NewSchools is developing a set of city-based funds that aim to drive impact for students in specific communities. Our City Funds draw expertise from what we have learned over time through our investments in innovative entrepreneurial organizations, seeking to replicate some of the highest-impact work. The goal of NewSchools’ City Funds is to support the growth of entrepreneurial organizations that improve education in specific low-income communities, particularly via a thriving sector of high-performing public charter schools. We are currently operating City Funds in Washington, DC and Boston, MA.
Washington, DC
NewSchools’ DC Schools Fund (DCSF) seeks to improve the opportunities of public school students in Washington, DC—particularly those from historically underserved communities—by strengthening the city’s charter schools. DCSF is supported by national and local funders, and is designed to:
- Increase the number of high-performing public schools in Washington, DC
- Broaden the number of effective support organizations that can help these schools address key challenges,
- Build a sustainable constituency for reform among families and residents.
Boston, MA
NewSchools’ Boston Charter School Replication Fund (the Boston Fund) was created to ensure the successful expansion of high-performing charter schools in order to increase the number of students they can serve. Our investment plan concentrates resources on five of the most promising, highest-performing charter school operators in Boston, including Edward W. Brooke Charter School, Excel Academy, KIPP Academy, MATCH Charter School, and Roxbury Prep.
If these schools continue to perform at their current levels as they grow to larger scale, their success will have a significant impact on the overall achievement gap in Boston. At a student level, this means new opportunity and hope for thousands of high-need children in Boston, by preparing them for success in college and beyond. At a policy level, we expect that the replication of these world-class schools will help to accelerate reform within the Boston public Schools (BPS), while leading to more effective collaboration between BPS and the charter sector. By helping these emerging school networks achieve larger scale and impact, we hope to create a proof point of unprecedented excellence in urban education that will have a catalytic effect on the broader public education system throughout Massachusetts and beyond.