multiple sessions held.

Much like several people who post, sometimes not everyone has all of the information. 2Loud was quick to point out statistics that addresses some of Gigawatts concerns. Let me address others.

The principal was addressed about their behavior, rightly so. But obviously Gigawatts would not know something to that note. Additionally, the assistant principal did make the administrative team and board aware upon hiring. You wouldn't know these things because such matters are discussed in closed sessions and are not noted on meeting minutes. However, their NC teaching license was suspended temporarily (as can be found on DPI's site), has since been reinstated, and currently all members of the administrative team hold valid NC licenses and some are pursuing advanced licenses in Administration so that they can better lead the school.

Additionally, information can also be found that shows when schools relocate they often have a year of higher attrition rates than in other years as a result of the new location.

Like any school, or any workplace for that matter, issues arise, not everyone can be pleased, and the good far outweighs the bad here. Best of luck to the Gigawatts family. Not every school is for every family.