About Us

The History of KIPP

The Knowledge is Power Program (KIPP) began in 1995 when two Teach for America corps alumni, Mike Feinberg and Dave Levin, launched an intensive 5th grade academic program at Houston's Garcia Elementary School. Feinberg and Levin's students achieved such academic success that the following year Feinberg founded KIPP academy Houston and Levin founded KIPP Academy in the South Bronx, NY. Their schools' successes received national attention when the television program 60 Minutes aired a special on the KIPP schools.

In 2000, Don and Doris Fisher, founders of GAP, Inc., formed a unique partnership with Feinberg and Levin to replicate the success of KIPP. Stemming from the belief that great schools require great leaders, they established a school leadership training program called the Fisher Fellowship Program. The program recruits, selects, and trains excellent educators to plan, open, and lead their own KIPP schools.

Today, there are 57 KIPP schools in 17 states and the District of Columbia.

KIPP DC

Susan Schaeffler, KIPP DC's founder, was in the inaugural class of KIPP Fisher Fellows. After completing the year-long KIPP school leadership training program, Schaeffler and a team of dedicated teachers founded KIPP DC: KEY Academy in 2001. KEY opened with 80 5th grade students in the basement of Garden Memorial Presbyterian Church in Anacostia.

Today, KIPP DC serves over 800 students on four campuses in Washington, DC. KEY Academy is now at full capacity serving more than 320 students in grades 5 through 8 in the historic "Blue Castle" building in Southeast Washington, DC. In school years 2003-2004, 2004-2005, and 2005-2006 KEY Academy was the highest-performing public middle school in the District.

KIPP DC: AIM Academy opened for the 2005-2006 school year with 88 5th grade students in the Congress Heights Methodist Church building in Southeast Washington, D.C. KIPP DC: WILL Academy opened with 85 fifth-graders for the 2006-2007 school year. KIPP DC: LEAP Academy opened with 95 pre-kindergarten students for the 2007-2008 school year. With this success as the foundation, KIPP DC will open a high school, an additional early childhood school, and an elementary school in 2009. Over the next decade, KIPP DC will expand to 10 campuses, reaching over 3,400 students in Washington, D.C.

The Five Pillars

KIPP Schools operate under the Five Pillars, developed by Feinberg and Levin, which create the foundation for KIPP schools' success. The Five Pillars are:

• High Expectations
• Choice and Commitment
• More Time on Task
• Power to Lead
• Focus on Results