FLP Schedule Change

Dear FLP Parents and Families:

I hope this note finds you well and enjoying the summer break.

The summer began with a week-long College Readiness Camp for our 9th – 12th grade students. Last week, we hosted our annual “Senior Send Off” event, where we purchase dorm supplies for our budding college students and host a luncheon to discuss their personal “college roadmap.”

We are also busily preparing for the upcoming FLP academic year. To that end, we are implementing program changes that we believe will improve the quality of the FLP and strengthen the impact it makes on the students we serve.

As you know, the FLP now benefits more than 300 DISD students – grades 5 – 12. Because the DISD schools to which our students belong are now spread geographically (and some of our students are released from school later than others), many of our students are arriving late at our private partner schools on Tuesdays and Thursdays due to travel delays and scheduling difficulties. Some students travel more than 45 minutes each way (from South Dallas, West Dallas and Oak Cliff), and take part in only 30 – 45 minutes of actual class time each weekday. Many of you have reported the frustration of having your students spending so much time in transit to FLP classes. Some of our students are being denied the full benefit of the FLP classroom experience.

To address these concerns, we are moving to a Saturday schedule.

A schedule of 5 Saturdays per quarter (from 9:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.) will provide our students 20 hours of instruction time per quarter – versus the approximately 18 hours they currently receive. More importantly, it will allow us to give each and every student the full FLP classroom time they deserve. We have consulted with other urban education programs in our peer group, and many report better student attendance, focus and engagement, and success as a result of conducting weekend class sessions.

We have spoken with our partners at DISD, and they are very supportive of this change. Hockaday has graciously offered to host our first quarter, which begins on Saturday, September 17. Attached is the schedule for this upcoming academic year. We hope most of you can accommodate this change – and look forward to serving your child in the new academic year. If you are able to continue with us, our Super Saturday registration will be August 27, 2016 (location to be determined). We hope to see you there!

Thanks, as always, for your continued support of the FLP.

Best,

Brittany Brady