The Challenge
In the mid-nineties, students in Hartford, Connecticut's urban community were in need of an academic boost. Reading scores were low and many felt that there was a lack of high-quality educational institutions for children to attend. In response to these challenges, Thelma Ellis Dickerson founded Jumoke Academy, a charter school. Her aim was to provide students with greater educational opportunities and, more importantly, close the achievement gap that existed between students from low-income families and their more affluent counterparts.

As students first began attending Jumoke Academy many of them "were coming into school three and four years behind other children and not gaining that ground," explained Dr. Michael Sharpe, the school's current chief executive officer. Part of Dickerson's goal was to establish a school that provided students with a high-caliber reading program beginning at an early age to bring them up to par with children across the state. To realize Dickerson's goals, school administrators implemented strong reading programs, appointed a committed faculty, developed vital extracurricular programs, and encouraged a strong sense of community. After many years of hard work and collaboration, the school has progressed in leaps and bounds, essentially closing the achievement gap, and placing number one in most categories of the ConnCAN report card, an assessment compiled by a Connecticut education advocacy group.

About Jumoke Academy
Founded in 1997, Jumoke Academy was opened under Connecticut's charter school law. The law is part of a larger federal arrangement allowing educators to establish small, experimental schools where they are free to develop their own curriculum and organizational structure. The program is supported by tax dollars, and charter schools are subject to periodic performance reviews. Presently 350 children attend Jumoke Academy. At its inception, the school offered classes for students in kindergarten through grade three, and over the past ten years has grown to include classes through the seventh grade with plans to add pre-K and eighth grade in the 2007–2008 school year. Parents must submit applications for their children to attend. Due to the high number of applicants, a lottery is held every March to determine acceptance, with priority for siblings of currently enrolled students.

"We had a lot of growing pains, but as we developed and learned about our students, their parents, and the community, our program evolved," explained Jumoke Academy's principal, Doreen Crawford. "We brought in the necessary resources to make our education effective. We added more staff and teachers, as needed." In each classroom, teachers are assisted by a paraprofessional, with class sizes averaging twenty-one students. Additionally, students spend more time in class. School days at Jumoke Academy run longer than most elementary and middle schools with instruction time from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and an extended day program from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m., although a host of afterschool and weekend programs occupy students for more of the day.

Jumoke Academy's student body comprises African West-Indian, African-American, and Hispanic students, with most hailing from Hartford. Eighty-nine to ninety percent of Jumoke Academy's population qualify for free or reduced lunch.

Step One: Provide a Strong Foundation
To raise students' performance and ability, Jumoke Academy's administrators felt that a strong academic foundation was critical. "When Thelma Dickerson started out, she really wanted to provide parents in this community with the kind of education that is so rigorous it enables their kids to compete with other kids no matter where they go," said Crawford. Thus, Jumoke Academy emphasizes programs that provide the necessary groundwork to be successful.

"We went through a lot in choosing the correct programs for reading, math, and science," explained Crawford. To fulfill Dickerson's goal of building a solid reading foundation for students, the school implemented Houghton Mifflin Reading for children in kindergarten through third grade with Reading First grant money. "Each year since the implementation, our reading scores have gone up dramatically," said Dr. Sharpe.

In addition, Jumoke Academy adopted the Responsive Classroom teaching method, giving students a framework in which they learn how to learn. Students have daily routines, clear rules and consequences, and are taught with a format that encourages an interest in learning. Responsive Classroom also promotes social interaction, and teaches children a set of social skills—cooperation, assertion, responsibility, empathy, and self-control—that are clearly defined. "It encourages kids to talk out their differences rather than fighting them out," said Crawford. "It teaches them to sit down to discuss their problems and to really problem solve. That's the focus of it. It has really helped bring our school community together."

As part of the daily routine, Jumoke Academy holds morning meetings for students to get them ready to learn. "Our students meet in the gym and they sing songs," said Crawford. "It gets them together and in the right frame of mind where they can drop any baggage they might have brought to school." In addition, the Responsive Classroom approach also emphasizes getting to know students and their families, and partnering with them to ensure academic progress.

Step Two: Cultivate a Committed Staff
To make strides in learning, Jumoke Academy administrators believe that dedicated teachers are essential. From the time teachers sign on to teach at the school, they are aware of the expectation to provide children with instruction that goes above and beyond what may be required at a regular public school. "When we interview teachers, we tell them what our mission is," said Dr. Sharpe. "We're looking for buy-in. We tell them how we've got a group of kids who need that extra push towards excellence and need people who are going to stay after with them to do extra projects. We need partners to help build our school, so we get good teachers who are excited about doing that kind of work, which promotes their longevity."

In addition, the administration fosters continual professional development. Administrators regularly visit classes and maintain a dialogue with instructors to discuss classroom methods. Teachers are also encouraged to share effective techniques with their colleagues. "The professional learning community we created at Jumoke also helps to enrich our instruction in the classroom," said Crawford. "Teachers are very comfortable going into other classrooms, observing their peers teaching, and taking best practices back to their own classrooms."

Overall, teachers play a big part in shaping the direction of the instruction. "Teachers are very happy at Jumoke," explained Crawford. "They like the autonomy they have. They are part of the decision-making process, and they get to explore a lot of different strategies and methods they otherwise wouldn't get to in a regular public school."

Step Three: Provide Engaging Extracurricular Programs
Jumoke Academy offers a rich assortment of extracurricular activities to help students with their schoolwork and to build skills in a fun environment. Four main programs serve a majority of the school: an extended-day program provides daily afterschool tutoring for an hour after regular instruction; an enrichment program offers instrument lessons and clubs like debate and basketball; the Saturday Academy provides extra instruction in reading, math, and writing for six Saturdays in the fall and winter; and a summer camp combines fun activities with academics. These programs are highly successful at engaging students and increasing their academic achievements. In fact, the programs were so successful that administrators had to increase admittance to meet demand.

"We started these programs by assessing and identifying needs, and the kids who didn't get selected would go absolutely bananas because they wanted to go to Saturday Academy," said Dr. Sharpe. "In most of these programs, we're capturing approximately half of our students, maybe more. By the end of the year, I would say about 80 percent of our kids participate in at least one of one of the programs."

Despite the longer than average school day, students are excited to be a part of these extracurricular activities. "Interestingly, people have asked how kids respond to having a much longer day, and one of the biggest complaints I have from parents is that their kids don't want to leave. They really enjoy those extra programs," said Dr. Sharpe.

Step Four: Develop a Strong Sense of Community
Jumoke Academy prides itself on its school community. Along with instituting the Responsive Classroom teaching method, administrators have taken other specific steps to build an inclusive atmosphere. Parent participation is strongly encouraged and students are required to wear school uniforms, a practice that aims to put students on equal footing with each other.

"We began a lot of activities to draw parents into involvement with their kids, because in many urban communities there is a lack of parent participation," said Dr. Sharpe. Family literacy nights are offered throughout the school year on Friday evenings, where families are invited to a potluck dinner and given reading activities that students can do with their parents. In addition, the school established a special partnership with the Hartt School of Music, a local performing arts school, which fosters parent-child interaction. Children have the opportunity to learn instruments like the violin, viola, cello, and piano, with their parents attending the lessons. The program culminates in a musical performance that is open to the community. "It is a nice initiative to bring the parents, kids, and community together."

School uniforms are an additional way for students to feel like part of the greater school community. Children are required to wear them, and Jumoke Academy provides uniforms for any students who cannot afford to buy their own. "The uniforms help bring kids together, taking their minds off the physical and focusing them on learning," explained Crawford.

Dr. Sharpe has noticed that clean school uniforms also give students added confidence. "A number of years ago, I was talking to a kid who had a behavior problem," he said. "And as I'm talking to him, I noticed his white shirt was very, very dirty. You could tell it hadn't been washed in a while. So I brought him to the student store and gave him a shirt. He put it on and tucked it in, and as I watched him walk down the hall, I saw that his chest was out and his head was up. He didn't come to me that way. I realized then that we were missing something really basic here." Consequently, Jumoke Academy was equipped with a washing machine and dryer to ensure students have access to clean uniforms. The added attention to fundamental needs, which may not be met at home, has helped the students make progress emotionally as well as academically. "That little, simple thing has made a huge difference for just a small population of the school," explained Dr. Sharpe. "Oftentimes you'll find that it's a very small population that causes the majority of problems in the school."

Conclusion
"Last year we pretty much closed the math and reading achievement gap in the state of Connecticut between urban minority children and suburban, white children," Dr. Sharpe reported. "We are now considered one of the higher-achieving charter schools in Connecticut and in a public report that was issued this year, we were rated as one of the top ten elementary schools in the state." Currently, the school has a 92 percent retention rate for graduating sixth-graders who enrolled in Jumoke Academy in kindergarten. In addition, Dr. Sharpe is currently working on partnering with local private schools to offer scholarships for graduating students so that they can continue to receive a high-caliber education once they have completed their studies at Jumoke Academy.

The key to creating a successful learning environment at Jumoke Academy was to concentrate on the students and meet their needs on a personal level. Jumoke is Nigerian for "the beloved one," a name that highlights the school's focus on its students. "It's really important to have a school that is a manageable size where everyone knows the students and the students feel very special," said Dr. Sharpe. "Our kids have a real strong sense of pride when they're moving through the school. I think that comes from our committed and caring staff. Having a school where there are activities that move between the teachers, family, and kids is invaluable in establishing a culture where everyone feels part of a larger community."

Recently, Jumoke Academy's charter was approved for another five years, the maximum number of years a charter school in Connecticut can be renewed for. Of the original twenty charter schools in Connecticut—Jumoke Academy is one of them—nine still exist; there are fourteen all together.

Going forward, Dr. Sharpe wants to see Jumoke Academy's students succeed for their merit, rather than be judged for the socioeconomic roadblocks that may have challenged them. "Our real ambition is that when you put our scores on a sheet of paper with those from other schools, you will not be able to tell that we're an urban school with 100 percent of minority students. All you'll be able to see is that this is one of the highest-performing schools in Connecticut."