Short for the
Francis W. Parker Charter Essential School.
Parker is a progressive high school located on a former army base in Devens, Massachusetts. It follows a charter approved by the Massachusetts Board of Education, which allows Parker to follow their own curriculum and use their own techniques of administration.
Children who would typically be in grades 7-12 are eligible to enroll at Parker. Once within Parker, grades cease to exist and are replaced by three divisions, each taking approximately two years to complete (based on a student's performance.) Instead of grades, all feedback is given in the form of written assessments, based on a rubric for that field of study.
To pass through to the next division, a student must gateway by assembling a portfolio full of high-quality work and good assessments, and then giving a gateway presentation to a group of his peers and teachers. To graduate, a student must spend several months working on a senior project, which can consist of pretty much anything they are interested in. They must then present this project to the general public with a satisfactory degree of skill.