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Arcadia Charter School reports improved academic measures, enrollment rebound and budget cuts that preserved fund balance
Summary
Director Laura Stelter told the board Arcadia focused on equitable, project-based learning, adopted an illustrative math curriculum for most grades, achieved a 100% graduation rate (five-year view), returned to high MCA participation after COVID and ended the last fiscal year with a positive fund balance after targeted staffing cuts.
Laura Stelter, director of Arcadia Charter School, presented the school's 2024 annual report to the Northfield Public School Board on Jan. 13.
Stelter said Arcadia uses an Arcadia Rubric that emphasizes progressive education, equity and inclusion, growth and transition, and project-based learning. She told the board the school has an unusually high special education population — roughly 40% of students — and works to support multilingual learners by allowing them to use multiple languages in curriculum work.
Stelter reported improved assessment participation and outcomes after the COVID-era dip: MCA participation rose from about 40% in 2021 back to roughly 90-100% in recent years, and Arcadia reported strong reading and science scores. She said math was a recurring concern and that the school responded by adopting the Illustrative Mathematics curriculum across grades 6–9 (Algebra 2 remained teacher-created for a transition year) and by moving to more frequent data collection (fall/winter/spring MAP testing) and curriculum-based measures.
Stelter said the school made difficult staffing decisions to stabilize finances. Arcadia cut about 2.0 FTE teaching positions and now reports 7.8 FTE general education staff. She said the changes allowed the school to move some courses to everyday instruction, increase instructional time in English and social studies, and create a math-team approach that includes general and special educators collaborating on instruction and data.
On graduation and postsecondary measures, Stelter said the school's five-year graduation rate is 100% (one student finished late but has since graduated), eight students participated in PSEO last year and the average ACT score for the most recent year was 25.7 (noted as higher than the national average). She said Arcadia continues to require a senior project; every senior completes one.
Regarding enrollment and finances, Stelter said Arcadia's ADM (average daily membership) dipped during the COVID years and because of a small 6th-grade cohort last year, but enrollment recovered to 118 for the current year and ADM is projected around 113. Financially, the school ended the year with $50,000 added to fund balance (after earlier projections of a $150,000 deficit) and now projects positive balances of $23,000 this year and $79,000 next year. She described a five-year projection and plans to maintain a high fund balance to smooth small-year enrollment swings.
Board members asked questions about the senior projects and student transition supports. Stelter described a wide range of senior projects — examples included a student-built metal sign and welded tree sculpture, furniture with an epoxy finish made in collaboration with Cannon Valley Makers, and a biology-centered project with mentoring from Carleton College faculty. Regarding 6th-grade transition, she described intentional mixed-grade activities during the opening expedition, advisories and targeted social events for incoming students.
Stelter credited community support and noted Arcadia has taken steps to meet greater scrutiny of charter finances by planning ahead and preserving reserves.
