EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
In 2019, more than 200,000 children attended low-performing schools in New York City — schools where only one in five students were reading on grade level, graduation rates hovered around 50%, and fewer than 40% of students left high school prepared for college. These schools were concentrated in the city’s highest-poverty, most under-resourced neighborhoods. To confront these inequities, Robin Hood launched the $14 million High-Quality Schools Fund (HQSF), a bold philanthropic initiative designed to expand access to excellent schools. The goal was simple but urgent: to give more students access to schools that deliver rigorous academics, support social and emotional development, and put young people on a path to economic mobility.
High-quality schools are one of the most effective tools for creating upward economic mobility. Students who graduate from high school and go on to college can expect to earn hundreds of thousands more over their life- times. They are more likely to be employed, healthy, and civically engaged, and less likely to live in poverty. Investing in excellent schools is not just about education; it’s about equity, opportunity, and lasting change.
The HQSF pursued a three-pronged strategy: (1) launch new charter schools, (2) redesign existing district schools, and (3) support sector-wide learning through district-charter partnerships. Each investment was designed both to serve students directly and to inform broader research and practice through evaluations from Columbia University’s Center for Public Research and Leadership and the RAND Corporation.
4 ROBIN HOOD HIGH-QUALITY SCHOOLS FUND REPORT
ROBIN HOOD HIGH-QUALITY SCHOOLS FUND REPORT 5
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