| Abby Kelley Foster Charter Public School Scientia Libertas Est |
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| Address | |
| 10 New Bond Street Worcester, MA, 01606 United States |
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| Information | |
| School type | Charter |
| Superintendent | Kathleen Greenwood |
| Area trustee | Joseph Williams (chair) |
| Principal | Christopher Kursonis(High School) Amy Emma (Elementary) |
| Vice principal | Chris Girardi (Elementary) |
| Business Manager | Dianne Bonaventura |
| Chief custodian | Allan Ayotte John Corazzini |
| Grades | Kâ12 |
| Website | http://www.akfcs.org/ |
Abby Kelley Foster Charter Public School is a small K-12 school located at 10 New Bond St., Worcester, Massachusetts in old Norton Abrasives company buildings. The school was founded in 1998.
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The school's namesake is Abby Kelley Foster, a noted nineteenth century leader in abolitionist and women's rights movements who resided in Worcester.
On February 25, 2003, the Board of Education voted unanimously to renew the school's 5 year charter.
Abby Kelley Foster started with Grades K-5 in a factory building. The middle and high school programs came later and are located in adjacent buildings. There are 3 buildings in this campus. The Elementary (K-4), Middle (5-8) and High School (9-12) buildings. They are located next to Kendrick field which provided them with a great place to have field days, but in the year 2009 they transformed the old building next to it (including a parking lot) into a brand new playground and 2 fields. They also made a state of the art high school to go with it. They also transformed an old building into a full court gym in 2008.
Abby Kelley Foster focuses on reading, writing, math and music as key subjects for elementary students to be expanded upon in each grade level. The average student teacher ration is 22:1.[1]
The school also focuses on technology with curriculum beginning early with simple tasks progressing to the high school level with advanced topics on Microsoft Office, Adobe Photoshop and web design.
As of 2007, Abby Kelley Foster shows mixed results in MCAS testing. Grade 3 tests show that 35% of students were proficient in English Language Arts arts while 17% of students were proficient in math. In 2004, Abbey Kelley Foster students scored 37% in English Language Arts and in 2006 (the year of last available data), scored 32% in math. This compares to state averages of 39% and 40%, respectively.[2]
In grades 4â8, math results remain below the state average. The highest results come in grade 8 with 35% proficiency as compared to the state average of 45%. English Language Arts scores are higher, and in all but one case in grades 4â7 are above the state average. Grade 8 testing shows 82% proficiency. In science testing during grades 5 and 8, scores are 29% and 32% compared to the state averages of 41% and 35%, respectively.[2]
Grade 10 testing shows proficiency well below the state average at 43% for English Language Arts and 60% as compared to 71% and 69%, respectively.[2]
The MCAS STE test, which measures proficiency in biology, chemistry, introductory physics and technology/engineering was measured at Abby Kelley Foster in the 58% in biology and 37% in technology/engineering as compared to the state averages of 42% and 35%.[3] According the Massachusetts Department of Elementary & Secondary Education, both ninth and tenth graders take the test, which will become a graduation requirement in 2010.[3][4]
During the 2006-2007 school year, Abby Kelley Foster participated in the Advanced Placement Program by offering courses in the following areas: Biology, Government & Politics: U.S., and World History. They participated because several students were remarkable students and it was obvious that they weren't being challenged. Students who do well on the final test in these subjects may be eligible for college credits.[5]
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