Hope applied for and received funding in 2000 to deepen its self-assessment processes through a regular review of teacher assignments and student work. Several Hope staff participated in reviews of other schools and developed into expert trainers in Self-Assessment for new schools. Hope continues to use Self-Assessment to guide hiring decisions, parent involvement strategies, and new grants that it pursues. In the principal’s words, “Self-Assessment has given me a clear map of where to go.”

Hope was recently included in a list of high-poverty, high-performing schools by Education Trust (2001) in a national study titled Dispelling the Myth Revisited: Preliminary Findings from an Analysis of ‘High-Flying’ Schools due to its impressive gains in student performance on standardized tests.

Hope’s Teaching and Learning Goals

1. All students will be literate (literacy as cultural awareness, lifelong learning, analytical and creative thinking, problem-solving, and oral, visual, and textual communication).
2. Create and maintain a nurturing environment.
3. Staff will seek the cooperation and participation of parents and others in supporting and reinforcing school efforts.