Making ambitious choices is what Partnership Schools is all about—now, more than ever.

The Partnership Class of 2022—the first class to have known only a Partnership education from Kindergarten through 8th grade—is now halfway through their first year in high school. They are beating the odds, as you’ll see in the following pages—and our network, which began as a bold experiment a decade ago, is now a proven model. We have much to celebrate and much yet to achieve.

Partnership students’ progress is no happy accident. It is the consequence of academic, operational, and financial decisions we’ve made every year since the Partnership began. This report reflects the outcomes of decisions that include:

Selecting and implementing a knowledge-rich, academically rigorous curriculum for all students beginning in PreK—and maintaining that focus on grade-level rigor even amid the worst of the pandemic in 2020.

Always putting students first, even when that meant shutting our doors to protect our communities (in Spring 2020) and reopening our doors months before our charter and public school peers (in Fall 2020);

Eliminating barriers to enrollment and dramatically increasing the number of at-risk students served in both New York and Cleveland;

Answering the call to expand our impact by welcoming four schools in Cleveland—two in 2020 and two more in fall 2022;

Making bold asks of our most loyal supporters on behalf of the children and families we serve.

Today, the challenges our communities face are greater than they have been in decades. Our students need us to be bolder and more ambitious than ever before. Our experience has prepared us to help even the most struggling students in the communities we serve. Buoyed by your support of our work, we know we can rise to meet the moment and act with courage and conviction on behalf of the second generation of Partnership students.

We can’t say it enough: thank you for deciding to make a new day possible for thousands of children and the schools that serve them.

JILL KAFKA,EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR KATHLEEN PORTER-MAGEE, SUPERINTENDENT

What was once a bold experiment... 10 YEARS