Amistad Academy, New Haven

• Ranked #1 in CT for middle school Performance Gains
• Ranked #5 in CT for middle school African American Scores
• Ranked #7 in CT for middle school Low-Income Scores

Location: 407 James Street, New Haven, CT 06513
Principal: Matt Taylor
Phone: (203) 773-0390
Website

Basic Information

Type: Public Charter School
Size: 245 students
Grades: 5-8

African American: 62%
Hispanic: 35%
Low-Income: 73%

Performance

Of the 181 public middle schools in Connecticut with publicly reported CMT scores, Amistad had the largest gain (20.4 points) in the percentage of students within goal range between their 6th and 7th grade. Amistad also had the 5th highest percentage of African American students within goal range (60 percent) and 7th highest percentage of low-income students within goal range (63 percent) in the state.

Elements of Success

Amistad’s school culture is grounded in a results-oriented approach to the performance of students, teachers and school leaders. All students are evaluated every six weeks through “Interim Assessments” aligned to Connecticut’s state standards, with results guiding the pace of classroom teaching as well as individualized instruction plans for students falling behind. A longer school day allows extra instructional time in core subjects, as well as extensive professional development and collaborative work time for teachers targeted on improving instructional strategies for specific lessons, based on the Interim Assessment results. Both teachers and school leaders are evaluated on their ability to raise student achievement, with performance pay tied to results.

The school’s Encore! program provides daily expert instruction in music, theater, karate, dance, web design, and ten other offerings, including a string and rhythm orchestra that has won national acclaim.