About Us

Our Mission and Three Pillars

The mission of Boston Collegiate Charter School is to prepare each student for college. We offer an academically rigorous college preparatory curriculum to ensure that our students are prepared for college. Most of our graduates will be the first in their families to earn college degrees. The school's educational program is based upon Three Pillars:

1. We believe that creativity flourishes within a structured academic environment.
   Good work cannot occur unless there is a safe and orderly environment in and out of the classroom.

 

2. We have high academic and behavioral expectations.
   High expectations demand significant amounts of extra support before, during, and after school and on Saturdays.

 

3. We know that without great teachers, nothing else matters.
   Teachers must have the time and professional tools and resources to do their jobs effectively.

At Boston Collegiate Charter School, we do not believe that there is a panacea that makes a school work. Nor do we pretend that what we do is "rocket science" or necessarily innovative. We work hard and use common sense because elevating student achievement and transforming lives requires constant attention to hundreds of different elements - not one, magical 100% solution but rather one hundred, individual 1% solutions. Core elements of BCCS's design include:

Make More Time
To ensure that every student masters each and every standard, BCCS provides more time on task. This means a longer school year and school day, mandatory homework help, mandatory after school tutoring, mandatory four-hour Saturday School for struggling students, and 1½-2 hours of English and Math daily.

Emphasize College
For too many at-risk students, college only exists in the abstract. At BCCS, freshman year of college is a natural extension of graduating from high school.

Focus on Literacy
A majority of 5th grade students enter BCCS reading below grade level. If a school does not address this dramatic and central issue immediately, students will be at a huge disadvantage in all subjects in high school and college.

Target Curriculum Focused on Basic Skills
BCCS does not use an off-the-shelf curriculum. Like other high-performing urban charter schools, BCCS develops curriculum directly from the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks that ensures students master a core set of basic academic skills before they can master higher-level, abstract material.

Assess Early and Often to Drive the Instructional Program
The most effective schools use assessment to diagnose student needs, measure instructional impact, and build a culture of continuous reflection and improvement.

Provide Structure and Order
Students need a safe and orderly environment to be productive. BCCS creates a calm, composed, and disciplined environment to maximize the amount of time on-task, including a strictly enforced school dress code, a merit and demerit system that defines clear expectations for and immediate responses to positive and negative behavior, a rubric system that provides constant feedback to classes, and a common Blackboard Configuration consisting of a Do Now, Focus, Agenda, and Homework.