Program areas at WLPCS
Washington Latin pcs offers a classical education for the modern world as a small network of Public Charter schools that is open to students who reside in the district of columbia. Our current enrollment is 741 students at our 2nd street campus (grades 5-12), and 285 students at the anna julia cooper campus (grades 5-7) which opened in 2022. We aim for a diverse and representative student body and have enrolled students from each of the eight wards in each of our 18 years. Any student in grades 5 through 12 who is eager to learn and willing to work for an excellent education will find our program rewarding and will, upon graduation, be prepared for work or college.our organization's primary sources of support are local appropriations for Public schools from the district of columbia and federal entitlement funding through the office of the state superintendent of education. In addition, we collect student activity fees. Washington Latin also receives grants and donations from foundations, corporations, and individuals. Curriculum and instruction: inherent in our School's design is a purposeful tension between the ideals of the classical approach to education and the mindset of the modern times in which we live. As a classical School, we align ourselves with the established wisdom of the ancients, particularly the cultures of greece and rome. At the same time, we strive to convey these legacies in an environment and culture that includes some of the best of contemporary life: a commitment to a diverse student body and a variety of pedagogies. We use both the ancient methods of repetition and socratic dialogue, as well as the contemporary innovations of technology and cooperative learning. This balance between classical and modern is explored through a broad, liberal arts curriculum that explores truth, beauty, and goodness. the liberal arts offer students a multifaceted view of the world and enables students to be global citizens. We encourage them to question their assumptions and see beyond their perspective. It produces confidence, empathy, and flexibility. Our goal is to promote the development of the autonomous self and encourage students to pursue their fuller humanity.we have a very stable faculty who bring their instructional expertise and passion for their subject matter to the classroom. We also maintain a commitment to small class sizes so that every teacher can offer personalized attention to students, including those with special needs (disability, language difference, etc. During the 2020-21 School year, we instituted a 1:1 technology program to ensure that all students could access our School's curriculum during the covid pandemic and distance learning; that program continues and ensures access today, both in School and at home. Below are highlights of Washington Latin's record of accomplishments:washington Latin is in its 18th year and has successfully met the requirements of our authorizer, the dc Public Charter School board, which renewed our Charter in 2022. We are also accredited by cognia (2023-29).every year since it opened, the School has enrolled students from all eight wards. Our student body is diverse, and our racial demographics mirror those of the city. Washington Latin is in high demand; this year, more than 3,700 students applied through the dc common lottery for fewer than 220 available seats at both campuses.due to this ever-growing demand, we opened a second campus the anna julia cooper campus - in august 2022 for 163 students in grades 5 and 6. In 2023-24, we added 7th grade and will continue to add a grade each year until reaching full enrollment 740 students in grades 5-12.together with Washington yu ying (a peer dc Charter School), Washington Latin purchased a School facility at 4301 harewood road in september 2022. This campus will serve as the permanent home of our cooper campus beginning in the fall of 2025. We are currently planning new construction and renovations of this facility, in partnership with yu ying, which will share the site with our cooper campus.in recent dc-wide standardized testing (parcc assessment, administered each spring), Washington Latin students scored at or near the top of both english/language arts (ela) and mathematics tests. In fact, our ela scores were the highest of any non-selective dcps or Public Charter School in the district.our first class graduated in 2012; the class of 2024 will be our 13th graduating class. Our first two graduating classes had the highest graduation rates (93% and 96%) of any non-selective Public School in the district. the graduation rate for the class of 2023 was 96.25%.the class of 2023 received more than $23,000,000 in college scholarships. Past graduates have won prestigious awards including posse scholarships, children's defense fund beat the odds scholarships, george Washington university trachtenberg scholarships, the hbcu week x fossi stem scholarship, and the herbert h. denton jr. Scholarship. We have had one gates millennium scholarship finalist.our faculty is very stable, particularly in comparison to other Public Charter schools in dc and nationally. We have a total retention rate of 85-90% annually, and more than one quarter of our faculty have been with us for 10 years or more. We are especially proud that so many of our own graduates have returned to work at our schools; 10% of our faculty are Washington Latin alumni.