State funding for extended learning days is in jeopardy at two Boston middle schools because a top state education official believes the two schools have failed to use the extra time to adequately boost standardized test scores.
The James Timilty School in Roxbury, which emerged as a national model for its extended school day in the 1980s, and the Mario Umana Middle School Academy in East Boston could lose the funding for the next school year, a rare move by the state.
At risk is about $647,000 a year at the Umana School and $876,000 at the Timilty School — money that pays for teachers’ additional time in school, tutoring for students, and enrichment opportunities in athletics, the arts, and other areas.
The schools could escape the cuts if their scores on this spring’s Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System exams meet performance targets, Mitchell Chester, the state’s commissioner of elementary and secondary education, wrote in letters earlier this month to Superintendent Carol Johnson.
The schools have repeatedly missed performance targets on the exams and each ranks in the bottom 20 percent statewide on the MCAS, Chester wrote.
Even if the schools succeed, Chester wrote that he still might be forced to eliminate funding if state lawmakers reduce the allocation again for the extended learning program. Funding has dropped from $17.5 million two years ago to $13.9 million this year. The money is disbursed to 19 schools statewide.
“The Department has a fiduciary responsibility to ensure that state funds are maximized to support student achievement,’’ Chester wrote in the letters.
Chester was not available for comment on Friday.
If the schools lose the money, Boston school officials are unsure whether they could make up for the cost of the extended days, said Jeff Riley, academic superintendent for middle and K-8 schools.
But Riley stressed that he is optimistic that the schools will meet their MCAS targets. He said the district has provided teachers this year with more training and students with more tutoring, including during school vacation weeks, and that last year the two schools met several testing targets.
“Overall, I would say we believe in accountability and we want to hit the gains the state wants us to hit,’’ Riley said. “Time is an important factor to close achievement gaps.’’
The loss of funding would come at an inopportune time for the schools. The Umana School will be merging with a small elementary school in the fall to form a K-8 school as part of an effort to revitalize the under-enrolled Umana School.
READER COMMENTS »
View reader comments » Comment on this story »