Success Academy Harlem 3 - New York, NY

At Success Academy Harlem 3, we believe in every child's potential. We expect our scholars will not only excel in elementary school, but will enroll in and graduate from college; it is our job to lay the groundwork by imparting learning at a deep level, building critical thinking skills, and engaging them in the joy of discovery.

Our progressive, child-centered approach and rigorous curriculum set the bar high, but we believe school should be a place where children would want to come even if they didn't have to. So our scholars also study chess, art, music, dance -we have a dance team- and field studies take them all over the city.

With a student body 96% black or Latino and 82% eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, Success Academy Harlem 3 not only closed the achievement gap, but reversed it. We're in the top 1% in math and the top 2% in literacy among all New York State schools, and all our fourth-graders earned the top rating on the state science exam- including our special-education students.

We're particularly proud of our special-needs children, who make up 11% of our students. Supported by teachers who address their individual needs, they far outperform general-education peers in the city and state, with 54% proficient in English and 67% in math.

Our secret weapon is our families. They are partners in everything we do. Together, we build a strong foundation for learning, foster scholars' curiosity about the world and give them confidence about their place in it.