Dear KIPP Northern California supporters,
At a time when the challenges facing our students and our public education system are significant, I draw inspiration from the resilience and resolve of our communities, the brilliance and optimism of our young people, and the support of all of you. The last three and half years have fundamentally shifted education and the trajectories of students across the country, disproportionately so in communities that have long faced systemic disinvestment and barriers to opportunity.
We know the pandemic exacerbated racial and economic inequities, and we know KIPP Northern California is still uniquely positioned to fulfill the promise of a high quality education. We are taking bold action to become stronger, better, and more effective—our students deserve nothing less.
For over 20 years, KIPP Northern California has operated on the simple but unshakeable belief that all students deserve an education that will allow them to unlock their full potential and pursue their dreams. I am deeply grateful to join forces with you as we continue in pursuit of a better world and, together, empower the young people who will create it.
In partnership,
Beth Thompson, CEO
Our Mission
Together with families and communities, we create joyful, academically excellent schools that prepare students with the skills and confidence to pursue the paths they choose—college, career, and beyond—so they can lead fulfilling lives and build a more just world.
Our Student Community
Since the founding of our first school in 2002, we have embarked on a transformative journey, growing to 21 schools across Northern California—with plans to open two additional schools in Stockton by 2025. Our school communities are vibrant, diverse, and filled with endless potential, and we celebrate the richness of our students’ backgrounds and experiences.
Our core priorities
We’re focusing on several key initiatives to ensure all students progress academically,
feel a sense of belonging at school, and are prepared for college, career, and beyond.
Early Literacy
Early Literacy
Being able to read and write is fundamental to a child’s success in school and in life. Our goal is for every student to read at grade level by the time they reach third grade. With that vision in mind, we have retooled our approach to early literacy, embracing new teaching practices in our elementary schools aligned to the science of teaching reading. Instruction in transitional kindergarten through 2nd grade classrooms largely focuses on core literacy skills, including vocabulary, letter naming, rhyming, alliteration, and letter sounds.
Kindergarten Literacy Results
Last school year, across KIPP Northern California, the percentage of kindergarteners who were reading at grade level grew from 18% at the beginning of the year to over 80% at the end of the year, far surpassing typical rates of growth for students nationally.
School Spotlight
We’re seeing the strongest student growth at our elementary schools that piloted the science of reading approach and have years of strong instructional practices in place around early literacy. For example, this past school year at KIPP Excelencia in Redwood City, all early grades succeeded in achieving average, above average, or well above average growth results from beginning of year to end of year assessments.
K - 8 Math
K - 8 Math
All students deserve access to engaging and challenging math instruction. We’re focused on making sure our elementary and middle school math instruction is meeting students where they are and preparing them for the rigor of high school.
One of our core instructional methods for reducing learning gaps in math is called interleaved practice. Interleaving empowers students to approach problem-solving from different angles, fostering a deep and flexible understanding of mathematics. By teaching students how to strategically select and apply various problem-solving techniques based on the unique demands of each math problem, we ensure that they not only master specific problems but also develop the adaptive thinking required to find solutions to a wide array of scenarios. Students are also provided with timely feedback, so they can see the solutions, ask questions, and correct errors.
"What we do, how well we do it, and understanding why we do it matters."
- Gabe Rodriguez, Associate Director of Middle School Academics
"What we do, how well we do it, and understanding why we do it matters."
- Gabe Rodriguez, Associate Director of Middle School Academics
School Spotlight
KIPP Heartwood in San José is a stellar example of what’s possible when teachers and leaders are committed to an academically challenging K-8 math curriculum. This past school year, middle school students at KIPP Heartwood exceeded the school’s previous Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) standardized test results in Math by 10 percentage points and exceeded the state average by 23 percentage points.
ACHieVeMENT SPOTLIGHT
Across our schools, students are largely achieving at rates higher than their peer groups—including students who are classifed as socio-economically disadvantaged (SED). Compared to like students across the state, our schools are outperforming the state average by at least 15 points in both Math and English Language Arts on the annual SBAC.
High School RIgor
High School RIgor
Our AP for All initiative works to end racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic gaps in Advanced Placement (AP) course enrollment at the high school level in order to better prepare students for college and career. Our students are taking AP tests at nearly three times the statewide average and passing at more than double the rate for all California students*. Nearly 100% of our senior students have taken at least one AP course throughout their high school tenure.
* Based on most recent publicly available state data.
This fall, U.S. News & World Report released their annual national Best High Schools Rankings, and all of our eligible high schools are once again ranked as the top open enrollment high school in their school districts. KIPP Northern California high schools are among the top 3% of all public high schools in the country.
A major study from Stanford University’s Center for Research on Education Outcomes highlighted KIPP Northern California as a “gap-busting” network that is providing strong proof that high-quality public education is possible anywhere. Our students gained significantly more learning—about 80 additional days of learning in Math and 70 additional days of learning in reading compared to non-KIPP schools. That is equivalent to three and half months of additional learning in reading and four months of additional learning in Math in one school year.
ALumni Success
ALumni Success
At KIPP, we’re not just focused on the results our KIPPsters achieve while they are in our schools. We’re proud to offer our students and recent alumni access to personalized and data-informed college and career counseling through our best-in-class KIPP Forward model. As a public school system, we make a unique promise to our students and their families—that we will follow and support our students and alumni on their post-secondary paths, and ultimately measure our success by what happens after our students graduate from KIPP.
Earlier this year, Mathematica released the latest of their third-party, independent research in a 15-year study of the long-term impacts of attending KIPP schools. The study shows that students who attended and graduated from KIPP were nearly twice as likely to earn their 4-year degrees as their peers who applied to enter our open-enrollment, non-selective KIPP schools but were not chosen in the random lottery.
The report found that the college completion rate of KIPP alumni, if extrapolated nationwide, would completely close the degree completion gap for Black students and nearly close the degree completion gap for Latinx students in the United States.
Through KIPP Forward, we’re supporting students to discover what a fulfilling life means to them, then break through any barrier that dares stand in their way of achieving it. KIPP supports students to choose and prepare for the educational and career paths that fit their goals and sense of purpose. Once on their way, KIPP Forward teams help alumni keep moving forward, tackling academic, social, and financial challenges they might encounter while pursuing their dreams. And through the National KIPP Alumni Network, our KIPP family is creating powerful connections, and ascending together with networking, mentorship, leadership training, and more.
Across the country, KIPPsters are making their mark. They are earning degrees, building businesses, reforming policy, serving their communities, and rising through the ranks of companies and organizations throughout the nation. Together, they’re creating a future without limits. For themselves. For all those who will follow them. And for us all.
Developing leaders
Developing leaders
We’re making sure that our teachers, school leaders, and staff get the support and professional development they need to thrive, from regular coaching to hone their instructional practices to free therapy via our Mental Health for All initiative. KIPP teachers are united by a common belief in the ability of all students to achieve academic excellence. We equip our teachers with opportunities for professional growth through individual coaching and ongoing professional development.
We believe people are more successful and more likely to persist in leadership roles when we invest in their training and development as early as possible. Our new Principal-in-Residence program provides mentorship, coaching, cohort support, and transition planning to talented and experienced instructional leaders preparing to become principals. Through the program, our residents develop a strong instructional background, a commitment to creating identity-affirming learning experiences, and the leadership necessary to lead great schools. Currently, 40% of residents are in their final year of the program and are on track to become KIPP principals next year.
Our students’ identities are reflected by our team. Research shows that students learn better when they feel represented by their teachers. Our instructional team is racially diverse and uses teaching approaches that affirm the identities and background of all of our students.
Join us in creating a better world and empowering the young people who will create it.