How Compass Rose Public Schools Is Reopening Schools in 2020–21

Compass Rose Public Schools has stayed focused on its mission, fifty-fifty while growing and facing the challenges of educating students safely during the COVID-19 pandemic. They are leading past example with their innovative approaches to planning, curriculum, and communication.

Over the summer, nosotros spoke with Paul Morrissey, Founder and CEO; Ryane Burke, Executive Managing director; Parker Couch, Senior Director of Austin; and Dr. Chawanna "Chae" Chambers, Senior Director of Curriculum and Assessment. Too, we have been following their hub, a site where they accept gathered information such as their in person learning programme, their virtual learning program, and their reopening plan.

For Compass Rose, as for all schools during these times, the details of their plans go along changing. What matters is the thoughtfulness and care of the people who are making and carrying out the plans, and their commitment to transparency and building relationships with stakeholders.

Planning at Compass Rose

"This is by far the well-nigh challenging crisis that schools in this country have faced in decades," said Morrissey. The team—Shush, Couch, and Chambers—praised Morrissey for reacting quickly to the news that schools would close. They accept worked hard to make plans and stay true to the mission.

In March, when schools closed suddenly, Morrissey had "a borderline paranoid urgency" about setting up COVID job force, reported Couch, a skilled projection manager who now leads the job forcefulness. Equally they made arrangements for distance learning for the remainder of 2019–2020, and began planning for 2020–2021, Morrissey helped his team think the unthinkable. "Every single doomsday scenario that Paul had thought of has come true," said Couch.

Chambers, the skillful on curriculum and tech, appreciates Morrissey'due south vision. "If your leadership doesn't anticipate, or have the capacity to retrieve beyond, and see a picture bigger than even your senior level team, then your kids and your teachers volition endure," she said. "One of the things I capeesh virtually Paul's leadership is being able to meet things that other people may not meet, then push a squad to become to the place where he knows we need to be."

Before the pandemic, Compass Rose was already in growth manner. As we described in our Compass Rose enrollment guide, the network added ii new facilities: a high school at Brooks for the growth of Compass Rose Legacy, and a new campus at Port San Antonio for Compass Rose Ingenuity. Compass Rose had one principal in 2019–2020, and now they accept five principals, all of whom report to Burke. They added over 900 students over the summer. They as well added new grade levels, in 1000–5, that they had never served before. "Nosotros have the correct squad in identify, and we are confident in our plans," said Morrissey. "Nosotros just accept to execute all of these plans in a whole new world."

The Compass Rose campuses are purposefully located in low-income areas of San Antonio to provide educational opportunities for students in historically underserved areas. "COVID-19 is not just a public wellness crunch. It's also an education equity crunch," said Morrissey. "Nosotros know that low income students are disproportionately adversely afflicted by distance learning. We are making plans that not but tread water, but that too close gaps."

Because Compass Rose has been ahead of the curve in planning and adapting to the pandemic, they are part of a task force of 20 or and then superintendents who work with the Texas Commissioner of Didactics to share all-time practices. The other charter school networks on the task forcefulness are Uplift, KIPP Texas, and IDEA Public Schools.

Rather than trying to wait out the pandemic, hoping that they can brand upward gains later, the Compass Rose team is working hard to innovate and develop new curriculum. "This is certainly a challenge, but this is an opportunity likewise," said Morrissey.

Curriculum and Innovation

Considering the leaders at Compass Rose are honest and realistic about the challenges of the state of affairs, they take been bold about looking for ways to do better. "If we wait at this as a long term thing," said Morrissey, "we have to think about how nosotros can drastically improve what we do under these new circumstances." His promise is that by doing a good task of serving underprivileged students, and then they can get a "slingshot" or "leapfrog effect." They want to close the gaps and brand sure their students are prepared for distance learning. "How do we prepare our kids for a brave new world?" asked Morrissey.

Chambers joked that, in spite of her title, her "part is all COVID." She makes sure that all of their curriculum has a way to integrate with Google Classroom, and that there is an online component to back up what the teachers are doing. Teachers utilise Google Run into to connect with their students, and Zoom for professional person development. For assessments, she makes sure that they can notwithstanding collect practiced information, such as by doing MAP testing remotely.

To brand things simpler for families, Chambers started using Clever, a single sign on app, that works with 80 to 90 percent of the distance learning materials. "It'south a portal or hub for all of our apps so parents don't take to become searching all these different places for the apps that their kids are going to need," said Chambers. They asked the developers to add a characteristic to brand certain that all of the staff (including instructional coaches and admins) tin access it, not just students and teachers. The software too automatically populates the grade rosters. "Hopefully, it will make information technology a lot easier for teachers."

Even before COVID, Chambers was already working on adding more blended learning to the Compass Rose curriculum. The pandemic has challenged all the stakeholders—students, families, teachers, principals—to utilize online tools in new means for sharing information and building relationships.

Communication and Relationships

So much of the work that the Compass Rose leadership squad is doing in response to the pandemic is directed towards effective communication with students and their families, also as with staff.

"Every decision that we accept made thus far, we have prioritized tending to our flock—making certain that every stakeholder is deemed for," said Morrissey. "We are keeping in heed the needs of our staff as much every bit our students and their families."

As the leader of the job forcefulness, Burrow is "thinking exclusively about COVID." He joked that his temporary championship is "Senior Director of Pandemics." His job involves a lot of reading. "It feels like data goes out of engagement by the week, the solar day, the fourth dimension of day," said Couch.

Burrow'due south intense inquiry is reflected in the richness of the hub, which is the school'due south principal communication channel for COVID updates. There are links to external websites that the task force has constitute helpful in staying up to date most public health and regulations. The hub contains written information, including the reopening program, the in person learning programme, and the virtual learning plan.

The hub also hosts video resources. The team has turned each chapter of the plans into webinars using slides and voiceovers. In addition, Nancy Cruz, the Family Engagement Specialist, has made short videos, threescore–ninety seconds long, for sharing on social media. By offering information in unlike lengths and formats, "parents can go as deep or equally shallow as they desire to," said Couch.

For families who are accessing virtual learning from home, the hub contains links to Google Classroom. In addition, Chambers has made videos nearly how to access the virtual learning portals. The hub is designed for Compass Rose families, but the resources are applicable to families with students at other schools that utilize these platforms.

Shush has an important role in communications because she supports the principals, who in turn reach out to families. "Families want to experience continued with their child's schoolhouse leader," said Burke. "Fifty-fifty earlier I run across the instructor, I want to know that the person leading the campus is the correct person to atomic number 82 the school in the right direction." Since May, principals have been holding small group sessions and virtual java chats. "We want to make sure our families are able to access information and take a articulate understanding of the environment and the people with whom their kid will be interacting," said Burke.

The advice strategy also includes early bear upon points from teachers. "Nosotros want relationship-based learning from the very start, even earlier classes start," said Burke. Every student has an advisor or homeroom teacher who is their "person"—the indicate of contact that students and families can reach out to. "It's a human relationship of real trust." The leaders want families to be confident that in person and virtual learning will both be high quality and rubber; when families have questions about the details, sometimes they want to talk it through with someone they trust. Some of these calls from team members to families have lasted up to 45 minutes. Burke added that they want to "make sure that families know that safety and high quality learning are priorities."

Experiencing Compass Rose Public Schools in 2020–2021

Chambers is not just a network leader at Compass Rose—she's as well a parent. This is her son's 2d year of center schoolhouse. She and her husband feel comfortable with what the schoolhouse is doing to maintain loftier bookish standards, to minimize risk for people on campus, and to communicate how to employ educational technology. She knows that families want schools to be transparent about what'south going on, and to share data so the parents can brand plans.

Compass Rose Public Schools has been working since March to make the August 2022 school reopening a success. The network leaders faced the tough realities of educating students during a pandemic and embraced technology. They have worked hard to over-communicate with families and staff and be transparent about the challenges. "There's no perfect solution here. What they want to know is that we're not making off-the-gage decisions," said Morrissey. "The decisions we're making are with the mission and vision in listen. We accept care of all of our people. Nosotros tend to our flock."

Charter Moms Chats

Watch Paul Morrissey, Founder and CEO of Compass Rose Public Schools, and Dr. Chawanna Chambers, Senior Director of Curriculum and Cess, speak with Inga Cotton fiber on Charter Moms Chats on September 15, 2022 at four PM Central live on Facebook and YouTube.

Paul Morrissey is the Founder and CEO of Compass Rose Public Schools, where he has quietly built one of the strongest academic programs serving students in San Antonio. Compass Rose operates two schools—Compass Rose Legacy, a College Prep school focused on Entrepreneurship, and Compass Rose Ingenuity, a Higher Prep schoolhouse focused on Stem and Helmsmanship. Prior to founding Compass Rose, Paul completed a Fellowship with Building Fantabulous Schools, a national nonprofit dedicated to supporting leaders as they open great schools in areas of high demand across the land. He started his career as a instructor and school- network-level leader at BASIS.

Dr. Chawanna B. Chambers is a national award-winning and board-certified PK–20 career educator with teaching feel spanning master, secondary, and college didactics. She has taught K–12 English online, coordinated Title I after-schoolhouse tutoring programs, served as a reading intervention instructor, planned and facilitated informational programs, developed curriculum, supported teachers as an instructional coach, published educational research, and served in several other leadership capacities. In addition to being named New Teacher of the Year in 2009, the National Council for Teachers of English awarded her with i of its Early Career Educator awards, and she received the Principal'southward Award on her campus in 2010. Chawanna is a class of 2022 New Leaders Council San Antonio young man, member of the 2022 Leadership SAISD form, and contributor to Alamo City Moms.

Chawanna, known every bit Dr. Chae to many, thrives at the intersection of educational theory and exercise. Agreement students' experiences in school is integral to delivering what volition help create a lifetime of meaningful success and joy for each of them. Using research and relationships every bit the cornerstone of her work, she works to blueprint learning environments that encourage belonging and mastery for K–12 students. Currently, Chawanna serves as Senior Director of Curriculum & Assessment for Compass Rose Public Schools.

How Compass Rose Public Schools Is Reopening Schools in 2020–21

Planning at Compass Rose

Curriculum and Innovation

Communication and Relationships

Experiencing Compass Rose Public Schools in 2020–2021

Charter Moms Chats

Read More Most Compass Rose Public Schools

Read More than About Schools Reopening

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