THE STATE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT / THE UNIVERSITY OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK / ALBANY, NY 12234 Office of P-12

Ira Schwartz, Assistant Commissioner Office of Accountability 55 Hanson Place, Room 400 Brooklyn, New York 11217 Tel: (718) 722-2796 / Fax: (718) 722-4559

July 15, 2013 Dr. Pamela Brown, Superintendent Buffalo Public Schools 419 City Hall Buffalo, New York 12303 Dear Dr. Brown: I am writing in response to the submission by the Buffalo Public Schools (BPS) on June 28, 2013 of a Corrective Action Plan (CAP) to comply with Public School Choice (PSC) requirements pursuant to Commissioner's Regulations, Section 120.3, as required by my letter to you of May 29, 2013. After reviewing your submission, State Education Department (SED or the Department) staff has determined that the CAP lacks sufficient detail in terms of goals, progress targets, activities, timelines, documentation, and measurement strategies for the Department to conclude that the BPS plan, if fully and effectively implemented, will bring the district into compliance with Commissioners Regulations within a specified time period. You are therefore directed to address the following deficiencies in your plan and submit an amended CAP no later than Friday, August 9, 2013. Your amended plan must include the following: 1. Explain and document the districts strategy for informing parents and the school community about the PSC opportunities that will be made available for students in each Priority and Focus School. Specify how the district will empower parents to make informed choices for their children. Your response should include: An overview of the districts PSC program and how it has been communicated to parents, students, and the school community. A copy of the PSC application that parents must submit to request school choice. Samples of all correspondence that has been shared with students, parents, and the community as well as an explanation regarding any other means by which the district has provided information to parents and students regarding PSC. Written information provided to parents, students, and the school community on how seats in schools that have entrance examinations or other admission criteria will be made available as PSC options consistent with section 120.3 of Commissioner's Regulations. Written information provided to parents, students, and the school community on the programs offered at Schools In Good Standing.

2. Provide a detailed explanation regarding how placements will be made. This information should include how students will be prioritized and how the district will provide choice as seats become available in Good Standing Schools after the initial transfer offers are made. Explain the specific procedures that will be used to prioritize choice requests:

a. Explain how the district defines lowest achieving students. For example, is the district using State assessments to define low achievement? If so, how specifically are the assessments used to define low achievement? How is low achievement being defined in grades in which State assessments are not administered? b. Explain how admission selection criteria at schools interact with the lowest achieving criteria. For example, does this mean that the lowest achieving students who meet the selection criteria of a school will be given choice before all other students? I remind you that among PSC-eligible students who meet a school's entrance criteria (see 120.3(a) of Commissioner's Regulations) priority must be given based on" low achievement/low income." (See ESEA Section 1116(b)(1)(E)(ii) regarding priority to lowest achieving children from low-income families as well as C-4 of non-regulatory guidance issued by the United States Department of Education on January 14, 2009.) 3. Explain in detail how the district will increase the number of seats available in schools in Good Standing. For example, only four schools in Good Standing, according to your submission, do not have admission criteria. At the high school level, there are no schools listed as options that do not have admission criteria. Your plan must include short-term (2012-13 school year), mid-term (2013-14 school year), and long-term strategies (2014-15 school year and beyond) for increasing choice options. Provide information on any efforts you have made to enter into agreements with, BOCES, other school districts, and charters to increase PSC options. 4. Given this, provide the districts proposed timeline for coming into full compliance with Commissioners Regulations, the annual progress targets that the district proposes to use to measure whether it is on track to full compliance, the specific metrics that will be used to assess achievement of the progress targets, and how these metrics will be reported. 5. Complete the attached tables regarding the results of the July PSC process. 6. Provide documentation that the district has revised its parent choice letter so that instead of stating that Once all Public School Choice Transfer Applications are received by July 31, 2013, they will be prioritized in order of greatest academic need the letter states that In the instance where the requests for transfer exceed available seating the district will prioritize all requests in order of the lowest achieving children from low-income families. 7. Provide documentation that the PSC parent notification letter provides information on the academic status of the schools In Good Standing and the programs they offer. This extension is being provided to allow you to make revisions to your CAP and does not mean that SED has approved your initial response in whole or in part. Your revised CAP will be reviewed in its entirety upon its resubmission, which is due by COB Friday, August 9, 2013 and should be submitted electronically to rreyes@mail.nysed.gov. Should you have any questions and/or need for additional information, please do not hesitate to contact Roberto Reyes, Director of the Office of Title I School and Community Services.

We look forward to working with you to implement your plan to increase PSC in the Buffalo Public Schools. Sincerely,

Ira Schwartz cc: Barbara Nevergold Judy Elliott John B. King, Jr. Ken Slentz Roberto Reyes

Table 1: PSC for All Students

NameofSchoolIn GoodStanding HillaryPark Elementary FrederickLaw Olmstead#064 GradesPK4 DiscoverySchool LorraineElementary School#81 *FrederickLaw Olmstead#156 Grades58 *FrederickLaw Olmstead#156 Grades912 *CityHonorsSchool atFosdickMasten Park#195Grades 58 *CityHonorsSchool atFosdickMasten Park#195Grades 912 *LeonardoDaVinci HighSchool *EmersonSchoolof Hospitality HutchinsonCentral TechnicalHigh School *HutchinsonCentral TechnicalHigh School TotalNumberof StudentsEnrolled inSchool TotalNumberof TransferRequests Received TotalNumberof StudentsOffered PSC TotalNumber ofStudents Transferred

*Denotes required entrance criteria.

Table 2: PSC for Students with Disabilities

NameofSchoolIn GoodStanding HillaryPark Elementary FrederickLaw Olmstead#064 GradesPK4 DiscoverySchool LorraineElementary School#81 *FrederickLaw Olmstead#156 Grades58 *FrederickLaw Olmstead#156 Grades912 *CityHonorsSchool atFosdickMasten Park#195Grades 58 *CityHonorsSchool atFosdickMasten Park#195Grades 912 *LeonardoDaVinci HighSchool *EmersonSchoolof Hospitality HutchinsonCentral TechnicalHigh School *HutchinsonCentral TechnicalHigh School TotalNumberof StudentsEnrolled inSchool TotalNumberof TransferRequests Received TotalNumberof StudentsOffered PSC TotalNumber ofStudents Transferred

*Denotes required entrance criteria.

Table 3 PSC for English language learners

NameofSchoolIn GoodStanding HillaryPark Elementary FrederickLaw Olmstead#064 GradesPK4 DiscoverySchool LorraineElementary School#81 *FrederickLaw Olmstead#156 Grades58 *FrederickLaw Olmstead#156 Grades912 *CityHonorsSchool atFosdickMasten Park#195Grades 58 *CityHonorsSchool atFosdickMasten Park#195Grades 912 *LeonardoDaVinci HighSchool *EmersonSchoolof Hospitality HutchinsonCentral TechnicalHigh School *HutchinsonCentral TechnicalHigh School TotalNumberof StudentsEnrolled inSchool TotalNumberof TransferRequests Received TotalNumberof StudentsOffered PSC TotalNumber ofStudents Transferred

*Denotes required entrance criteria.