Spectrum Academy Charter School

Final Status Report

Robin Engel

Zen Benefiel

University of Phoenix

January 30, 2003

Professor: R. D. Bates

Spectrum Academy Charter School Status Report

            This paper is the status report on the development of a charter school. This paper will discuss the strategic plan, plan status, budget, staffing, and other issues. Included in the discussion will be an overview of the project, preliminary organizational chart, communication plan, manager responsibilities, and specific areas of attention. In addition to the previous items we will also cover high level WBS tasks with schedules, network diagrams, critical path, deliverables, costs, technology, resources, and potential problems with contingencies.

Overview

            The objective of this project is to define and assess the requirements for the development of a charter school. The result will be the opening of the charter school. Diverse learning ability and cognitive skills are a primary focus of this type of environment and will be incorporated in the design and infrastructure of the facility. Many pieces of these educational processes have been developed individually in alternative, charter, public or private schools to date. We shall bring these necessary tools together to facilitate a resurgence of true scientific inquiry, engaging mind, body and spirit in the process of education.

The parent organization, Be The Dream, will function as the non-profit organization responsible for developing the charter and facilitating the organizational development. The goal of the organization is to develop educational delivery systems that meet the current and future needs of students, primarily in the secondary arena. The creation of a charter school that demonstrates the application of this goal fits the overall goal of the organization. This project includes mandatory and alternative curricula that meet the needs of the individual student, support groups for processing through educational barriers, and the support staff necessary to administer and facilitate the educational environment. The integration of arts, science, and technology provides a balanced approach to meeting the educational goals of the school and students. Students properly prepared have the greatest chance of success in life.

Organizational Development

The functional areas of the project are three-fold. The Education area is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the school, including administration, curricula development and implementation, and staff training and development. The Commercial area is responsible for the strategic plan to meet Arizona State requirements, developing business partnerships, and product development of saleable results. The Community area is responsible for outreach programs, after school programs, and adult education opportunities. These areas all form the core of the project. It is apparent that they overlap to meet the requirements of a functional relationship. We will be introducing the term “jobarchy” as the name for this type of structure. Its three-fold relationship creates a unique and synergistic service toward meeting the needs of the job. The job is the boss and everyone wins in the end. It is anticipated that many new lexicons will be developed as the project continues to grow, each serving as new jargon in the educational and business worlds.

Jobarchy serves as both a structural foundation and a communications methodology. Ideally, the core team consists of 3 to 5 people who bring the necessary skill sets. The structural foundation may not be identical in the development of this organization, yet the ultimate purpose is to serve the mission. It allows the freedom to make critical assessments and reflections of what is needed for the project’s success in terms of labor, materials, and resources. Once this analysis is made, the jobarchical structure communicates functional tasks as a work breakdown schedule unfolds. It becomes the ultimate team effort and the players trade off in the role of facilitator within their areas of expertise, or as required by the work itself. The basic organizational chart and areas of focus are below:

Communication Plan

“Communication plans should be divided into two categories: project communications and constituent communications. Project communications include the interaction that is required in order to deliver the engagement with quality. Included in this category are the project plan itself, the memos and status reports that the team distributes to one another, the team meetings, and the minutes that are issued from them. In the realm of constituent communications are the executive briefings, auditorium presentations, newsletters, "lunch and learn" sessions, posters, brochures, focus groups, and feedback mechanisms like e-mail and voicemail suggestion boxes.” (Freedman, 2000)

Due to the nature of the project it is imperative that facilitators in each major area of focus are continually updated and aware of the progress. Best practices in pro-active management include up-to-the-minute reporting in order to anticipate and resolve problems before they have a chance to impede progress of the project. Along with the items mentioned above we will be including e-room, net-meetings, and video-conferencing via the Internet. Technology use will be an asset of the curriculum and functioning of the school. Demonstrating its use in the development of the project is a key feature of the process and stakeholder training. An IT partner will be utilized by the Project Manager to ensure appropriate systems are in place.

“We would not presume that all communication plans reflect these findings. We're sure there are exceptions. However, based upon all the other findings within How We Communicate, we believe it is fair to say that; overall...Corporate America is not focused on designing behavioral- and performance-based communication plans. And if we can't create communication plans that reflect our drive for performance and behavioral change, how can we expect to simplify work and decision-making?” (Jensen, 2000)

Investigating the communication requirements of the major phases of the WBS determines the key elements of the communication plan. The WBS for the project includes the following major areas within the three-fold project: strategic planning, curricula, training, State fulfillment, business partnerships, distribution channels, community outreach, after school programs, and adult education. The Education, Commerce, and Community group facilitator determines the lines and types of communication necessary to properly serve their group, while maintaining the integrity of open communication philosophy.

Responsibilities

The Education Group facilitator shares the vision and has an in-depth understanding of educational systems, including effective school administration, exemplary exceptional student services, outstanding curricula and faculty development, rapport-building student promotion and retention, and innovative information technology systems.  The Commerce Group facilitator also shares the vision and has an equally in-depth understanding of State and Federal laws and regulations, creating collaborative alliances, supply chain integration, sales and marketing, and information technology. The Community Group facilitator shares the vision as well and has a mastery of marketing school programs, adult education programs, grant research and writing, after-school program development, and information technology. The Project Manager holds the vision and has an understanding and mastery of strategic planning, educational and organizational development, business administration, and information systems integration.

WBS and Network Diagrams

            The major areas of focus are the Exploration, Application, Pre-Operations, and Operations phases. The high and second-level tasks in the WBS are outlined below.

Be The Dream Charter School WBS                                       422d

Exploration                                                                   115d

Investigate State Laws & Policies                                  32d

Review Charter Agency Policies                                   26d

Assemble Core Founding Group & Experts                  20d

Design Comprehensive School Plan      37d

Application                                                                   237d

Drafting Charter                                                            110d

Sample other charters                                                   20d

Get letters of support                                                    10d

Apply research                                                             6d

Develop rough draft                                                      69d

Edit and finalize                                                 15d

Charter Approval                                                         127d

Pre-Operations                                                 212d

Detailed Plan of Operations and Timeline                      17d

Establish Formal Organization                           97d

Develop Formal Operating Agreements             180d

Recruit/Admit Students                                     77d

Recruit/Hire Staff                                                          60d

Secure Facility and Support Services                            45d

Formalize Instructional Program                                    45d

Operations                                                                   70d

Formally Open Doors                                                   60d

Identify and Address Glitches & Constraints                  5d

Transition Governance Structure                                   5d

Establish Formal Relationships                          10d

Refine Curriculum and Instruction                                  10d

Collect/Interpret Student Performance Data                  10d

            There are several ways of presenting the WBS. In addition to the above breakdown chart, the network diagrams below further define the focus areas and tasks involved. The third and fourth level tasks complete with costs and resources will reflect the baseline schedule/budget.

First Level WBS Network Diagram

Second and Third Level WBS Network Diagrams

Critical Path

            The critical path was found to be contained in the Application phase, with Pre-Operations phase containing the second critical path. The critical path in the Application phase was determined by the potential time for the charter approval, from drafting to actual approval. Its duration was determined to be 237 days. The second critical path was found in the Establish Formal Organization task in the Pre-Operations phase. Its time was determined to be 212 days. This path includes Write and Submit Grants, Receive Funding, Hire Staff, and Formalizing the Organization and Instructional Program. (See Appendix 1)

Deliverables and Responsibility

            The responsibility matrix is used to determine and demonstrate the various tasks and deliverables, along with the responsible personnel. For the purposes of this paper, the responsibility matrix that follows highlights the major deliverables of this project. The responsibility matrix legend appears after the matrix.