FRIENDS OF PHILIPS NEWARK INC
This organization has already been registered
Someone in your organization has already registered and setup an account. would you like to join their team?Profile owner : c*******a@p*******d.o*g
Mission Statement
Philip's Education Partners (PEP) works to provide urban youth with the tools to lead healthy productive lives, and accomplishes this by supporting Philip's Academy Charter School. PEP shares its resources and facilities to create innovative programming, such as EcoSPACES, for low-income students from Newark and surrounding New Jersey communities.
About This Cause
Mission PEP’s mission is to support the education of urban youth and to provide resources to schools and programs dedicated to helping urban youth to develop the intellectual competence and values necessary to live productive lives filled with options and choice. History In the early 1980’s, a philanthropist offered to provide full scholarships to St. Paul’s School in Concord, New Hampshire for two Newark students. Sadly, none could be found to meet the school’s rigorous standards. Determined not to let such an educational opportunity pass Newark children again, Dean Dillard Robinson and members of his congregation at Trinity & St. Philip’s Episcopal Cathedral founded St. Philip’s Academy in 1988. They sought to establish a singular institution that would provide students with the academic skills necessary to thrive at independent secondary schools across the nation, thereby preparing them for a lifetime of personal achievement. St. Philip’s first opened its doors to 10 first-grade children in a house that had been donated by the cathedral in the heart of downtown Newark. By 1996, we had outgrown our first building—having expanded to 140 students—and relocated to a former insurance company building. In 2007, St. Philip’s enrollment had grown to more than 320 students in grades K-8, requiring much more space for classrooms, labs, individualized instruction, whole school community meetings, and play areas both indoor and outdoor. We tripled our space by remodeling a former chocolate factory at 342 Central Avenue, designed to meet LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Silver certification. To address issues of childhood obesity and promote wellness in our community, we developed our own unique program dedicated to sustainability and healthy living, called EcoSPACES. The program features a 4,600 square-foot rooftop garden, teaching kitchen, fiber arts studio, indoor farming lab and a healthy lunch program which promotes a seed-to-table lifestyle. As featured on CNN, ABC, and CBS, EcoSPACES has been called a profound model for 21st Century Education that prepares children for the world they will inherit. In the fall of 2013, St. Philip’s Academy made history when it became the first independent school in New Jersey to convert to a Charter School under a new state law. Converting from St. Philip’s Academy to Philip’s Academy Charter School has enabled our organization to extend its successful educational model to more students. Our challenge is to continually “raise the bar” to provide our students with the best educational experience. Leadership qualities and a sense of community responsibility are developed in small classes and taught by caring and innovative teachers. Through the conversion process, we have created two entities, Philip’s Academy and Philip’s Education Partners (PEP), formerly St. Philip’s Academy. Population Served Located in Newark’s Central Ward, Philip’s Academy serves primarily African-American students (92%) and Hispanic students (8%). The students come from disadvantaged communities, primarily Newark, East Orange, and Irvington, in which more than 45% of children under age 18 fall below the federal poverty line – about $22,050 for a family of four. For the 2014-15 school year, the students from disadvantaged communities comprise more than 75% of the total enrollment. Many of the children and families exist in chaotic and stressful worlds where making ends meet is the daily priority, and the school community provides a place where students and their families feel safe, supported, nurtured and encouraged to achieve their goals. Programs Philip’s Academy Philip’s Academy offers students a broad-based curriculum that develops the academic skills needed to succeed beyond 8th grade. Courses include Mathematics, Social Studies and Language Arts; laboratory and garden centered environmental science, World Languages, as well as honors courses in Ethics, World Religions, Robotics and Middle School Journalism. Our 21st Century Learning and Media Centers enable Philip’s Academy students to incorporate technology into all disciplines, while art, music, intramural and distinguished speaker programs help develop the students’ love of learning. Philip’s Academy continues to be a model school, offering different educational experiences that address the larger world around us. i2 Camp This summer, we had the unique opportunity to be the only New Jersey location to offer an innovative STEM camp for middle school students developed by i2 Camp, which was developed with the goal of engaging middle school children in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). In partnership with some of the world’s leading STEM organizations, the camp broadens a child’s exposure to STEM with a wide variety of new, innovative courses not seen in traditional middle school education. The fun, intimate, hands-on activities strive to excite and inspire campers about STEM, creating enthusiasm that will improve their schoolwork and broaden their choices in future years. In our first summer, we hosted 54 students from Newark and surrounding areas to participate in courses including Surgical Techniques, Robotics, Ancient Sharks & Modern Science and Prosthetic Devices. We are planning to expand this program to serve more students next summer and beyond. Goals PEP’s Goals & Objectives for 2014-15 include: • Developing our 5-year strategic plan and financial sustainability model, • Continuing to build an innovative technology infrastructure to support our growth • Completing plans for Pre-K3 and Pre-K4 pilot programs in Newark, and • Extending the impact of our high quality extended day and STEM summer programs to a larger group of children. Some of the academic objectives for Philip’s Academy include: • 80% of students beginning in third grade will score as proficient or advanced proficient as determined by PARCC. • 80% of students will score satisfactory or above on internal assessments, including grade level exit exams. • 90% of students will matriculate to high quality secondary schools. • 60% of students will place in advanced classes in their secondary schools. • 90% of students will matriculate to post-secondary educational institutions (two and four year colleges and universities or professional training programs). Key Achievements Demand for Philip’s Academy There is significant demand for seats within Philip’s Academy from families living in Newark, Irvington and East Orange. Unfortunately, we do not have the physical space to serve these families. We learned from participation in Round 1 of One Newark’s Universal Enrollment process that Philip’s Academy had the highest demand per available seat as a first choice school of all charter schools in Newark, though it was the first year as a charter school. 414 families selected Philip’s Academy as a first choice school for their children in the Universal Enrollment Round 1. However, there was only space to offer 42 seats for new kindergarten students. Thus, only 10% of the families who chose us as their first choice school could enroll. According to The Star Ledger (May 29, 2014), Philip’s Academy was the 3rd most popular charter school, behind TEAM Schools (KIPP) and Northstar (Uncommon). However, the 10% rate of available seats per first choice applicant made Philip’s Academy the hardest school in which to gain entry, and there are currently 1,200 students on the waitlist. EcoSPACES Each year, our EcoSPACES program continues to evolve and grow to have a greater impact on the students and community. This year with the addition of a Food Corp Service Member, we created a more expansive food education program. We looked at curricular benchmarks and standards, and were able to successfully align garden activities with the common core standards. For example, the 4th graders incorporated the garden into a lesson on area and parameter where they measured different beds and determined how many plants could be planted in each bed. Student engagement, excitement, and participation increased, resulting in student initiated projects such as a greenhouse, composting and a weekly farm stand for families. We were able to document curriculum and garden activities to enable our teachers to continue utilizing the garden in future years. Although we worked to provide opportunities for involvement from members of our larger neighboring community in events, projects, and workshops, we did not experience the growth in participation we would have liked to have seen. We plan to introduce more opportunities for collaboration and partnerships to build stronger partnerships with our community members and community organizations moving forward. PBS Student Reporting Labs This year, middle schools students of Philip’s Academy had the opportunity to participate in a PBS Student Reporting Labs class lead by teacher, Sara Mosle, a writer and editor for the NY Times. The program was created by PBS to connect students with a network of public broadcasting mentors. The program featured an innovative journalism curriculum and an online collaborative space to develop digital media. The students refined their critical thinking and communication skills while producing original news reports. 8th grader, Sophie Sabin, was one of just 5 students nationwide to be selected as a 2014 PBS "All-Star." As a PBS “All-Star” Sophie had the opportunity to attend a PBS workshop this summer in Washington, D.C., where she toured the White House, interviewed Col. Steve Parker of the U.S. Army and met PBS NewsHour anchor Gwen Ifill. As a result of this experience, Sophia has said, "If I can do this at 14, who knows what I can do when I grow older?" Sophie is currently a freshman at Montclair Kimberley Academy.