Author: Matt Underwood

It’s that time of year again—when student work is taken down or covered and teachers must sign countless forms attesting that they will follow proper procedures.  Yes, it is standardized testing season. After spring break, students at ANCS and other public schools across Georgia will take the new Georgia Milestones tests (grades 3-8) or the…

Each year during the Georgia legislative session it seems there are one or two education-related bills proposed that attract lots of attention and controversy.  This year, HB 100 is one of those bills.  HB 100 is a proposed amendment to current state law which would move the date by which students would need to reach age…

One of the unique features of being a public charter school is that every few years you must justify your continued existence through a renewal process with the agency that authorizes your school.  The current ANCS charter contract with the Atlanta Public Schools and Georgia Department of Education runs through June 30, 2016, and right…

In the past week, there’s been a great deal of attention given to a proposal by Georgia Governor Nathan Deal to create what he is calling an “Opportunity School District”.  The central premise is that a limited number of schools who do not meet a performance bar set by the state may be subject to…

I recently got to be a part of a meeting of APS principals as they began to think about the structure of the local governance bodies that would be in place as the Atlanta Public Schools moves towards applying to become a “charter system”.  The principals were grappling with questions about what the size of…

Heading into the month of February we enter a period each year where we are both continuing the work of the current school year and at the same time preparing for the school year to come.  The clearest sign of this transition is the series of prospective family information sessions and the start of interviews for…

Odds are pretty good that you’ve heard that school meals have become a pretty charged topic nationally over the past few years as a result of changes to federal nutrition requirements and the political maneuvering of groups impacted by these changes.  In this context, over the past year at ANCS, we have been moving towards supporting our…

This year, when we’ve gathered as a full K-8 faculty and staff, a few educators have shared with everyone their answers to the question “Why do I teach?”.  Yesterday, I shared my answer with the faculty and staff, and here it is. Why do I teach? For me, much of it has to do with those…

With the last days of December upon us, it’s commonplace for many this time of year to begin thinking about resolutions for the new year.  Elementary and middle school-aged students are not among those typically thinking about breaking out of bad habits once January 1st rolls around.  Of course, the brains of most children and…

For my blog this week I’m posting an entry from our Director of Collaborative Learning and Partnerships, Elizabeth Hearn, about why collaboration among our teachers and staff in the form of “critical friends groups” is a key part of our learning together as educators: http://www.charterconfidential.com/creating-win-win-school/