Achievement First

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Closing the achievement gap is the civil rights issue of our time. From the moment students arrive at Achievement First schools, they are held to high expectations built around the belief that they can and will achieve academic success.

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All Achievement First students know they can and will go to college.

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The culture at our schools is one of rigor and joy—you can sense the urgency and energy when you enter an Achievement First school. Our lessons are geared to engage students and foster a lifelong love of learning.

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Achievement First schools emphasize the REACH values—Respect, Enthusiasm, Achievement, Citizenship and Hard Work.

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At Achievement First, we believe all children can succeed when presented with the right educational opportunities. Across the Achievement First network, our students—low-income, African-American and Latino students—are outpacing their state and district peers.

For the third consecutive year in as many graduating classes, 100 percent of seniors have gained acceptance to four-year colleges and universities.

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We work hard every day to close the achievement gap and deliver on the promise of equal educational opportunity for all children, regardless of race, economic status or zip code. Our first priority is to provide a truly outstanding, gap-closing education to our thousands of students.

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We believe a great education can level the playing field, break the cycle of poverty and create a brighter future for all of us.

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Achievement First is proud to serve special education students, English Language Learners, talented and gifted students, and all other students accepted through our blind lotteries. We don’t have admission requirements or interviews, and there are no admission or tuition fees.

Students, teachers and parents work as a team to achieve success.

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At Achievement First, we help individual students, entire schools and partner districts close the achievement gap. We are committed to engaging volunteer tutors, increasing public awareness, and advocating for public policies that would support education reform and the expansion of high-quality school choices.

We host hundreds of visitors—including community members, elected officials and educators—in our schools each year.

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People matter mightily at Achievement First. We spare no effort to recruit the best teachers, school leaders, subject-area and functional experts, and operations specialists from around the country, provide them with outstanding professional development, and create opportunities that will inspire and support them in their careers.

We develop, recognize and reward teachers through constant professional development and the Teacher Career Pathway.

Achievement First Results in New York

Achievement First’s New York network has been growing and achieving at high standards since New York City Schools Chancellor Joel Klein invited us to expand to Brooklyn, NY, in August 2005. We are pleased to share the 2012 New York state test results of our oldest elementary and middle school students. To view 2012 New York state test results for each of our New York schools, please visit their individual school pages under the Schools section.

Elementary

Achievement First opened its first New York elementary schools—Achievement First Crown Heights Elementary and Achievement First East New York Elementary—in August 2005 and Achievement First Bushwick Elementary in August 2006. We have since opened additional elementary schools—Achievement First Brownsville Elementary in August 2008, Achievement First Apollo Elementary in August 2010 and Achievement First Endeavor Elementary in August 2011. While Achievement First Eneavor Elementary and Achievement First Apollo Elementary continue to grow by one grade level each year, Achievement First Crown Heights Elementary, Achievement First East New York Elementary, Achievement First Brownsville Elementary and Achievement First Bushwick Elementary offer a full K to fourth grade complement. The graph below compares the New York state test scores for Achievement First’s oldest elementary students to those of their district and statewide peers. In math and English Language Arts proficiency, our fourth graders outperformed their district peers by 32 percentage points and their statewide peers by 13 percentage points.

Middle

Achievement First opened its first New York middle school—Achievement First Crown Heights Middle—in August 2005, followed by Achievement First Endeavor Middle in August 2006, Achievement First Bushwick Middle in August 2007 and Achievement First East New York Middle in August 2009. While Achievement First East New York Middle and Achievement First Brownsville Middle continue to grow by one grade level each year, Achievement First Crown Heights Middle and Achievement First Endeavor Middle offer a full fifth to eighth grade complement. The graph below compares the New York state test scores of Achievement First’s oldest middle school students to those of their district and statewide peers. In math and English Language Arts proficiency, our eighth graders outperformed their district peers by 34 percentage points and their statewide peers by 15 percentage points.

High

Achievement First opened its first high school—Amistad-Elm City High—in August 2006 (the school was renamed Achievement First Amistad High in 2011). Achievement First Brooklyn High School, which shares best practices with Achievement First Amistad High School, opened in 2009. During the 2012-13 school year, Achievement First Brooklyn High School served ninth, 10th and 11th grade students, adding a grade each year toward offering a full ninth to 12th grade complement. The graph below compares the New York State Regents Exam scores of Achievement First 10th graders to those of their district and statewide peers. At proficiency, Achievement First ninth, 10th and 11th graders outperformed their district peers by 30 percentage points and their statewide peers by 18 percentage points.