Milwaukee College Prep: Lindsay Heights Campus Opens
At a time when urban education in Milwaukee is in crisis, Milwaukee College Prep has been given an opportunity to play a lead role in providing a solution.
We are enormously proud of our current MCP scholars as well as our alumni who represent us so well at their high schools and universities. Yet, as proud as we are of our MCP graduates, the future of thousands of Milwaukee’s at-risk children is more desperate than ever.
As Milwaukee College Prep began seriously entertaining thoughts of possible expansion, the Academy of Learning and Leadership (A.L.L.) was closed and more than 400 four to fourteen year olds were left with no school this fall. Their options were limited at best.
Sitting vacant was a beautiful school in the nearby Lindsay Heights neighborhood on 15th and Center; within the zip code identified as needing the most “seats” in high performing schools (8,166). Quickly, MCP got to work to re-open what now will be Milwaukee College Prep: Lindsay Heights Campus.
Many pieces had to come together to make this happen. First, we needed a charter through UWM our current authorizer, which, on August 20th, was unanimously approved by UW’s Board of Regents. Next, we needed to come to agreeable terms with the current debt-holders on the building, and after weeks of negotiations an incredibly complex lease agreement was finalized. Third, we needed to hire and train enthusiastic and qualified staff, who were in place to welcome students on August 31. Finally, and most importantly, we needed students. On August 1, when MCP decided to move ahead with the second campus, enrollment was 0. On August 31, the first day of school at the Lindsay Heights Campus, enrollment was 425 (surpassing our expectations by over 100 students). At the same time, the philanthropic community has begun to step forward. Leading the way is The Bradley Foundation with a generous gift to help us get started.
Milwaukee College Prep wouldn’t be in this position if not for the generosity and vision of many. With much gratitude and confidence, we are excited to do the right thing for these students and our community.
Ms. Easley and Mr. Rauh
Leaders of the Lindsay Heights Campus
May 2010
Kudos From Teach for America Founder
Today, there are dozens of communities with at least one and in many cases growing numbers of schools that are putting whole buildings of kids on track to graduating from college at a pace similar to that of children in much more privileged communities. Here in Milwaukee, Milwaukee College Prep is a public charter school serving 480 students, 99% of whom are African-American and more than 80% of whom receive free and reduced priced lunch. Milwaukee College Prep has reversed the achievement gap, scoring above suburban averages on statewide tests. Just as is the case in Kalyn’s experience, what is clear about the success of Milwaukee College Prep and the growing numbers of high-performing schools in low-income communities is that what accounts for its success isn’t elusive. As Linnaea Thomas, a Teach For America alumna who is Milwaukee College Prep’s elementary dean, told me, “In a lot of ways it’s not as complicated as I thought it would be.” The school has a dedicated, driven leader and staff members who believe in kids, it provides students a rigorous curriculum at the grade level above where they are supposed to be. It provides lots of extra support, with extra teachers in classrooms to help meet students’ extra needs and an extended school day. Just as is the case in any high-performing institution, there is a strong focus on building a strong culture around clearly defined values.
A few weeks ago, the researchers who analyzed Milwaukee’s performance on the most recent National Assessment of Educational Progress shared publicly that they couldn’t tell from the test results that the eighth graders had been in school. In the face of what Milwaukee College Prep shows is possible, this is unconscionable. Milwaukee College Prep shows us that it doesn’t have to be this way.
Wendy Kopp, Founder of Teach For America MU Commencement Speech May 23,2010
May 2010
Awesome Test Results
This chart represents the combined percent of 3rd-8th graders scoring Advanced or Proficient on the 2009 WKCE Tests.
March 2010
Super Stars
The Milwaukee College Prep School Student Government students spoke at the Wisconsin Charter School Association conference in Madison, WI on March 22, 2010. With assistance from Linnaea Thomas and Maggie Broeren, our scholars presented and spoke to educators from all around the state about their personal mission statements and how important they are to the success of our student body.
November 2009
Past Year in Review
Simply stated, Milwaukee College Prep had a stellar 2008–09 school year. Highlights include:
being named the Wisconsin Charter School of the Year;
becoming Wisconsin’s first state School of Character;
then being awarded the prestigious distinction of being named one of 10 National Schools of Character; and
we were awarded the New WI Promise School of Recognition Award by the State Department of Public Instruction that goes to schools with a large percentage of students who receive free or reduced lunch and who have exemplary test results.
Other great results from 2008–09 year include:
95.5% attendance rate in 2008–09!
94.9% of the students enrolled on 9/1/08 returned for the 2009–10 school year!
The Class of 2009 earned over a 1/2 million dollars in high school scholarship funds and are now enrolled at schools such as St. John’s Northwestern Military Academy; Piney Woods School (MS); MUHS, Pius, Dominican, King and Riverside among others.
October 2009
New WI Promise School Award
Milwaukee College Prep has been awarded the New WI Promise School of Recognition Award by the State Department of Public Education! This award goes to schools that serve predominantly low income students with exemplary test results. This is the 3rd time we have received this award in the 6 years it has existed. There were only 13 schools in Milwaukee to receive the award this year and there are only two schools in Milwaukee (Garland Elementary and Spanish Immersion) that have received the award more than 3 times. We will receive the award and a plaque from State Superintendent Tony Evers in Madison, WI on October 20th.
September 2009
Northstar Navigators are Shining Examples
Meet the new North Star Navigators for this semester! These students will lead Peer Mediation and will serve as examples of excellence for students throughout the school. Congratulations to: Jordan Love, Jada Chambers-Washington, Marnissa Donald, Trenice Brown, AJ TenHove, Jalil Poe, Ashtyn Bellinger, Mahogany Billups, Brandon Jones, Xiomara Young, Alexis Lovelace, Jasmine McCollum, Kelvin Hampton, Germyah Heart, Kenya Hall, Ronnie Terry Jr., Sierra TenHove and Kayla Powell.
June 2009
National School of Character Award
Milwaukee College Prep School is the recipient of a National School of Character Award for their outstanding character development curriculum. The Character Education Partnership (CEP) in Washington DC has named 7 public schools, 1 charter school, 1 private school and 1 school district as the 2009 National Schools of Character. According to CEP, “the winning schools demonstrate that school transformation is possible through high-quality character education initiatives. Milwaukee College Prep School has closed the achievement gap and raised academic expectations for all students, built strong relationships and partnerships between parents, teachers, and students and given their students opportunities to serve their communities.” Feel free to enjoy this video about the culture and philosophy of our school.
Milwaukee College Prep has awesome results from the state WKCE tests. In a state with one of the largest racial achievement gaps in the entire country, our goal is to match or exceed the state averages on the WKCE tests. As seen in the results below, that goal has been achieved. The results shown are for the combined grades of 3rd through 8th.
March 2009
Wisconsin State School of Character Award – National Finalist
The first Wisconsin State School of Character has been named by Wisconsin Character Education Partnership(WCEP). Milwaukee College Preparatory School has been selected to receive this prestigious recognition. This award, sponsored by the WCEP in partnership with the Character Education Partnership (CEP) seeks to recognize schools or districts for their work in encouraging the ethical, social and academic growth of their students through effective character education. As a state winner, Milwaukee College Preparatory School was placed in consideration for the National School of Character award. WCEP is pleased to announce that Milwaukee College Preparatory School has been named a National Finalist; joining twenty-five schools and two school districts from a record 185 applicants across the United States. CEP will be conducting site visits to all National Finalists this spring. CEP’s Blue Ribbon Panel will then meet to select approximately 10 national winners in May. Wisconsin Character Education Partnership(WCEP) congratulates Milwaukee College Preparatory School for their outstanding work in character education.
January 2009
Super Stars
Congratulations to Jeremiah Johnson, Josiah Marsh and Tamisha Williams, 7th graders, who were nominated for the prestigious Jack Kent Cooke Young Scholars Program Talent Search.
The Compass Learning program takes our scholars to new heights of academic excellence. Over winter break, scholars spent over 465 hours on Compass Learning activities and completed just under 4000 hours of learning with an average of 84% correct! This is a great testament to the caliber of scholars who are passionate about thier success.
November 2008
Milwaukee College Prep Wins Charter School of the Year Award
Excellence in public charter school education across Wisconsin was highlighted and celebrated in Novemebr 2008 at the Turner Ballroom in Milwaukee. More than 300 individuals attended the Wisconsin Charter Schools Association (WCSA) First Annual Charter Schools Award Banquet.
Being selected the best charter school in the state by other charter schools from around the state is a wonderful tribute and a testimonial to all of the incredible dedication and hard work put in by our staff, scholars and families, and the great support we recieve from our donors and partners.
October 2008
Shining Scholars
The Elementary staff is excited to recognize our Shining Scholars.
Each week, teachers nominate students from their class who have shown excellence and who are shining examples for their peers. The Shining Scholars help teach the value word (TRUST)and proverb for the month at the morning assembly. Bravo to our Shining Scholar’s:
K5: Rylen Nash & Azaria Waheed
1st Grade: Kayla Townsend
2nd Grade: Joshua Johnson & Ethan Lee
3rd Grade: Eric Anderson & Trinity Riley
4th Grade: Marcellus Donald & Nicholas Chambliss
August Academy 2008
Super Scholars Can Take the Heat
Milwaukee College Prep held a Summer Enrichment session from August 11–22 (8 a.m. – 3 p.m.) for all new students to orient them to Milw College Prep, and for returning students to help alleviate the “brain drain” that takes place during summer and to add a little fun to the “dog days” of summer. The mornings are focused on academics and the afternoons on enrichment. Extended Day ($2.50/hr) is available until 5 p.m. (NOTE: K4 students with a last name that begins with a letter from A-M attend just for the 1st week of August Academy. K4 students with a last name that begins with a letter attend N-Z come just for the 2nd week of August Academy.)
June 2008
Trips of a Lifetime
Our middle school students are finishing the last week of their school year by participating in our “Trips of a Lifetime” program. These trips are designed to enhance the educational experiences of our urban students by creating opportunities for experiential learning and by opening students’ eyes to the vast, wonderful, human and physical diversity of America. During their tenure in our middle school, students experience everything from seeing Times Square and “The Lion King” in New York City; to visiting the Smithsonian Museums and the White House in D.C.; from rafting the Colorado River and hiking in Rocky Mountain National Park; to helping rehab homes and singing along to “When the Saints Go Marching In” at the historic Preservation Hall jazz club in New Orleans. In addition, students tour 2–3 colleges on each trip, seeing Ivy League institutions such as Harvard and Columbia, historically black universities such as Howard and Southern and touring the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.
April 2008
Super Stars
Two times per year (winter and spring) our scholars take a nationally standardized MAP test which our school uses to measure academic progress. The elementary grades have seen magnificent growth this year as demonstrated by the latest MAP test scores. Below is just 1 snapshot of how well the 4th graders did on the Math section of the test.
As seen in the chart, our 4th graders scored slightly above the national mean in the fall of 2007. Further, by the spring of 2008, the rate of academic growth of our 4th grade students not only surpassed the 4th grade national mean but nearly met the 5th grade national expectations.
March 2008
Super Stars
Congratulations to our 8th grade super stars as they receive their high school acceptance letters. Ahmed Hollowell has not only been accepted, but also has been offered full scholarships to Brookfield Academy, Phillips Exeter Academy, Hotchkiss School and Wayland Academy. Michael Franklin and Alonzo Williams have been accepted - with the opportunity to earn full scholarships- to the Piney Woods School in Mississippi. Also, Ta’Liyah Williams has been accepted to Brookfield Academy! Keep up the great work on the road to college and beyond.
February 2008
Ron Sadoff makes a difference…
Milwaukee College Prep Board President is recognized as a business leader in the Small Business Times because of his passion and commitment for our school. This special Small Business Times report examined how four local business executives are making a difference in the region’s nonprofit community.
Click here to read the full article.
Super Stars
Several Middle School scholars competed in a Black History Quiz Bowl at Marquette University. T. Bailey, D.Deloach, and J. McChristian took first place out of 30 teams. S. Allen, A. Blevins, and L. Colon took fourth place and A. Hollowell competed in the high school competition. Congratulations to a hard working group of young men!
January 2008
Super Stars
Several of our 3rd grade students were winners of First Stage Theater’s essay contest “The Watsons Go To Birmingham.” D. Wilburn and Z. Horton were first place winners and will have the opportunity to meet the play’s author and read their essays during a public performance of the play. Go scholars, go!
November 2007
10th Birthday Celebration
With over 300 guests, we celebrated our 10th birthday at Brynwood Country Club on Friday, Nov. 16. Kevin Johnson, former all-pro guard with the Phoenix Suns who now runs several charter schools in Sacramento, was the guest speaker.
In 10 years, Milwaukee College Prep has grown from 76 students to 480; from leasing 4 classrooms to owning 30; from 5 staff to more than 50; from scouring to fill seats to extensive waiting lists; from a vision of what could be to a model for others to emulate…
Our goal was to raise $50,000, but we were blessed with very generous donors who were inspired by our student performances and success of the school and we doubled our goal! We raised more than $125,000 for our College Scholarship Fund.
Thank you to everyone who helps us meet the mission of an unrelenting focus on academic excellence and character development.
In honor of our 10th birthday Alan Borsuk, Journal Sentinel Education Reporter, has highlighted our school’s accomplishments and student achievements.
Milw. College Prep Math Teacher Wins National Award
If math isn’t your strong point, you didn’t have a teacher like Edward Richerson. He is the newest recipient of the “No Child Left Behind” American Star of Teaching Award.
Milwaukee College Prep School is recipient of 2 prestigious awards in 2007
Gov. New Promise Award — The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction announced in September that Milw College Prep is a 2007 recipient of the New Wisconsin School of Promise Award. To be recognized, schools must be among the highest-poverty schools in the state and have outstanding results in reading and mathematics, based on statewide assessments.
Promising Practice Award — In June 2007, Milw College Prep was one of only 6 schools in the state to receive a Promising Practice Award in Character Education from First Lady Jessica Doyle.
Knowledge plus character pave the road to college and beyond.
