Investment Supports Expansion of High School Academy Network – Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

The National Academy Foundation (NAF), the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and the Weill Family Foundation announced today an investment of $10 million to support and expand a network of more than 500 academies with a proven track record of raising high school graduation rates. The NAF Academies represent a high-quality model for high school reform that is an important component of any comprehensive strategy to raise graduation rates and prepare students for college, work, and citizenship. Across its network, NAF Academies boast an average graduation rate of 90 percent, well above the 68 to 71 percent national rate and 50 percent rate for minorities.

At a press conference today at Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis High School for International Studies, Sanford (Sandy) I. Weill, chairman emeritus of Citigroup and chairman of NAF, and John Ferrandino, president of NAF, were joined by Tom Vander Ark, executive director for Education initiatives at the Gates Foundation. Mr. Ferrandino announced that the Gates Foundation will invest $5 million in the NAF model. The Weill Family Foundation will match the Gates Foundation’s investment dollar-for-dollar with its own $5-million grant. Together, these grants will enable NAF to enhance its current model and replicate that model in key urban school districts across the country.

Visit the NAF Web site to read the full announcement.