By Amy Bounds
Camera Staff Writer

Boulder Valley's smallest middle school is about to get even smaller.

Sojourner Middle School, a 3-year-old experimental charter school with a hands-on learning approach, is having trouble attracting students for the fall.

Just four open-enrollment students, all incoming sixth-graders, signed up this year to take classes at the school next fall.

The school expects to have a total of about 35 students in grades six through eight in the fall — about the same number of students the school enrolled in its first year and about 20 fewer than this year.

"We will continue to function as a really small school," said Sojourner Principal Carrie Evans.

But the low enrollment raises questions about how long the school can continue.

The school's budget will be tight next year because state funding is based on enrollment. If the school doesn't have more students sign up through open enrollment next year, it might not have enough money to stay open.

Evans, whose goal is to get the school up to an enrollment of between 60 and 70 students, said the coming year is an opportunity for the school to "regroup and redefine the perfect clientele."

"We want students who are passionate about learning, curious and want to get their hands dirty as they learn," she said.

Eighth-grader Jon Warner said the hands-on learning philosophy prompted him to switch to Sojourner from a more traditional middle school this year.

"There aren't so many books," he said. "Here, grades aren't as critical. Nobody judges you by your grades. My academic skills have definitely gone up."

Chris King, Boulder Valley's assistant superintendent for secondary education, said Sojourner "is really true to the spirit of the charter school law because it experiments and breaks the mold."

Sojourner is competing with three popular charter schools that also depend on open enrollment to fill their classrooms. All three have long waiting lists and some of the highest statewide test scores in the district.

Two, Summit Middle School and the K-12 Peak to Peak, offer a back-to-basics curriculum and tend to appeal to students looking for accelerated learning. The third, Horizons Alternative, is a K-8 with a program that's more nontraditional but still attracts students looking for a challenge.

Sojourner has the lowest middle school test scores in the district.

On the state tests, Sojourner last year averaged 29 percent proficient in reading, 8 percent proficient in writing and 15 proficient in math. The district middle school average was 75 percent in reading, 55 percent in writing and 50 percent in math.

But Sojourner also is the only one out of the four charters with a specific focus on diversity. The state's Education Commissioner took into account the school's diverse population and decided not to rate the school on the report cards that came out earlier this year.

About 70 percent of Sojourner's students are minorities, compared to an average of 15 percent minority at the other three charter schools. The district average is about 20 percent minority.

Also at Sojourner, about 42 percent of the students are learning English as a second language, about 68 percent are from low-income families and about 32 percent are receiving special education services.

Generally, the more second-language and low-income students a school has, the lower its test scores. The other three charter schools have very few or no second-language and low-income students.

"There is a contingent of kids who don't perform well on tests," Principal Evans said. "Those kids have a right to an education."

Sojourner's hands-on curriculum is designed to meet the needs of those students.

Instead of letter grades and core subjects such as reading and math, the school uses portfolios that are integrated into 10-week intensive courses based on current world issues.

Students for example, recently studied eco-tourism in Baja California, Mexico. The unit culminated in a trip to Baja and a student-produced documentary. Another course was on human rights.

Travel, community service, internships and activism are key parts of the Sojourner curriculum.

"After the first few weeks, it was a school where I really felt like part of the community," said eighth-grader Amani Thigpen.

Seventh-grader Shai Zamir said most Sojourner students "cannot sit through a class at a regular school."

Students said the highlight of the school year was the trips.

"We learn more," said eighth-grader Oscar Ponce. "We get to experience everything."

Contact Amy Bounds at boundsa@thedailycamera.com or (303) 473-1341.

May 27, 2002

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