The Senior High Alliance for Parents Principals and Educators

The overarching goal of S.H.A.P.P.E. in all of our work is to support the families and citizens of DC in their desire to sustain and grow a strong quality publicly managed school system.  We believe it is vital that DCPS be strengthened and maintained.  We believe that coming together to discuss and decide what is important for our children to learn, how individuals and schools will be evaluated and what the resources and supports needed are, is an integral part of maintaining a democracy.  We now have 66 separate school systems in DC with 65 of them managed by non- profit boards.  The share of students attending DCPS has fallen since Mayoral Control even as the city’s population has grown. 

S.H.A.P.P.E. continues to be a group working cooperatively on: promoting an equitable standard of resource and service distribution among public schools; expanding educational opportunities; a comprehensive approach to safety and health; and modernized facilities aligned with sound educational practice.  To achieve this we facilitate partnerships between parents, principals and educators in the 17 DCPS high schools. We also work to expand the direct communication between the high school communities and the public and private agencies that affect their work with young people.

S.H.A.P.P.E. will continue to advocate for strong education policy, a fair equitable budget, and sound evaluation tools to inform policy and practice and the necessary broader civic engagement to achieve a better education for our city’s young people.