Superintendent of Schools Dr. Evonne Alvarez has written a letter to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education expressing Lynn Public Schools’ strong opposition to a potential increase in the number of charter school seats, which could cost the district an additional $24 million in state funding.

With LPS moving into the lowest 10 percent of districts in the state based on MCAS scores from 2022 and 2023, that doubles the percentage of the district’s Chapter 70 funding that can be directed to charter schools, from nine to 18 percent. If KIPP Academy, the lone charter school in the city, were to be approved for the maximum number of additional seats, LPS would lose $24 million in Chapter 70 revenue in addition to the $30 million that is currently directed to charter school tuition, bringing the total to $54 million. That would result in significant cuts to staff and programming, Alvarez said.

“These decisions will have long-lasting impacts on our students and communities,” Alvarez wrote to DESE Acting Commissioner Russell Johnson, in a letter dated Sept. 24, 2024. “We need more time to demonstrate the impact of our efforts in serving all students, particularly vulnerable student populations.”

Alvarez pointed out that in 2024 three Lynn elementary schools – Drewicz, Harrington and Hood – exited the Requiring Assistance category that DESE applies to the lowest-performing schools, leaving 11 schools with that classification. There were 12 schools that increased in overall percentile.

“We are proud of our work and know we will continue to improve,” she wrote. “In the interest of fairness and equity, we look forward to understanding how we can partner to better support the future of our students.”

A focal point in LPS’ appeal is the data DESE is using in the most recent ranking is based on the first two school years coming off the COVID-19 pandemic, which, Alvarez argues, had a disproportionate impact in communities such as Lynn. For example, the poverty rate in Lynn was 48 percent in 2019 and 78 percent in 2023. In that same period, the percentage of economically disadvantaged students in LPS increased from 58 to 74 percent.

According to a report published by the Annenburg Institute in 2023, LPS has enrolled more newcomers than any district in the state except Boston. In 2022, Lynn English High School enrolled 328 newcomers, which was six percent of all newcomers in the state. Lynn Classical enrolled 273 newcomers, which was five percent of the state total and comprised 15 percent of the school’s total population.

“Yet, Lynn Public Schools has been classified in the lowest 10% of the 2024 school ranking without considering how this classification perpetuates existing inequalities and undermines our commitment to inclusive practices,” Alvarez said. “The ranking facilitates the expansion of charter schools that do not serve the population of students enrolled in Lynn Public Schools, nor are reflective of the larger Lynn community.”

Alvarez pointed out that the percentage of students who are English Language Learners (ELL) in LPS is 43 percent, compared to 15 percent at KIPP Academy Charter School, which has an enrollment of approximately 1,600 students in grades K-12, according to figures published by the Mass. Department of Education.

Alvarez noted the steps LPS is taking to repair learning loss from the pandemic, including lowering class sizes, High Quality Instruction Materials (HQIM), providing multi-tiered systems of support and increasing emphasis on social emotional learning using a clinical model.

Alvarez said a cut in revenue resulting from an expansion in charter school seats would negate revenue the district is receiving in Student Opportunity Act (SOA) funding, which was $18 million this year. She urged DESE to not allow charter school expansion at least until the full seven years of SOA funding has been implemented, in 2027.