The following study is based on Promising Results and Lessons from the First Boston District School Converting to Pilot Status, Center for Collaborative Education, forthcoming. 

   In June 2000, the superintendent of the Boston Public Schools (BPS) appointed a new principal to take over Boston High School.  The school was overcrowded and among the lowest performing high schools in the district.  The new principal immediately changed the focus of the school from a work-study school with two shifts of students per day to a single full-day schedule college preparatory high school, with the goal of improving student performance.

   In June 2002 the staff voted overwhelmingly to convert to Pilot status and to rename the school Boston Community Leadership Academy (BCLA).  Boston High enrolled 650 students when the new principal was appointed.  The enrollment for BCLA was intentionally reduced to a small school size of 400 students, through graduation, attrition, and smaller incoming classes. 

   From 2000 to 2004 (2004 is the last year for which data is available ), attendance increased, suspensions were stable, and transfers out decreased (Table 3). 

Table 1: Student Attendance, Suspension, and Transfer Rates

   At the same time, pass rates increased for both the English Language Arts (ELA) and Mathematics portions of the statewide MCAS exams. By 2004, more than 80% of students passed the ELA and Math exams.

Graph 1: Passing Rates on the MCAS in English Language Arts

Graph 2: Passing Rates on the MCAS in Mathematics

Changes in School Mission
   BCLA’s new mission statement was created collaboratively by the school design team (a group of faculty, administrators, families, community members, and/or students who submitted the Pilot design proposal) and the staff: 

Boston Community Leadership Academy’s mission is to develop the capacity for leadership in all students empowering them to make a positive contribution to their communities.  BCLA’s rigorous curriculum prepares students to succeed in college, to lead fulfilled lives, and to participate in our diverse and complex democracy. 

Our vision is to make every student, when they leave us here, not [only go] to college, [but] to get them through college.                                                                       -Principal

I like the [idea] of this school being a college prep [school]...We have a lot more discussions in the classroom, and the teachers are involving every student.  So, it’s just growing every year, I think, into something good.    
-Student

Changes in Staff Numbers
   In its first year of operation in 2002-03, and because of the adoption of Pilot status, BCLA had 24 new staff members out of 64, or 37.5% new staff, contributing to a renewal of the school’s professional culture:

With the new teachers, they have created an atmosphere of better expectations.    -Teacher

   In addition, due to staffing autonomy and greater budget flexibility, there was a focus on decreasing class size: the first year of Pilot status the average class size dropped from 28 to 22 students.

[Before Pilot status,] I had a class that had 28 and there was no way that we could deliver the instruction you wanted to when you have 28 kids in the math class.  So we opened another section and asked someone else to pick it up.  And you can do all this when…you're small and you have that flexibility.                                                           -Principal

Table 2.  Enrollment and Staffing Changes Due to Pilot Status

   A higher proportion of BCLA’s staff is now engaged in student support work compared to Boston High.  Not only is the support staff now larger, other school staff have taken on increased support roles through advisory. 

Changes in Leadership Roles and School Governance
   Prior to Pilot conversion, Boston High administrators practiced a traditional governance structure: the principal made most decisions, and teachers were given little opportunity for input.  Starting with the design team’s work toward Pilot status in 2001-02, decision-making at the school began to involve teachers, students, and families.
   New structures include collaborative decision-making bodies, or teams, designed to provide opportunities for staff, students, families, and community members to have a voice in decisions. The school’s governing board, leadership team, and curriculum team now make decisions collaboratively.  The governing board is responsible for budget and policy decisions, principal evaluation, and community and business partnerships.  The leadership team is organized to represent each small learning community and academic area, and focuses on teaching and learning matters.  The curriculum team works with the director of curriculum and instruction to ensure alignment of their goals, projects, and timelines across content areas. 

Changes in Use of Teacher and Student Time
   In the principal’s first year at Boston High, the average length of the school day was 374 minutes, and the time spent on core academic instruction per day was 222 minutes.  Currently, the average length of the school day is 398 minutes and students spend an average of 263 minutes per day on core academic instruction.  BCLA students are in school and engaged in academics more than they were in Boston High.  The teachers’ school year differs from the district contract by an additional 27 hours.
    Class periods have lengthened from 58 minutes to 109 minutes, with some 53-minute classes.  Once a week, students are released after a half-day so that teachers have more time to meet and discuss their work among colleagues. 

Teacher 6:  I think what is really happening in terms of teaching is just this opening up and sharing practices.  I mean, now it’s much more reflective. 

Changes in Curriculum and Assessment
   The curriculum at BCLA is now driven by its mission to prepare students to succeed in college.  Academic courses are sequenced to provide students with college prerequisites, including four years of math.  Remedial classes are no longer offered, and physics and five AP classes were added to the curriculum. While time for electives has decreased significantly since 2000 in order to create more time for core academics, the number of electives and interest among students has increased.  Advisories now provide one means of improving relationships and school culture.  Each student is assigned an advisor for two years; the curriculum includes activities for getting to know each other, study and life skills, college preparation, and community service. 

I like the curriculum because … we have … changed it to make it more rigorous.  We went to the national standard of curriculum, which is better [than Boston’s].   --Teacher 2

Table 3: Summary of Changes Due to Autonomy

Challenges of Converting to Pilot Status
Despite the gains, the school still faces challenges as it continues on its journey to becoming a high-performing high school:

• Student dissatisfaction with longer school days
• Addressing access and equity with the introduction of more advanced course offerings
• Changing the school schedule and developing an acceptable work election agreement
• Developing a shared definition and understanding of new teams’ responsibilities